Are today's teens and preteens allowing the use of technology to rob them of really developing the intimate and emotional friendships that extended face-to-face time can give? I think so. I recently read an article that discussed a study that was done on kids ages 8-18 and the findings revealed that they are more likely to use their cell phones to text friends than call them. Some texters send over 100 texts a day. That's a lot of texting. The study also found that this age group spends on average 7 1/2 hours a day using some sort of electronic device, from smart phones to MP3 players to computers.
Today, the exchanges seem more public and superficial to me than when I was growing up. It's more like group chats, not personal at all. Facebook is not a converation to me. I remember my friends and I being on the phone for hours at a time with one person sharing secrets and really getting to know each other. Those days are long gone and I think today's youth are missing out on experiences that helps them build trust in people outside of their families, knowing how to read facial expressions and body language which is crucial to preparing them for healthy adult relationships. Their tech skills may be great but their face-to-face human contact skills are weak.
I would love to hear your thoughts....
I think technology is crippling our youth's social and writing skills. Enormous amounts of time is being spent texting and chatting on social networking sites. From working in higher education, I found that many students struggle with writing. I guess when you send 100 or more texts a day; it can be hard to separate the text language from real grammar. I have also seen students speak in the “text” language. Eventually, this is going to pose an issue for our students as they matriculate through school and begin professional careers.
ReplyDeleteKiva,
ReplyDeleteI agree that our youth are lacking social skills because they have become so dependent upon technology as a quick means of communication. I agree with Jennifer in that students' grammar, verbal, and written communication skills are underdeveloped due to how they are communicating via social networks.
I think as educators, we have to find a way to blend the best practices of traditional approaches, and the use of emerging technologies as a delivery mechanism.
With regards to your comment about facebook not being conversational, I so agree with you. I look at posts, and they really appear to be a thread of thoughts that individuals have about anything, and that does not have to be connected with previous posts. Perhaps this is conducive to power of expression, in which we want our youth to feel comfortable with doing. I think it could be so much more powerful when the expression is related to a provoking thought that could help educate the readers.
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ReplyDeleteYour post makes several good points. Actually, after several discussions I had this week, it added to my thoughts about what technology costs. I ended up blogging about it myself.
ReplyDeleteI do not have or know the answer, but a balance needs to be found. As educators, I feel that we need be proactive in how we incorporate technology into our lessons. Our lessons can be wonderfully enhanced by technology and still allow for face-to-face interaction amoung students.