John Palfrey, a former executive director of Harvard's Berkman Center for Internet & Society once stated, “Television did not transform education. Neither will the internet. But it will be another tool for teachers to use in their effort to reach students in the classroom. It will also be a means by which students learn outside the classroom” (pg. # if available – if not just put the period inside the quotations and delete all of this). Social media is so popularized today that it is finding its way into the classroom. It is available 24/7 on a variety of different devices and has the potential to aid in academic success, but it also holds a lot of setbacks (Alwagait, Shahzad, and Alim 1092). When there is a lack of balance between social media and real life, many problems can arise. Some of the problems include lack of time management, poor academic standing, and lack of self-control. In many instances one or more of these problems overlap. * Make the font type the same throughout paper- may just be showing up different on my computer for some reason
Time management is paramount to a successful college experience; therefore, poor time management can in turn affect academic performance. Factors that account for poor time management are known as time traps. Today, one of the biggest time traps is technology (Bal Bal- is this person’s last name Bal Bal or should it be Bal and Bal? 134). In the 21st century, social media and the use of technology have skyrocketed in popularity. This spike results in some college students prioritizing media rather than academics (Panek 562). The focus on social media limits time left for homework and other scholarly related activities. On average, the typical media use of an eighteen-year-old is roughly eight hours (Kaiser Family Foundation). College students may not intentionally focus more on media; it simply happens due to a lapse of well-planned time management. Reynol Junco, a social media researcher, found that more than 90% of college students used Facebook for at least two hours a day (2). This is an example of how students use media for nonacademic purposes. When not using social media as a benefit for academic purposes it is seen as a waste of time (Bal and Bal 132).
Those that spend more than 16 hours a day on social media are considered to be heavy users. These users have the smallest percentage, at 51%, of receiving As and Bs whereas light media users, those that spend less than 3 hours a day on social media, have a 66% chance of achieving those grades. That means that heavy users have a 46% chance of receiving poor grades, which is two times the likelihood of a light media user who only have a 23% chance of receiving the same poor grades (Kaiser Family Foundation). Wade Jacobsen and Renata Forste conducted a study on college students and found that “For every hour of electronic media exposure reported by students on average, GPA was reduced between 0.05 and 0.07 points” (same as first quote – put page number here or leave as you had it with period in quotation if no page number). This proves that social media use, video and online gaming, and TV watching are negatively related to GPA (278). Media also makes people lazy. According to Sibel Onursoy from Anadolu University, media results in students avoiding their work and rushing to get it done compromising the quality of the work produced. Students look to the internet for free material which in turn decreases the academic challenge (195).
Media is literally at our disposal 24/7. Students can access it from anywhere. College students have little to no restriction on their technology use in the classroom whereas in some high schools punishment is administered even if a device was visible. An important finding by Jacobsen and Forste stated that that 62% of their respondents report using some kind of electronic media, not for academic purposes, while in class (278). Low self-control is a major key in the overuse of technology (Panek 563). Elliot Panek wrote that media acts as a guilty pleasure. Guilty pleasures are pleasurable initially but after indulging can resort in the feeling of guilt in the post consumption phase. Media gives students instant gratification whereas school work is more of a delayed gratification (Author 563). About 20% of media consumption derives from a mobile device alone. That is about two hours a day coming from a cell phone, an ipod, or a handheld game. (Kaiser Family Foundation pg. # if available). Today more than 97% of American adults, under the age 44, have a cell phone of some kind. Smart phones allow individuals to instantly connect to the internet increasing the temptation of making inappropriate choices (Roberts et al 74).
Social media is not going away any time soon. If anything it is going to become more intense and more available over the next few years. From this point on, every generation is going to have to choose how to use technology so it does not interfere and affect them academically.