In the labyrinth of the digital age, our identities are no longer solely our own creatings but are instead co-authored by an array of multiple virtual mediums. – Khalil Liouane
I can’t decide if I have actually witnessed this change in my ten years of teaching, or if I’m turning into that person, thinking kids these days are too obsessed with their phones!
Seriously though, I feel like like things have changed drastically since the rise of TikTok during the COVID-19 pademic. This feeling was confirmed after watching this TedX Video shared by my classmate Josh this past week. In the video, high school students talked about how much of an influence social media has had on the development of teen’s identity and sense of self since lockdown. If you think about it, it makes perfect sense… this was an unprecedented time in history when everyone was trapped in their homes. Parents were busy working from home and trying to keep everything afloat, and kids took to social media to stay connected. Nobody could have predicted the effect it would have on everyone four short years later.
Brittany shared this great article that discusses our digital selves and how that differs from who we are offline. I wonder how the image of oursevles we curate online affects the development of our personalities in the real world. I wonder how what we consume on social media changes the way we see ourselves… if it makes us with that we had more, or did more.
Just the other night I had a conversation with a colleague about how things have changed socially since the COVID-19 pandemic. We wondered to ourselves why people seem to be so busy… too busy to visit after school, or too busy to attend staff functions. Is it because we are taking on more than ever before, is it because our online lives are eating up so much time, or is it because we are just more comfortable being at home since lockdown?
This led me to wonder how the pandemic and lockdown has impacted our newest teachers — they finished their schooling from the comfort of their bedroom, maybe even attending classes online while laying in bed. How much more difficult would it be to get into the swing of getting up for school and committing to extra curricular as well as after-hours work? What can we do to support our new teachers who have gone through this unprecedented time? Or, can we also learn from them about the importance of maintaining a healthy work-life balance? What does that even mean in the world of education?
So, as usual, I’m left with more questions than answers. I’m curious to know what your thoughts are. Thanks for reading!
Jennni, you pose a number of good questions. Are we too busy or are we too comfortable being home? Personally I think it’s a combination of a number of things. I remember having much more of a social life before the pandemic and even now when I go out to a pub with friends, they don’t seem to be as busy as they used to be. As an administrator I find myself putting in far too many 10 hour days at work than I’d like. And then when I do have free time, I find myself doomscrolling and being on social media more than I like. Add to this the coziness of sweat pants and the couch once I get home, who wants to go out? Finding the balance between work life, personal life, and social life is a struggle.