By: Samantha DelConte
16% of 8-18 Year-Olds have Cell Phones!
We Use Technology about 7.5 Hours a Day!
Students are Using These Acronyms in Their School Work!
In today’s society
technology can be bittersweet. Now with all these smart phones,
iPods, iPads, and laptops we can receive information faster then we
ever had before. We are constantly checking our Facebook profiles or
our Twitter accounts; this makes Americans always connected to each
other. The children of this generation are spending too much time on
technology then the generations before. With all these forms of
technology students writing is being affected. Also, technology is
affecting social skills in both a positive and negative way.
With social networking websites like MySpace, Facebook, and Twitter people can be in contact with each other all throughout the day on their smart phones, iPods and iPads with out having to text or email each other. Arnold James a 16-year-old student said this quote when asked about not using his cell phone, “It would probably be like a drug addicts feel when they are getting off drugs” (Hartford Currant). Children that have cell phone are “hooked” on them. Technology has become addicting, Melinda Badiak from Nottingham, Maryland says this about her 14, six, and two year old children “our oldest has an IPod, which is always playing music, accessing Facebook or used for games [.] Our [six] year old is an early riser, so instead of waking everyone else, he huddles under the covers and plays his Nintendo DS till it’s time to get ready for school. Even the [two] year old has a LeapPad Learning System that, while educational, is electronic”(Hartford Current). Children of this generation are addicted to their electronic devices; some of them cannot put them down. Even adults are within arms length of their BlackBerry’s or iPhones through out the day.
Individuals between the ages of eight and 18 are on some form of technology throughout the day. According to the Kaiser Family Foundation, a discovery was made that on average individuals between ages eight and 18 are using technology about seven and a half hours. Also individuals at these ages have learned to multitask with these devices. They have managed to fit about ten hours and 45 minuets in these seven hours by multitasking. (Kaiser Family Foundation) Individuals are listening to music, texting, and are on Facebook all at the same time and are conscious of everything they are doing with these forms of technology. It is even noticed in younger children due to the use of electronic hand held gamin devices. Children are constantly playing on these throughout the day. Not only did the Kaiser study find how often individuals are on technology but “over the past five years cell phone ownership among [eight] to 18 year olds has increased from 39 percent to 66 percent, while iPods and MP3 player ownership has increased from 18 percent to 79 percent” (Hartford Currant). Another study that took place in 2008 by the Pew Internet and American Life project found that “cell phone ownership among youngsters ages 12-17 increased from 45 percent in 2004 to 71 percent in 2008” (Hartford Currant). These are dramatic increases that have happened over the past few years.
Student’s skills in writing are starting to deteriorate. Texting acronyms have been showing up more and more in students writing. Mrs. Wooden an English teacher at Cedarville High School says, “They take vowels out of words because that’s what they are used to doing, they don’t capitalize words they don’t punctuate sentences. They just add extra spaces at the end. They use abbreviations”(KMFS). She also mentions in the article Texting’s terrible Impact on Students’ Writing that its mostly in hand written work because when typing on the computer programs such as word with auto correct mistakes like this. This article also has points of view from students in this English class. Some state that when they get papers back and see the “texting lingo” they have written they are surprised with themselves that they put them in, not realizing they did in the first place. Mrs. Wooden also mentions that she believes social networking sites such as Facebook, MySpace and Instant Messenger (AIM), are major factors in this problem for student writing.
In addition to Facebook, MySpace, Twitter, AIM and, Email texting is a big factor in our communication. According to a survey research project Hillyer students do not use correct grammar while texting. Correct grammar is defined as using complete sentences and correct punctuation in full sentences. When taking a survey of ten Hillyer freshmen, five boys and five girls, three of them used correct grammar while texting and seven of them did not. When surveying Hillyer sophomores, five girls and five boys, four of them said they used correct grammar while texting and six of them said no. Overall out of the 20 students that were surveyed seven of them used correct grammar while texting and 13 of them did not. Could texting be another link to our poor communication skills? If we are not texting correctly how could we be communicating correctly with each other?
However technology is not all bad. There are some positive points to this argument; technology is keeping Americans in touch with people faster then ever before. Now individuals can all stay connected on social networking programs life Facebook and MySpace. Even having a cell phone lets the user receive information faster by text message. According to the New York Times teenagers between the ages of 12 and 17 send between 50 and 100 text messages a day. Having social networks like Facebook and MySpace has allowed shy children to interact with other children their age with out being shy to speak to them. Robert Wilson the father of Andy Wilson and 11-year-old from Atlanta says this about his son Facebook page, “For Evan, the No. 1 reason is it’s helping him come out of his shell and develop his social skills that he wasn’t learning because he’s so shy” (New York Times). Helping shy individuals come would be a positive aspect of technology.
In addition there are some negative points to this argument as well. The addiction that one has with their technology is overwhelming. Individuals are constantly logged on to Facebook, Twitter and MySpace with their smart phones. Individuals are so involved in their virtual world that they are not present in reality. This quote from the New York Times shows the debate over technology, “The question on researchers’ minds is whether all that texting, instant messaging and online social networking allows children to become more connected and supportive of their friends- or whether the quality of their interactions is diminished without the intimacy and emotional give and take of regular, extended face-to-face time.” This generation is more concerned with their technology then ever before. A supporting quote about this generation says, “Those hours spent on the family princess phone or hanging out with pals in the neighborhood after school vanished long ago. But now, even chatting on the cell phone or via e-mail is passé” (The New York Times). Children are not outside anymore spending time with other children they are inside with their computer games, or video game, or texting.
Additionally there are many ways that I use technology. I for one use technology everyday. I use my Blackberry to get my school emails and to talk to my family and friends. I use Facebook to connect with old friends from high school and from my child hood camp experiences, along with friends from collage that. I also use Facebook in my Sociology class. We use a Facebook group to keep in contact with everyone and know what is going on in the recent class. As a collage student I use Facebook a lot weather it be for connecting with friends getting information from class or sending Facebook emails from other classmates for study information or class notes that were missed. I also have a twitter account that I tweet with all the time. I have over a thousand tweets and have been tweeting since November 2010. I would have to say that I am not addicted to my Facebook social networking but I am addicted to twitter, I have over a thousand tweets in a little over a year. I am also in arms reach of my blackberry at all times of the day. In my opinion I think that our generation is more addicted to technology then others after before us.
Although technology is both good and bad for many of the reasons that have been stated but children in this generation are so addicted to their technology that I feel as if they are missing out on fun things that I as a young child got to enjoy throughout my childhood. I can always remember coming home from school and going outside to play tag with my neighbors or other games with my neighbor hood friends. Now as I look outside throughout my town I see barely any children playing out side with each other. My eleven-year-old cousin is more concerned with beating the next level in his Xbox game then hanging out outside with his friends. Children of this generation are missing out on critical fun things that generations before them and technology is to blame!
Overall the way that society today uses technology is bitter sweet. Between all the different smart phones, iPod, iPads, laptops and social networking site Americans are constantly connected to each other. Children of this generation and the generation before are spending too much time on technology then generations before them. With all these forms of technology students writing is being affected. Also, technology is affecting social skills in a positive and negative way. Children of this generation is also missing out on the fun things that I used to do as a kid. After hearing the facts and my opinion the negative aspects of this argument out shine the positive aspects of the argument for technology to be good for us. Technology is slowly killing our communication. I hope that you agree as much as I do after listening to the facts.
With social networking websites like MySpace, Facebook, and Twitter people can be in contact with each other all throughout the day on their smart phones, iPods and iPads with out having to text or email each other. Arnold James a 16-year-old student said this quote when asked about not using his cell phone, “It would probably be like a drug addicts feel when they are getting off drugs” (Hartford Currant). Children that have cell phone are “hooked” on them. Technology has become addicting, Melinda Badiak from Nottingham, Maryland says this about her 14, six, and two year old children “our oldest has an IPod, which is always playing music, accessing Facebook or used for games [.] Our [six] year old is an early riser, so instead of waking everyone else, he huddles under the covers and plays his Nintendo DS till it’s time to get ready for school. Even the [two] year old has a LeapPad Learning System that, while educational, is electronic”(Hartford Current). Children of this generation are addicted to their electronic devices; some of them cannot put them down. Even adults are within arms length of their BlackBerry’s or iPhones through out the day.
Individuals between the ages of eight and 18 are on some form of technology throughout the day. According to the Kaiser Family Foundation, a discovery was made that on average individuals between ages eight and 18 are using technology about seven and a half hours. Also individuals at these ages have learned to multitask with these devices. They have managed to fit about ten hours and 45 minuets in these seven hours by multitasking. (Kaiser Family Foundation) Individuals are listening to music, texting, and are on Facebook all at the same time and are conscious of everything they are doing with these forms of technology. It is even noticed in younger children due to the use of electronic hand held gamin devices. Children are constantly playing on these throughout the day. Not only did the Kaiser study find how often individuals are on technology but “over the past five years cell phone ownership among [eight] to 18 year olds has increased from 39 percent to 66 percent, while iPods and MP3 player ownership has increased from 18 percent to 79 percent” (Hartford Currant). Another study that took place in 2008 by the Pew Internet and American Life project found that “cell phone ownership among youngsters ages 12-17 increased from 45 percent in 2004 to 71 percent in 2008” (Hartford Currant). These are dramatic increases that have happened over the past few years.
Student’s skills in writing are starting to deteriorate. Texting acronyms have been showing up more and more in students writing. Mrs. Wooden an English teacher at Cedarville High School says, “They take vowels out of words because that’s what they are used to doing, they don’t capitalize words they don’t punctuate sentences. They just add extra spaces at the end. They use abbreviations”(KMFS). She also mentions in the article Texting’s terrible Impact on Students’ Writing that its mostly in hand written work because when typing on the computer programs such as word with auto correct mistakes like this. This article also has points of view from students in this English class. Some state that when they get papers back and see the “texting lingo” they have written they are surprised with themselves that they put them in, not realizing they did in the first place. Mrs. Wooden also mentions that she believes social networking sites such as Facebook, MySpace and Instant Messenger (AIM), are major factors in this problem for student writing.
In addition to Facebook, MySpace, Twitter, AIM and, Email texting is a big factor in our communication. According to a survey research project Hillyer students do not use correct grammar while texting. Correct grammar is defined as using complete sentences and correct punctuation in full sentences. When taking a survey of ten Hillyer freshmen, five boys and five girls, three of them used correct grammar while texting and seven of them did not. When surveying Hillyer sophomores, five girls and five boys, four of them said they used correct grammar while texting and six of them said no. Overall out of the 20 students that were surveyed seven of them used correct grammar while texting and 13 of them did not. Could texting be another link to our poor communication skills? If we are not texting correctly how could we be communicating correctly with each other?
However technology is not all bad. There are some positive points to this argument; technology is keeping Americans in touch with people faster then ever before. Now individuals can all stay connected on social networking programs life Facebook and MySpace. Even having a cell phone lets the user receive information faster by text message. According to the New York Times teenagers between the ages of 12 and 17 send between 50 and 100 text messages a day. Having social networks like Facebook and MySpace has allowed shy children to interact with other children their age with out being shy to speak to them. Robert Wilson the father of Andy Wilson and 11-year-old from Atlanta says this about his son Facebook page, “For Evan, the No. 1 reason is it’s helping him come out of his shell and develop his social skills that he wasn’t learning because he’s so shy” (New York Times). Helping shy individuals come would be a positive aspect of technology.
In addition there are some negative points to this argument as well. The addiction that one has with their technology is overwhelming. Individuals are constantly logged on to Facebook, Twitter and MySpace with their smart phones. Individuals are so involved in their virtual world that they are not present in reality. This quote from the New York Times shows the debate over technology, “The question on researchers’ minds is whether all that texting, instant messaging and online social networking allows children to become more connected and supportive of their friends- or whether the quality of their interactions is diminished without the intimacy and emotional give and take of regular, extended face-to-face time.” This generation is more concerned with their technology then ever before. A supporting quote about this generation says, “Those hours spent on the family princess phone or hanging out with pals in the neighborhood after school vanished long ago. But now, even chatting on the cell phone or via e-mail is passé” (The New York Times). Children are not outside anymore spending time with other children they are inside with their computer games, or video game, or texting.
Additionally there are many ways that I use technology. I for one use technology everyday. I use my Blackberry to get my school emails and to talk to my family and friends. I use Facebook to connect with old friends from high school and from my child hood camp experiences, along with friends from collage that. I also use Facebook in my Sociology class. We use a Facebook group to keep in contact with everyone and know what is going on in the recent class. As a collage student I use Facebook a lot weather it be for connecting with friends getting information from class or sending Facebook emails from other classmates for study information or class notes that were missed. I also have a twitter account that I tweet with all the time. I have over a thousand tweets and have been tweeting since November 2010. I would have to say that I am not addicted to my Facebook social networking but I am addicted to twitter, I have over a thousand tweets in a little over a year. I am also in arms reach of my blackberry at all times of the day. In my opinion I think that our generation is more addicted to technology then others after before us.
Although technology is both good and bad for many of the reasons that have been stated but children in this generation are so addicted to their technology that I feel as if they are missing out on fun things that I as a young child got to enjoy throughout my childhood. I can always remember coming home from school and going outside to play tag with my neighbors or other games with my neighbor hood friends. Now as I look outside throughout my town I see barely any children playing out side with each other. My eleven-year-old cousin is more concerned with beating the next level in his Xbox game then hanging out outside with his friends. Children of this generation are missing out on critical fun things that generations before them and technology is to blame!
Overall the way that society today uses technology is bitter sweet. Between all the different smart phones, iPod, iPads, laptops and social networking site Americans are constantly connected to each other. Children of this generation and the generation before are spending too much time on technology then generations before them. With all these forms of technology students writing is being affected. Also, technology is affecting social skills in a positive and negative way. Children of this generation is also missing out on the fun things that I used to do as a kid. After hearing the facts and my opinion the negative aspects of this argument out shine the positive aspects of the argument for technology to be good for us. Technology is slowly killing our communication. I hope that you agree as much as I do after listening to the facts.
