September 17, 2019:

My alarm goes off at 8AM. 

I use iMessage to text back my sister and text my boyfriend good morning. A few minutes later, I check the weather on my phone to make sure my outfit is appropriate for the day. I then hastily text my friend back that yes, I am meeting her for breakfast; I hear phantom phone vibrations right before I leave my room. 

“Is it unhealthy to depend on technology so much?” I wonder, not knowing the answer. In this day and age, it seems normal enough. 

I start class at 9AM.

In Geology 100, I use my Safari app in order to clarify the difference between latitude and longitude. 

I check my email halfway through class to see my coach’s response to my message. I look at my texts yet again, and respond to my friend and my boyfriend. 

Towards the end of class, we use Excel on laptops to input data. When I leave, I scroll through my texts on the way to the dining hall.

At lunch, I use my email to sign up for yoga on a Google Sheet. 

I get home and start to work on my DCI 180 homework, reading off of a website and posting discussion questions online. I also check the weather on my phone when I start to think about my outfit for the next day. 

I text a few more people around 2:30, and then decide to take a nap before practice. 

After waking up, I check Twitter and text my friends. At practice, I use my Apple watch to track my exercise. 

I text my mom and my friends around 7:15 after practice, and use Apple maps to see how far my mom will be away from me tomorrow (she’s going hiking about an hour away).

I open Snapchat at work to message my friend back about homework. Then, I open my laptop to start my Spanish 164 homework. 

At 9PM, I walk over to commons after my shift to finish the Spanish homework with a friend. I use Word Reference a couple of times to look up words on my phone. 

Once I get back to my dorm, I take an online quiz, and start to type up this very blog post.

 

Overall, I think technology makes a lot of day-to-day tasks easier, such as communication with people who aren’t necessarily nearby, or researching information that is useful for school assignments. However, I also believe technology plays a huge role in the manner which we act around people that are actually present; it can hinder us from living in the moment and socializing with others in our lives. Studies show that our reliance on technology is making social anxiety even more common in teenagers and young adults.

In regards to schoolwork, technology not only makes it easier for students to do work, but also makes it easier for professors to sign and check work. Almost all of my homework is posted and collected online; all of my Spanish homework is through our textbook’s website, and is graded immediately after we submit it. Overall, I think technology in school is a good thing, but it can further the gap between teachers and students because not as much human interaction is needed. 

With regards to personal fulfillment, I think for most people, technology plays an extremely important role. Personally, I have started to shy away from being on my phone all the time, partially because I don’t have the time to and partially because I don’t feel the need to anymore. I am much more satisfied after a conversation with someone physically here at school than after a conversation with someone over text.

Like Professor Abdoney said, it’s not just young people that are addicted to their phones—adults fall victim to technology too. My mom and I probably use our phones for the same amount of time a day, if she’s not using hers even more than I do. At this point in time, technology is a predominantly good resource, but will we reach a day where it isn’t?