Jordan Brown's List: Technology Refute

The Negative

1. Many students rely on the accessibility of information on social media specifically and the web in general to provide answers. That means a reduced focus on learning and retaining information.

2. Students who attempt to multi-task, checking social media sites while studying, show reduced academic performance (http://viralms.com/blog/2011/04/how-social-media-affects-students/). Their ability to concentrate on the task at hand is significantly reduced by the distractions that are brought about by YouTube, stumbleupon, Facebook or Twitter.

3. The more time students spend on social sites, the less time they spend socializing in person. Because of the lack of body signals and other nonverbal cues, like tone and inflection, social networking sites are not an adequate replacement for face-to-face communication. Students who spend a great deal of time on social networking are less able to effectively communicate in person.

4. The popularity of social media, and the speed at which information is published, has created a lax attitude towards proper spelling and grammar. The reduces a student’s ability to effectively write without relying on a computer’s spell check feature. (source)

5. The degree to which private information is available online and the anonymity the internet seems to provide has made students forget the need to filter the information they post. Many colleges and potential employers investigate an applicant’s social networking profiles before granting acceptance or interviews. Most students don’t constantly evaluate the content they’re publishing online, which can bring about negative consequences months or years down the road.

• A great deal is known about children and television, because there have been thousands of studies on the subject.  Researchers have studied how TV affects kids' sleep, weight, grades, behavior, and more.  It’s worth looking at what the research says when deciding how to manage television in your family.
 
• Spending time watching TV can take time away from healthy activities like active play outside with friends, eating dinner together as a family, or reading. TV time also takes away from participating in sports, music, art or other activities that require practice to become skillful.
 
• TV viewing starts earlier than other forms of media—often beginning before age two.  In recent years, TV, video and DVD programs geared to babies and toddlers have come on the market—and now even a cable channel for babies.  We don't know yet what effect TV-viewing by babies may have on their development.  We do know that time spent watching TV replaces time spent interacting with caregivers and other children.  Social interaction is critical to a baby's healthy development.

• TV viewing is probably replacing activities in your child' s life that you would rather have them do (things like playing with friends [6] , being physically active, getting fresh air, reading, playing imaginatively, doing homework [7], doing chores).
 
• Kids who spend more time watching TV (both with and without parents and siblings present) spend less time interacting with family members. [8]
 
• Excessive TV viewing can contribute to poor grades [8a], sleep problems, behavior problems, obesity, and risky behavior.
 
• Most children’s programming does not teach what parents say they want their children to learn; many shows are filled with stereotypes, violent solutions to problems, and mean behavior.
 
• Advertisers target kids, and on average, children see tens of thousands of TV commercials each year [9].  This includes many ads for unhealthy snack foods and drinks.  Children and youth see, on average, about 2,000 beer and wine ads on TV each year [10].
 
• Kids see favorite characters smoking, drinking, and involved in sexual situations and other risky behaviors in the shows and movies they watch on TV.

Though the new media-saturated world may be wonderful in many ways, what suffers may be traditional educational practices. If children spend their time watching TV and playing video games they are not spending a great deal of time reading and writing. Statistics collected by the U.S. Department of Education's National Center for Educational Statistics (NCES) show that student achievement in both reading and writing has been declining in recent years. The NCES 1998 Writing Report Card states that 16 percent of 4th and 8th graders and 22 percent of 12th graders have not mastered basic writing skills (March, 1999). The NCES 1998 Reading Report Card shows that across grades 4, 8, and 12, no more than 40 percent achieved the "proficient" level of reading and only 7 percent of 4th graders, 3 percent of 8th graders, and 6 percent of 12th graders could read at the "advanced" level.  

"The average, or typical, American student is not a proficient writer. Instead, students show only partial mastery of the knowledge and skills needed for solid academic performance in writing," said Gary W. Phillips, Acting NCES Commissioner in a press release after the 1998 Writing Report Card report was issued (Sept. 28, 1999).

Additionally, parents, caregivers, and peers who know better should not be shy about speaking up when they have to decipher an e-mail riddled with "LOLs" and "TTYLs." Perhaps, if confronted by enough consistent correction, the textspeak generation will come to understand the need for appropriate language in more formal situations.