My Own Use of Technology

I don't understand my math teacher! :(

Today, Tuesday Nov 27 was the perfect day to see how I truly used technology because it is another today were I have three consecutive classes. I woke up to my alarm from my phone so there is my first interaction of the day with technology. As I got ready for class I received a text message from my sister, she texts me good morning every day. I took advantage of checking my phone and I shot my mom a good morning text message as well so she would not feel left out. Throughout the course of my morning I texted with my sister back and forth until I walked into my math class and sat down. Then my friend texted me and that’s when I started using my phone over again and I lost concentration. I was not taking in anything that the teacher was explaining and since he never says anything about students’ texting I did not stop. By the end of the class the conversation between my friend and me was 100 messages long and all we talked about was how we did not sleep well and how I was hungry because I woke up too late for breakfast. Before entering my English class on the other hand, I texted my friend and told her that I was going to enter class and that I would text her once I was out. If I get called out for texting once in class I will not do it again for the rest of the year, as simple as that. After reflecting on this I knew it should not be this way. I should give all my instructors the same respect and keep my phone in my backpack until the end of class. On my way to biology class I texted my friend back. Here is where I set myself up for failure again. My biology teacher does not say anything at all to students for being late, using phones, or leaving the class. It seems like I am taking advantage of his flexibility and that is not right. Since we do use an electronic book for biology I take my lap top to class. Although I can easily venture onto Facebook or other websites I do not. I am not interested much in Facebook or other social networking sites such as twitter or tumbler. When I go to lunch with my teammates after my biology class I am texting with another friend that is not around at the time. By the end of the school day I feel stress out because I do not understand the math homework or my biology homework and it is all because I have no control over my texting. On top of that I get to my dorm and sleep instead of doing my homework on blackboard. This kind of behavior is harmful to my academic achievements and my social life. Technology is not a harmful resource, but it can be if it is not used properly. In my case I am using technology in a bad way, but I can turn it around. After this day I will be better about not using my phone during class. Also, I will give the people that are around me the importance that they deserve by not texting or checking my phone in front of them. I know how it feels when you are talking to someone and they just take out their phone and start texting s if what you are telling them is too boring or not important enough to pay full attention to. Until now I had not realized how much importance I gave to my phone instead of enjoying the things that I was physically doing and the people around me.

The things I will work on...Cell phone etiquette! :)

Students Real Use of Technology

No texting while skateboarding either!

Today is the perfect day to observe the way that my fellow classmates and other students around campus use technology. It is one of my busiest days of the week. My first class, Math begins at 10:50 followed by English at 12:15 then Biology from 1:40 to 4:20 in the afternoon. To start the day, a young man riding his skate board fell right in front of Starbucks because he was checking his phone instead of paying attention to the concrete benches that were right in front of him. He was also carrying a new bass guitar on his back without a case and when he fell he scratched it all. I could not help it but feel sorry for him, after I laughed. This was on my way to math class. As the professor is about to start the lesson two baseball players that are routinely late walk in texting. They both sit down, one of them puts in his head phones and listens to music and texting while the other baseball player just sits down and continues texting. Since we sit on the same row I felt the vibration of their phones every time they went off. As you can imagine their phones went off throughout the entire 50 minutes of class. This meant that not only were they not paying attention but I was also distracted from learning. As I walked to the cafeteria to get a quick snack before my English class I noticed that most students who were alone eating were occasionally sneaking peels at their phones to check for text messages. When I see this it crosses my mind that I do that and I make a mental note to avoid doing it. During my English class we are at a computer lab sit on the top row so that I am able to observe those using computers below me. Throughout the class period we are all able to stay on task with the exception of a girl is texting, but it seems like she is done with today’s assignment. All of my classmates are 20 years of age or older therefore, I saw them opening emails or opening applications online for those who were looking for jobs. During our 15 minute break all, and really all of the students, myself included sat on the couches outside the classroom and texted. My biology class is almost three hours long though so I do not blame anyone for using their phones of side tracking. By the end of my observations I was saddened by the decrease in our respect for the professors and by the lack of wanting to learn and truly get an education in order to get a better life.

Cell phones and Education.

Teacher Issues with Phones and Computers!

 

 

Angry Professor! D=

                                                                                                    

Leo is a coach at AWC of the girls’ volleyball team and also a staff member. He has been teaching sports psychology for the past 1 1/2 years. As a teacher he mentions the problem of trying to keep the students attention. He says, “Seems like I’m competing with cell phones.” As a new teacher he tried enforcing keeping phones turned off or in silent mode, but that took too much time away from class. With time he let the students make their own choices since like he says, “I am here to teach not to babysit young adults.” He sees on a daily basis that at least one half of his students are engrossed in their cell phones. He obviously thinks technology is taking away from college students, especially cell phones and IPods. They are causing negative effects on the students learning process and consequently affecting their academic performance. He also mentions how last school year he taught in a classroom with computers and therefore he would allow students to turn them on and sign in onto their blackboard accounts to access the daily lesson notes. As an instructor he was able to view the student’s screens through his own computer. Computers turned out to be another distraction for students, “they were unable to stay on task. They were too tempted to sign onto Facebook or even do unfinished homework.”  Since coach Leo is u coach the interview turned into an easy going conversation. In the middle of our interview his phone went off…that was not ironic at all.



 

Coach Leo! :)

Technology in the Eyes of International Students!

Marisha to the right of the screen about to go out! :)

 

For my second blog I decided to interview students that live in Garces (a dormitory here at AWC) and it turns out that the person that has the strongest opinion about technology is my own roommate. Marisha is a girl from Trinidad & Tobago that is here at Arizona Western College on a volleyball scholarship. I asked her 4 questions about technology. What do you use technology for, what kind of technology do you use most frequently, do you think technology is harmful, and finally do you think technology should spread more? She uses technology to communicate, learn, and make her hair look pretty! Marisha says, “I iron my hair after I shower every time so that it looks tame." The technology Marisha uses the most both here and at home is her cell phone. Without it she says that she can't do anything. "I use my phone to stay in contact with my coaches, my family, my friends, music and since I came here I use it for much homework." Since volleyball is a big part of her life keeping in contact with her coaches is extremely important. She goes on to explaining how "...if a recruiter is interested in contacting me they can email me and my phone is linked to my email. That way I don't need to go to a cafe" Cafes are small businesses that have computers with internet access and they rent them for a fee of about 2 dollars an hour. Over all she said that technology is very useful in all situations and especially now that she is nowhere near from home. Marisha video chats with her family every Sunday evening from my computer and she also uses it to do homework every day. What was interesting was that when she first she didn't seem to think much of technology and when i asked questions she kept adding more to her initial answers.

Marisha is taking care of her homework! :)

Technology as a Doudle Edge Sword.

Distracted by phone during class!! D=

As I sit down to read over the question “Is technology causing me to lose as much as I gain?” presented in the video “Digital Nation” by immediate response is no. Technology is not causing me to gain as much as I lose. I consider myself to be addicted to my phone because I carry it with me where ever it is that I go even if I know I am not going to need it and that it’ll be a burden to be carrying it around and looking after it. This is why I drop it sometimes because I know I shouldn’t be carrying groceries AND my cell phone at the same time. I have even dropped it in the toilet for being careless and leaving it in the back pocket of my jeans.  Then I start thinking about the true significance of the question and I stop my train of thought to reconsider . . . This question to me means if technology is making me a more advanced person and if I am becoming wiser. As a freshman in college it is important to be technology savvy.  Technological resources such as the computer and the World Wide Web have allowed me to become more aware of things around me such as communities I couldn’t see if I stayed home and different cultures. A limitless amount of information is available through the internet and this can be very beneficial when we are assigned research papers. Communication via Skype and other video chats is useful for international students that don’t have cell phone plans that cover international calling. My roommate for instance, is from Trinidad & Tobago and she Skype’s every Saturday night with her parents.  Technology can cause me to lose concentration and therefore my grades suffer. Technology such as the computer, the television and the cell phone are distractions when mixed with school work. I have noticed that the cell phone is used during class by a lot of students. I will not exclude myself because I am guilty of it as well. All in all technology is an incredible source, but it can also be harmful if we do not learn how and when to use it.

How I hope technology is used in the future at all times.

Introduction

Enjoying my Biology class

Taken by Alexandra

     My name is Auri and I am new to the college life. I ended up coming to AWC because I was recruited to play volleyball. I am working on completing my major in environmental science and at the same time enjoy my college experience by playing a sport that I love and making new friends. Since I am always making new friends having a phone is important because we exchange numbers so that later we can keep in touch and make plans later on to hang out. The easiest way to keep updated with that others are doing though is through Facebook. My phone has an application that allows me to see everything that my friends post the instance that it is posted. I am literally a touch away from all my friends thanks to my phone. I love going to movie premieres with friends and got to the river and just relax away from the school. When I am not having fun with my friends I am on my computer doing homework. Arizona Western College is really big on blackboard, a website to do homework; therefore I always need to have access to the internet. Even though I am always around my phone there are times in which I set it down and pick up a book. Since I have been here in the dorms at AWC I have read 3 books and now I owe the library 5 dollars in late fees. By the end of this blogging project I hope to have a new outlook on technology or at least be able to take a step back and truly see the way in which technology has become part of my life.