Our generation is becoming more and more reliant on technology; media is growing on us, with most students constantly using their smartphones, and laptops seen more often in classrooms.

Technology can be used in an appropriate and inappropriate manner. Some youths are taking too much advantage of  technology, making them more reliant on devices and not their brains.

“I think a lot of people use technology inappropriately, and some use it every day and it gets out of hand,” physical education teacher Ralph Chapman said.

Other people argue that at times technology is used in a very positive way.

“[The main reason I use my phone during school is for] music,” sophomore Ayssa Sadeghi said. “I learn and have more patience with music [on].”

While music is an emotional release for some people, there are many other things that teachers and students do on their devices that help them engage in academics. However, over-reliance on technology could get in the way of new encounters and communication.

“I think it’s a shame [that students focus so much on communication through social media],” Chapman said. “I think [that students are] missing out on [their lives] and need to be social.”

Walking through school, people should look at each other’s eyes and faces, not down at their screens.  

“It’s rude to not give full attention and to be on the phone,” Chapman said.

Although technology can be very distracting, there are many beneficial aspects to using it.

“It’s good to see students wanting to participate [while expressing their passion for media; but] as humans we read faces, [and] yet we are still on screens,” social studies teacher Matt Stoner said. “There is concern of ‘Do we lose empathy the more we avoid face-to-face interaction?’”

Social interaction seems as though it is failing in person, but thriving in the media. Overall, we are very productive with using the enhanced devices in school today.

The methods used to apply technology in our learning environment have both benefits and disadvantages; but at the end of the day, it’s really about how we value the different uses, whether it’s getting knowledge from sites or expressing our interests and feelings with technology.