The Educational Impact of the Internet

The internet has largely been a blessing for my personal learning, communication, and sense of community. It has positively impacted my career as a student, and I remember even the minute details of using Facebook during high school to connect with classmates. What remained for me was the ability to communicate effectively with peers and not the negative effects of distraction that some are weary of. Naturally, as a teenager navigating social media, I found myself distracted with cat videos and unnecessary memes. At times, these distractions would take me away from my assignment and hinder my learning. However, even these "distractions" helped me to stay connected with my friends, where we could share out funny videos and pictures, creating memories and laughter. Screenshot 1 is of my ninth grade Geometry Honors Facebook group page, where all the students (around sixty) connected through this page to help each other with homework, study for tests together, and remind each other of upcoming due dates. Not only was it fun to connect online together but it was also an effective way to encourage learning and communication. It has been five years since then, but the benefits of this group page is still well remembered by many students, for we still reminisce of the times we had on the page. Due to the many hours spent with other students through the page, I am now able to navigate social media effectively, enjoying the resources but not being distracted by the rapidly refreshing images and posts. 

My future students would be in an age that is even more technologically advanced, an age where, as Clay Shirky says, the usage of the internet becomes "technologically boring" (2009). It is with this widespread access to and usage of the internet that students can take part in innovative ways to learn, connect. and communicate. It will be even greater than being able to post pictures of homework questions and form study groups online, as I did in my Geometry Honors Facebook group page. As technology permeates through society and students become increasingly technologically abled, students will have more resources in and out of school to increase their capacity to learn. Thus, my students would answer differently on the impact of the internet; the internet would become an indispensable part of their learning. Instead of explaining how the internet has actually helped them, signifying an explanation that goes against doubts, my students would be able to speak from a perspective that fully accepts technology as a resource. Accordingly, to support my students and their learning, I would have to be caught up with the different ways that students can connect and communicate with each other. This way, I can help students navigate through the medium to ensure that they are partaking in a healthy and effective manner. In addition, I would have to also teach them to be critically literate of what goes on with the internet and social media. With technology becoming such a crucial part of their lives and information coming at them at extreme rates, literacy also becomes increasingly important.

Screenshot 1