Technology Making Us Weak

Today we have so much information available at hand with the use of technology, smart phones, tablets, and much more. With all of the abundant amount of information on the web, people aren’t taking the time to learn and develop solutions for problems because they can just look it up. Many people question if having all of this information at hand is positively or negatively affecting people’s everyday lives. From studies and articles that I have found, I no doubt believe, that not only myself but many people around the world today feel that all of this technological use is affecting the people and lives in our environments.

One of the major negative effects technology is taking a lead on today would be in school settings. Technology in classrooms can lead to many issues due to the overuse of it. Many students learn best through mental and physical interactions with their teachers and classmates. Technology is taking away from this style of teaching because most lessons that are being taught can be done so by a computer. Technology is completely understanding to have in the classroom when it is used as an aid, not as the entire source to the class, which is a major problem in society today.

In an article I read by Erin McCauliff, she talks about the positive and negative effects of calculators being used in classrooms. Although there are pros to this situation, there are so many cons that cannot be fixed unless calculators were ultimately removed from classrooms.

Students are usually at a disadvantage with the use of calculators due to many different reasons. A lot of times students do not comprehend basic skills so they use their calculators as an aid. This is causing children to rely so much on their calculators that later on they will not understand skills that they need in the future. Also, children will feel that they are confident in their classes due to how much they succeed with the use of calculators, but when they are taken away their grades tend to suffer.

Nowadays, face to face interaction and social skills are lacking in people. We as humans spend so much time on our devices that it is distracting us from real conversation. Technology is advancing every day and the more it does, the more attached we become. We are experiencing a decline in normal social behaviors due to these advancements and it is extremely noticeable. In times past, people were able to go an entire day without seeing anyone they know. Although that still happens today, there is probably never a day that goes by without contacting one of our close family members or friends through the use of internet. Only two decades ago, you would have to write a letter to get in contact with someone who lived far away and now it is as simple as pressing a few buttons on a hand held, touch screen device. With the advancements of technology, it makes it as if we are never alone and isolated. Although we may be physically alone at a time, social media gives us the connectedness that we are always able to have with others. This is not a positive factor to technology because it is a healthy thing to sit down and relax by ourselves, but now when we are alone we are constantly using our devices. If we are disconnected from the outside world long enough we will feel the happiness of being alone, but the odds of that happening nowadays are so slim. People feel that they always need to be connected with someone else and that should not be the case. We live more in our devices than in our society. Children are so adapted to coming home from school and playing video games or watching TV that going and playing outside would not even be a thought in their minds.

With the internet today we are able to type anything into a search bar and have thousands of results. But all of the information that we have at hand raises problems. An overload of information can make people feel powerless. Scientists have discovered that multitaskers produce more stress hormones. Too much information can also produce a lack of creativity. It has been found that focus and creativity are connected. Someone thinks of creative ideas when they are able to focus without any intrusion. With too much information at hand people are likely to be less creative because there is not one specific thing to focus on. An overload of information can also make people less productive. With all of the information that we receive from one single search we spend so much time figuring out which sources are best and which ones we want to use that it winds up wasting valuable time that we could have had.

To fix information overload we have to use our own willpower. We can complete tasks so much easier if we just turn off our devices and move them away from us. This is not enough to stop it though because many people cannot fight the urge of checking their device every thirty minutes or so. People hear a notification go off on their phone and the immediate reaction is to check what it is. If we were able to just fight those urges, we would be much more productive and get more done than we would have ever though in our everyday lives.

As evident, there are many positive outcomes that technology has had on society today but the negative ones must stop going unnoticed. It is causing a lack of social skills, isolation, poor sleeping habits, bullying, and so much more. If parents do not start enforcing stricter rules on their children when it comes to how much technology they are allowed to use a day and technology in classrooms being limited, each generation will become more negatively affected.

Works Cited

Nables, Reynoldsburg OH. “Negative Effects of Technology on Society.” Tenn Ink. N.p., n.d. Web. 27 Mar. 2017.

Writer, Leaf Group. “Negative Effects of Using Technology in Today’s Classroom.” Synonym. Synonym, 27 May 2010. Web. 27 Mar. 2017.

“Too Much Information.” The Economist. The Economist Newspaper, 02 July 2011. Web. 27 Mar. 2017.