Since I am someone who grew up with the internet I honestly couldn’t imagine my life without it. But don’t get me wrong there are still days where I feel so tired of it that i think about giving it up. I mean how heathy in Instagram, TikTok, Snapchat or Facebook anyway. Yes i do think about this and then I freak out and don’t do anything about it as I realize that my whole life and personality is based on having access to all these things. Who would I become if I couldn’t scroll for hours on TikTok watching edits or if I couldn’t snap my friends everyday or watch shows for hours on streaming services. Do I think this is healthy, no , but its key aspects of my life that I am scared to change. I mean even Spotify, music is my life how could I get rid of that. Yes i have my CDs but that’s not the same as listening to my playlist that is over 100 hours long and has every song I like, and some that I kind of don’t, on it.
With this last class it really made me realize just how dependent I am on the internet and how much it has changed. Almost everything do in a day is directly influenced by my life on the internet and what I do on my phone. I don’t even like to drive without my music. I also cannot ignore how much I’ve learned from the internet, I mean right now I’m learning to knit which would’ve never happened without the internet.
Now we have schools filled of students who also rely on the internet and now have to figure out the best and safest ways to incorporate the internet into the classroom as these kids almost need it in there life to get work done. I mean almost every class someone has now the teacher uses a projector to teach rather that just writing on a board and use classroom sites to add all their teaching slides or note for the students to access. I mean this is not necessary a bad thing as it allows students to connect to their work much easier and allows them to gain a better grasp on the work as it is all in a place that they can access at any time. But with the internet being such a vast and uncontrolled space the question arises on how do we have so many young kids use the internet in a safe way that doesn’t harm them.
Although there are many upsides to internet use in the classroom there are some things that shouldn’t be replaced, like handwriting notes or assignments as it makes the students use their own mind to work rather then having resources online do the work for them. There is fine line between too much and just right amount of internet use in the classroom and it is our job as future educators to do our best to find that line and have our students work the best they can.
Hi Jenna!! I completely agree with feeling like the internet has changed lives. I honestly think I wouldn’t be half the person I am without it either…lol. I did not even think about Spotify and my access to music, so that was a big eye opener for me, while I read your work. I think we all assume technology has to do mostly with social media, but forget that it can be anywhere from school platforms to our love of music! Another great point you mentioned was about the things that should not be replaced in classrooms (writing, note taking, etc). I too think that physically doing those things are important, because those are skills that I personally think will last forever (whether that is in a professional or educational setting)!
Hi Jenna!
I also wonder all the time what impact my early access to the internet has had on my development and social skills all the time! I was born when not as much was known about the dangers of the internet, and how overindulging was maybe not the best for growing brains. I mean I have the attention span of a squirrel but otherwise, I think I turned out alright. Youth today are all so connected, but also so disconnected at the same time, I wonder how different they will turn out.
Cheyenne