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Welcome to our class Padlet.  You will post two separate "takeaways" for your assignment.

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Welcome to our class Padlet.  You will post two separate "takeaways" for your assignment.

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I am guilty and have been one to think teens being glued to interferes with their social in person interaction. However, I understand that life is busier than it may have been back in the 50s. It is eye opening that teens are able to socialize more because they have social media. I can be a social butterfly in person although it has significantly decreased since the Pandemic. Everything became digital and I no longer was going places. I would have been craving to get out of the house and socialize before the Pandemic, and now I look forward to going home and having to do nothing but spending time with my babies and husband. I do not like to "entertain" people like I once used to, but I do not feel any less connected because I am on FaceBook daily. My takeaway is that teens even though they are constantly using social media to communicate does not mean that they do not know how to communicate in person. In fact, it is the opposite and allowing these teens to socialize since they do not have the ability to do it as much in person like we did as teens. This was such a fun read this was!

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I am concerned with the fact that 1 in 3 people edited the body photos before posting it on Instagram. I chose this as my takeaway, because I have never edited a photo of my body before posting. I know there a thing such as photoshop but honestly, I am not even sure if that is an app or how to being to use something like that. The fact the this is a causation to people having body image issues is so sad to me. I just wish that everyone knew that they are all beautiful in their own way, and do not need approval of how they look from peers or even strangers. I had to have a class discussion with one of my period last week for bullying a student in that period, because he is clearly different looking than majority of the class and his personality is unique. How boring would life be if we all look alike, dressed alike, and acted alike? I just wish everyone knew they are here on this earth for a reason, and we are all beautiful in our own ways. This just makes me feel sad that people feel the need to photoshop. I guess I do this in a way every time I use a filter, but I do it for fun and not to look “more” beautiful. For example, I will take the same picture 20 different times on Snapchat, but use a different filter, because I think it is fun to see how I look with the filters not because I feel like I HAVE to.

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After embarking on a six year intensive observation of America's teens, interviewing 166 participants over 18 states, Danah Boyd offered some important observations about teens and social media use. The key take away for me, a person who reviles social media for social media's sake, is that she could characterized adult's cell phone use as more exclusive and independent of those around them while teen social media use is collaborative, engaging, and community-drive. This is an accurate characterization based on my observations and it helps to tone-down the 'anxious adult in me' regarding teen's reliance on social media. I recently watched part of a Netflix series with my niece on her tablet - words I never thought I would utter. But the harmless nature of the activity allowed me to bond with her in a way meaningful to her. That is something families and educational environments need to recognize in order to engage with networked teens. Of course teen social connectivity is complicated; it was before technology. While I appreciate Boyd's exhaustive work, the preface and introduction still left me cynical about the negative impact of social media on teens. Those seeking to limit the negative effects of teen's networked lives must understand the collaborative nature of adolescents is being played out through technology, which is just the medium through which their natural growth and development takes place.

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As an adult Instagram user, I can say that I enjoy the platform as I am able to see photos  shared by friends and family. I enjoy following accounts of celebrities, political figures, parenting accounts, etc. I am able to decide which content is important to me though and can distinguish between real images and those that are idealized. I do not use it for digital status seeking or social comparison as many young people might. The article refers to simple raw time on Instagram has little to no effect on psychopathology, but the way people engage is what can be harmful to one's mental health. I feel like this article, similar to It's Complicated, is saying that social media is important to teens using it to help them connect and belong, so it is important to teach them how to use it. We need to be able to teach them what is healthy and what is not. We must be positive role models for them.
This is very relevant to me, as an online teacher especially. Many of my students have been home for years now learning virtually since the pandemic. Their main source of connection is social media and their online classes. Many of the ideas from the book and article can even relate to their online learning platform and virtual sessions. I am always having to monitor chats and interactions between students in the online setting.

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The preface and introduction of It's Complicated is very intriguing to me, I may have to check out the book. At times, I am quick to blame social media and cell phone usage for much of today's problems with our youth. I find Danah Boyd's take on it to be very interesting. When social media was first coming about, phones and social networking were used as more of an escape mechanism, or a way to get out of one's own community. Now, though, they are more of a means to connect with the community. She found that students were using social media as an extension of their time together with friends, sometimes almost as a supplement to being together in real life. Not necessarily the only means of socializing.
She does not blame social networks for current issues, but instead puts the blame on increased consumerism, more parental pressure and greater competition for access to limited opportunities.
I am hoping to get to this book in the near future, I would love to hear more ideas regarding this matter as I am not completely sold. I do agree though, that teens now and before social media, are just trying to find out where they fit in. Friendship is of the utmost importance to them, as it always has been. Only now, technology gives them an easier way to be a part of the world.

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This was an incredible article on many levels. As a mom, I have felt some of the panic and fears associated with online presence of teens. Ultimately, I think a parents' fears can be best summed up by Ms. Boyd's statement, "Just because teens can and do manipulate social media to attract attention and increase visibility does not mean they have the skills to navigate what unfolds." This statement not only applies to online presence, but also to lived, daily presence. Our teens cannot stop living  and learning about themselves and who they are. This is an awkward time of awakening in the lives of adolescents. There has always been threats to our safety and always will be. There will also always be predators. Parents hold the key to teens successfully navigating this time in their lives and learning how to be successful adults. There is the need to form solid lines of communication and have the ability to speak openly with teens. Teens should be educated about the dangers of not only the internet, but lots of situations that could prove perilous to them. Also, the media gets too carried away to over-reporting crimes and dangers. Ms. Boyd pointed out that parents need to "step away from the headlines." Teens today are extremely busy with school, extracurricular activities, jobs, etc. that they have little time to socialize as people did, even 20 years ago. Social media bridges the gap of too little time and friends.

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I am truly thankful for this article as a comparison to It's Complicated (Boyd) because they offer the devil's advocate response allowing readers to find themselves in the debate and see both sides, if you will. Boyd brought up that early users of social media sought to escape their world digitally and thereby further extract themselves from reality. Abrams' Instagram article supports this theory by pointing out that many teens acquire self-value from social media in the form of likes, reposts, and views, which can negatively impact self perception. They are not electing to withdraw from society through social media, rather social media is their way of connecting with society.  My key take-away is that the nuances through which social media interaction presents for each individual user is such that we as researchers have hardly tipped the iceberg in understanding the long-term effects, whether positive or negative. Since the algorithm which drives social media feeds is personalized, the nuances which drive one teen to a poor self image while another boosts in confidence and motivation is still largely unknown. One thing both researchers seem to imply is that time away from social media is a good balancing point.

There appears to be a different impact between the way teens engage collaboratively with peers, versus the continuous scrolling in the vacuum of the algorithm. Poor self-esteem, anxiety, depression, and body-image issues can catapult teen's drive for social belonging into a blacker hole because the continuous loop is fed on in isolation. In my opinion, this is an area in which policy makers, teachers, counselors, and especially parents need to be aware of social media use with their teens.

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A key takeaway that shocked me was the relationship between Instagram usage and mental health. Facebook’s internal studies showed a correlation between negative body image and teen usage on Instagram. Since Instagram metrics like likes, comments, and views are controlled by a user’s follower network, teens can become so obsessed with the metrics to the point where they view themselves as a number determined by their followers. The addictive nature of Instagram, where the algorithm determines what you watch or read, can cause teens to define their worth by comparing themselves to others, which will eventually lead to negative mental health outcomes. The article emphasizes on mitigate harm, promoting healthier engagement and critical thinking about online content as these issues extend beyond teens and affect adults as well. Further, research is needed to explore individual differences in usage and the long-term effects of social media on mental well-being, with collaboration and data sharing between researchers and platforms for a deeper understanding of these complex issues.

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The statement that stood out the most to me was that 1 in 3 women edit their photos to make themselves appear slimmer. Body-shaming is still alive and well. This is so unfortunate and people need to hear, unequivocally that they are beautiful and accepted, regardless. For teachers, parents, and mentors, this is a perfect segue into a following section of this article, unfollowing people. If someone is unaccepting, a teen certainly does not need to try and meet their standards by doing this or that. A heartly unfollow and bye-bye is the key. As the article stated, adults can model this for teens. Social media is a great way to connect and maintain good, healthy friendships. It is fun to post pictures and truly enjoy another's presence. No one needs to feel they have to "measure up" to someone else to be friends.

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Danah Boyd has made a significant impact on the reader’s by choosing the title It’s complicated which is very true as it relates to the fear and anxiety parent’s go through daily. Her book seeks to address the most complicated issue of prevalent concerns of parents and teachers about how teenagers use digital technologies and social media. She highlights that society often approaches the nuanced nature of teenagers with nervousness and anxiety, framing teenagers as addicted to technology. She argues that these stereotypes make things look too simple and hides the complex reality.

She describes the online space where teenagers interact as network publics which is associated with risks and challenges of online interactions like privacy concerns, cyber bullying, and addiction. She highlights and encourages the readers to see the positive aspects of it like self-expression and connection. She sheds the light on the significance of social media platforms in shaping the network publics and their influence on the ways the teenagers connect with each other. She considers these online spaces as the environment where they interact with friends, family, and others on multiple social contexts at the same time. It allows them to stay InTouch with all the individuals even though they are not able to meet them daily. This brings unique challenges to the teenagers as they try to navigate through these audiences at the same time in single space.

Takeaway: The idea that teenagers' online experiences are multifaceted. While there are concerns about privacy, bullying, and addiction, there are also positive aspects, including opportunities for self-expression and social connection.

The book “It’s Complicated” promotes a balanced view that acknowledges both the risks and benefits of digital engagement encouraging readers to move beyond stereotypes and accept the reality of how young people navigate the complexities of the digital age.

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Nikki Williams- Takeaway #1 How can we minimize Instagram’s harmful effects?

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Nikki Williams- Takeaway #1 How can we minimize Instagram’s harmful effects?

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Takeaway #1
In the article it discusses the impact of Instagram on the mental health of its users, particularly focusing on teenagers and adolescents. While Instagram has over a billion users, research on how the platform affects mental health is still in its early stages. Facebook's internal studies have indicated potential harm to teens, including body image concerns, but much of the research relies on correlational and self-reported data. Nevertheless, various studies have linked Instagram to issues such as depression, social anxiety, self-esteem problems, and body image concerns.

The addictive nature of Instagram, with its continuous content delivery and the visibility of quantified measures of status such as likes, views, comments, makes it particularly problematic. Instagram users who engage in digital status-seeking and social comparison tend to experience negative psychological outcomes. These issues are more prevalent among younger users and women. However, it's essential to note that the raw time spent on the platform is not necessarily the problem; instead, it's how users engage with the app. The article suggests that a nuanced approach is needed, focusing on reducing harmful behaviors while promoting positive ones, such as critical thinking and media literacy, to mitigate Instagram's potential negative effects on mental health.

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Nikki Williams Takeaway #2  "It's Complicated: The Social Lives of Networked Teens" by danah boyd

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Nikki Williams Takeaway #2  "It's Complicated: The Social Lives of Networked Teens" by danah boyd

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The author highlights the need to understand how teenagers interact with digital technologies and the internet within the broader context of their social and cultural lives. She emphasizes that simplistic or fearful views of teenagers' online activities do not capture the complexity of their experiences in the digital age. As adults we have to challenging the misconceptions we have about teenagers' online behaviors. Boyd suggests that adults often misunderstand or misinterpret the motivations and impacts of digital interactions on teenagers. This is something I do agree with.

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I found this article very interesting and it gave me a lot to think about. As a parent of a 24 year old and a 20 year old, I wish I had this knowledge about a decade ago. The only social media site that I use is Facebook to connect with friends and family that I do not see on a regular basis. They all live in different parts of the country and the world so for me it is necessary. Growing up in a non-technological age in Guyana, all my friends and family were always around so if I didn't see them in person, I called them on the phone, and I did live on the phone as a teenager. That to me was a normal teenage life. So the conversation that the author had with Heather, really resonated with me. I think school is lot more competitive these days and I placed a lot of emphasis on their grades. I also placed a lot of importance on extracurricular clubs and activities so they could identify their passions. Therefore, their lives were full and I have had many an argument with them over the years when I went into their rooms at night, and all I would see a light emanating from a phone and I used to get mad and take their phones away. I never thought about after such busy days, that they needed to connect with their friends since they only rarely saw them on weekends. Actually, it was every other weekend, since I am divorced from their dad who lived in Cobb County. All I focused on was the perceived dangers that I heard about on the news which was mentioned in the article: the bullying, sexual predators etc. I can go on about this article forever, but for now, I will apologize to my children and share the article with them. They have always told me that I was over-protective especially since I am addicted to the news so I can't wait to hear what they say. A very interesting conversation the next time they come home!

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Samantha Mbozi: How can we minimize Instagram's harmful effects

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Samantha Mbozi: How can we minimize Instagram's harmful effects

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This article was mainly focused on the harmful effects that Instagram has on society, particularly it's negative impact on teenage girls.  As a news consumer, over the years, I have heard many times that teenage girls on Instagram have faced self-esteem, body image issues and social anxiety as a result of looking at "doctored" images of other teenagers and celebrities.  However, I am choosing to focus on something a bit more positive.  In the article it states "Researchers are also starting to document the interaction between online and offline bullying, especially for people of color" and I was extremely happy to read that. Too many tweens and teenagers have suffered as a result and it has been so bad that it has led some to commit suicide.  I would love to know what the actual rates are but I suspect that the online bullying rates must be quite higher since a teen's online audience can be worldwide.  I also wondered in how many instances, offline bullying led to online bullying as well as the bullying rates among ethnicities and how does economics factor into this. What families are having these conversations with their children?.  With that thought in mind, I think that households, society and social media sites especially Instagram should prioritize educating tweens and teenagers on the undesirable effects of social media and encourage the use of privacy preferences since we all know that social media is here to stay.

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Matthew Spiess - It's Complicated Takeaway

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Matthew Spiess - It's Complicated Takeaway

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I took away from this reading that views on social media tend to be extremist in either a utopian or dystopian manner. However, boyd argues that the greatest challenges facing teens are far from new. Instead of social media being merely good or bad, it is a new public virtual space for teens to gather and interact. Although it is a different medium of communication and the posts made are often more permanent than other forms of communication, the fact remains that this is a social space and the full variety of social interactions can occur within its bounds (positive, negative, and neutral).

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I took away from this reading that although social media can be addictive on one hand and provide social connection on the other, a more nuanced view of the benefits and risk of this technology is necessary for our modern youth. Instead of banning social media or giving kids free range of their online presence, a more precise approach must be taken. As the article states, self comparison on instagram may be harmful, but intimacy and connection with peers may be healthy and normal. As parents, we must educate ourselves and our students about proper approaches and conduct in this virtual spaces such as instagram.

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Takeaway 2: Instagram's Harmful Effects?

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Takeaway 2: Instagram's Harmful Effects?

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What stood out to me the most in this article: What’’s harmful is not so much the amount of time teens spend on the app as how teens engage on the platform.  However, social media does have its benefits on teens' psychopathology. As parents and educators, our mission to protect teens is to have discussions with them, asking open-ended questions like how does looking at this image make you feel, is it altered, and encourage critical thinking, unfollow idealized heavy content, follow content unrelated to appearance, and as adults model these and other healthier social media behaviors.  This article also touched on the relationship between how learners learn and how the need for relatedness and belonging affects motivation.  How rewards (I.e., likes, comments, and followers) condition social media users to gorge on the “bottomless,” status-hungry content provided by these platforms.  However, after further reading, these and other issues are to be looked at with sober eyes and not to be taken to either extreme.

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I found the article very insightful.  The juxtapositional stance of the book puts the prevalence of social media and teens’ seemingly obsession with it into a different perspective. How the book connects teens’ views on the i importance of using social media to them using it as a tool to network with friends and as a place to build community helps to put a more grounded perspective to what otherwise would be panic and confusion is enlightening.  As the author puts it, old hopes and fears are evidence that the more things had changed, the more they seemed the same.  I thought she should have cited that as a quote from Morpheus.  Overall, I agree with what I’ve read so far. I would be interested in reading more when I have the time because much of what she said so far I can relate to. It confirms some of the thoughts I expressed in discussions about how my children's and students’ way of navigating the path to adulthood is different and similar to the way I and their parents grew up. The dynamics of Network Publics make affordances differ, but teen motives are the same (i.e., they still experience “drama,” socializing, and being independent).

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Padrika Edwards: How can we minimize Instagram's harmful effects?

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Padrika Edwards: How can we minimize Instagram's harmful effects?

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“Perhaps surprisingly, spending hours at a time on Instagram is not unilaterally harmful. One of the field’s most robust findings is that raw time spent on social media has little to no effect on psychopathology (Odgers, C. L., & Jensen, M. R., The Journal of Child Psychology and Psychiatry, Vol. 61, No. 3, 2020). Instead, the way people engage with the app appears to be what can impact mental health.”

This quote connected with me as a parent, teacher, and community leader. We are easily led to believe that hours on social media sites for children are wrong, so we began to take away their access. In turn, we should strive to understand the reason behind the use of social media. Additionally, we need to teach kids how to interact with these apps in a way that keeps them safe and protects their mental health. Our reasons for using social media are different from those of our students. It is a way for them to build peer relationships or strengthen connections with friends. Students no longer have public places to hang out without their parents. Most public places are implementing rules that require a parent or guardian to gain entry. (malls, libraries, fairs, and sporting events). Social media apps are not going away. We must embrace the technology and teach our students how to use it effectively.

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“They associate the rise of digital technology with decline—social, intellectual, and moral. The research I present here suggests that the opposite is often true.”

My takeaway from the article is the disconnect between adults and kids. Older adults tend to idealize their upbringing, neglecting to remember the negative. Furthermore, because they grew up without technology, the fear is that the use of technology will taint the upbringing of the next generations. Many concerns are overhyped fear tactics that get blown out of proportion. Too often, as a society, we tend to focus on technology being the problem rather than considering other systemic issues at play.

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Schneider, William : it's complicated takeaway

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Schneider, William : it's complicated takeaway

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My takeaway from the introduction of it's complicated by danah boyd comes from the section on  teens being "digital natives".  The introduction points out that comfortably with technology does not necessarily translate into what the term "digital native" implies about teens and their capabilities of using technology. This makes perfect sense to me and supports my own belief that about students and technology. Namely, that students are going to use technology so we must teach them how to use it well, by showing them how they can learn with it, from it and of course be safe with it. Rather then simply banning or restricting technology, namely smart phones, would it not be better to help students learn how to utilize the immensely powerful tool in their hands for learning. For example, I have often used YouTube for do it yourself videos for things like how to wire a ceiling fan to more indepth things such as replacing the rollers on my dryer. Neither of these things was a skill I possessed until watching a short tutorial video on how to do so, but now are things I can provide guidance to others on.  I feel embracing the technology students are comfortable with and helping them utilize to become better students has to be part of the equation for educators moving forward.

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Schneider, William: Takeaway from "How can we minimize Instagram’s harmful effects?"

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Schneider, William: Takeaway from "How can we minimize Instagram’s harmful effects?"

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Having spend a vast majority of my teaching career teaching 8th and 9th grade students about the differences between correlation and causation, I could not help myself from thinking about how I could possible use this article as a hook for a lesson on those concepts. The article mentions a few times the correlation present with instagram use, likes and negative things such as eating disorders or negative body image. It is important to remember that many of these negative things may not be directly caused by the Instagram platform (or social media in general) but it is certainly an area where these negative things are magnified and could manifest themselves. To borrow from our other reading, (it's complicated) the use of Instagram is just the "new" medium in which adolescents are looking to determine what it is they should look like, act like, be like etc., before that were magazines, movies, TV shows, etc.. The medium may change but the issues remain by in large the same. I would agree it is certainly far more difficult to "disengage" from negative aspects of social media, but as the article says that ability to disengage could be bolstered by parents (and other influential adults) in adolescents lives doing the same and modeling how to do it. I do not see social media use disappearing from our students lives, therefore we must validate the positives and educate about the negatives of using these platforms.

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It was interesting in the introduction that the adults were the ones glued to their phones. They were using them individually and as they were barely paying attention as the game was played on the field. The teens, on the other hand, were very social and active with their friends. They occasionally shared their screen with a friend and seemed to only text when trying to locate friends. As adults, we tend to criticize how attached youth our to their phones but in this case, the adults were isolating themselves more with the device use.

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I am not a social media user. I have a FB account that I never use and I only occasionally scroll through Instagram to see some of the amusing posts. It is so sad to read of the impact that social media can have on a child's body image and self esteem. I had no idea that so many posts were edited. I do know that I have taught student's, especially young ladies (6th grade), that have come to me in tears because of things they saw posted on social media. They spent time with the school counselors and families to work through the impact of social media. I had not considered the positive impact that Instagram and other social media could have for some of our student groups that may feel more socially isolated such as our LGBTQ students. It is so important that we are aware and that families do have conversations with students on responsible digital literacy. My children are young adults and after reading the articles, I checked in with them on their social media experiences.

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Jenn Wallace - danah boyd - it's complicated

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Jenn Wallace - danah boyd - it's complicated

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Takeaway #1 After raising two daughters in the 2010's I agonized over how much time on social media was appropriate. Like danah boyd, I realized that social media is how teenagers connect with their friends, just like we connected with our friends before social media. Where I would write long notes to my pals in class, my daughters would send texts back and forth all day to their friends. My hours long phone calls with friends were like their back and forth chats on kik. After agonizing over what horrible things my girls were being exposed to, I found that, like danah boyd said, they were using their phones to extend their social times with their friends. There were a few times that I said something to them about ugly language, but I think that is very normal for growing and maturing as a teenager. So many adults are terrified of the world changing around us that they immediately are jumping to the worst conclusions, rather than asking the kids what they are doing and really listening to them like ms. boyd is doing.

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I realized long ago that Instagram could either make me feel really good, or really bad! My daughters and I all make an effort to follow people we know, or accounts that reflect body positivity, positive mental health or celebrities who are "real". I have an account that my students can follow called "Life Lessons with Mrs. Wallace" and I make sure that it features real life! If I see a beautiful rock, it goes on the feed. If I feel fabulous, I go on the feed. I don't believe that 1 in 3 people editing their bodies is excessive, but if we continue to encourage people to be themselves, maybe we can continue to bring those numbers down. 10 years ago, women were all encouraged to look like swimsuit models. Now, Target, Aerie and even Victoria's Secret are using real women to advertise and model their clothing. That's progress. And it is because of people on Instagram!

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I am posting my response to these two readings simultaneously because I found that my thoughts about each overlapped quite a bit.

As I was reading “It’s Complicated,” a major thing that stood out to me was the timeline of the research. The research was conducted between 2003 and 2012, which encompasses most of my K-12 career (I started Kindergarten in 2001 and graduated high school in 2014). I resonated with many of the personal accounts that boyd shared, both from her observations and interview snippets with students. I particularly resonated with boyd’s observations of the football game, where students were engaging with their phones together, instead of in an isolated manner like the adults at the game. This is something I remember vividly from my own high school experience. I struggled to explain to the adults in my life that my friends and I engaged in social media and with our smartphones as a way to stay connected, share photos, make plans to meet up, and recap big events. As a high school student during this timeframe, I felt that social media was an extension of real life, a “public space” no different from the park or the mall or my dance studio where we also would congregate.

However, as much as I related to the teens boyd interviewed, I couldn’t help but think that the ways in which teens, and even adults, engage with social media has drastically changed since the research concluded in 2012. I have lived through this change and watched it evolve in real time. Especially important has been the way political campaigns employ social media, and the very algorithms and technology employed by social media companies, like advertising structures and the “infinite scroll,” where sites show suggested content or advertisements after you have viewed all of the most recent content from people you actually follow. In addition, the way in which we consume social media has changed. In my high school experience, we had a  more active engagement, where people used social media to connect with friends, make plans to meet up, and post pictures from said meet-up. Now, social media use is very passive. It is not at all uncommon to follow people you have never met, whether they be friends of friends, celebrities, or influencers. It is now used more to project your views, experiences, and life, and to consume the views, experiences, and lives of others, rather than to actively engage and converse with them.

As I read boyd’s piece, I had these thoughts circulating in the back of my mind. “How can we minimize Instagram’s harmful effects?” articulated these complexities and contradictions very well. I found this article clearly answered the doubts I had in the back of my mind, which is that the way in which we use social media matters. People who use Instagram as a way to compare themselves to others and seek digital social status had significantly negative psychological outcomes. Particularly striking was that this is common among adults, not just teens. I think this article provides an excellent framework for how to talk about social media with students and teens, and for us as adults to examine our own social media use and our intentions behind it. After all, social media is not going away, just like the internet, cars, television, and printing press did not go away. Rather than ban or espouse the negative effects of social media, we need to take a nuanced approach and intentionally examine the positive and negative effects, and discuss how we can promote the positive and avoid the negative.

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I will be one of the first ones to admit that I use Instagram. There are times where I will take a little break grad school or even work and scroll through Instagram thinking, "I am going to spend a few minutes to see what is new."; however, that's never the case. Few minutes turns into thirty minutes and so on.
Something I took away from this article is, "posting edited “selfies” on apps like Instagram is also correlated with disordered eating behavior. 1 in 3 women said they edited images to alter their weight or shape before posting photos on Instagram. That practice was associated with an increased likelihood of a probable eating disorder.". This part of the article hits a little too close to home for me. Ever since I was a little kid, I always struggled with my weight and was always cautious before posting any pictures on social media. There have been times where I would edit a picture or even cropped a picture. I did struggle with an eating disorder in middle school and even into high school because I thought I was fat compared to my friends. My parents were concerned and worried about me immensely. They would always tell me that I was not fat, but of course I did not believe them.
Social media can be harmful to students and even adults. It is so important to know that everyone's life is not perfect and people tend to share the good things that are happening with the world.

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Social media is everywhere we look and unfortunately our students' lives are all about social media and technology. "Teens engage with networked publics for the same reasons they have always relished publics; they want to be a part of the broader world by connecting with other people and having the freedom of mobility." I found this quote to be accurate. Teens use social media and technology to figure out what their purposes are in live and figure out where they fit in life.
Teens are consumed with social media and with the amount of friends they have on Facebook, the amount of followers they have on Instagram, and the amount views they get on their videos. Social media gives them that sense of belonging and meaning or at least that's what they believe.
Growing up, my parents did not allow me to get my first cellphone till I was thirteen and that was when my friends were getting smartphones. My parents did not allow me to have any social media profiles till I was a freshmen in high school. Even then my parents were always making sure I was following their rules they set in place.
Teens need to be aware that social media is not the answer.

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Amonie Rucker - Mentally in Instagram, but physically in class.

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Amonie Rucker - Mentally in Instagram, but physically in class.

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“Instagram, like many tech platforms, is designed to be bottomless, and you don’t have to do much to access that bottomless content. Just keep scrolling,” he said.

This quote stood out to me as a millennial and as an educator. Instagram is not an app that I 'use' often. However, when I access the app, I can be on their for hours if I do not intentionally set bounders for myself. I have noticed the same thing for my scholars.

When I say that I do not 'use' Instagram often, I mean that I am not on the app to post anything for my personal gain (i.e. business, career, finances, etc.). However, when I access the app, though not for 'use' for myself, I am getting caught up on everyone else's lives. And often times, these are the lives of people who I have not met in-person, nor do I know them personally.

I cannot say that my students are on the app analyzing people's lives who they do not know, however, I a certain that a good portion of their scrolling during class is just that.

Instagram definitely does have an addictive effect. There is an endless trail of content with zero 'stop' ques!

We as humans are not accustomed to this. Even our bodily functions have 'stop' ques. So, for developing adolescents, many of whom have been on social media prior to puberty; I imagine that 'living' in social media land for hours of their day can negatively impact their quality of life.

The article states that their are findings that social media has little to no psychopathic effects, however, I would love to see a study done upon the quality of life of those who spend hours of their day on social media. This test could be as simple as, "What did you learn in math class on yesterday?", "Recall who was present in class during 5th period.", "What was the last announcement of the school day?".

I am being a bit facetious with the questions, but I do think that people miss out on a lot of life outside of social media land, due to spending so much time mentally somewhere other than where you are physically.

This is why, as an educator, I am a firm believer that cell phones should not be utilized within the classroom setting.

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I enjoyed this read. It think it was a cool observation that the author made as it pertains to phones less likely being used as phones by teens.

This was a pretty funny observation to me, because I almost forgot that cell phones were intended to be utilized as a phone to talk on. Ha!

When I reflect on cell phone as a distraction in my classroom and/or at school functions, they are almost NEVER actually being utilized as phones.

Students typically are using them to film or take pictures of other students, to browse social media, to record a TikTok video, or the like.

I remember when I was younger, my mom only purchased a cell phone for me so that I could stay in touch with her once I joined a sport team at school and had to stay after. She gave me the phone so that I could stay in touch with her and my older brother for safety reasons.

However, what she was unaware of, was that I had access to the world-wide web, and or social media vice at the time was MySpace.

The author continues to share observations of parents, who were just like students, paying more attention to their devices than the homecoming event occurring.

I think that this is where I have a problem with cellular devices. Access to them become problematic, when they become more significant than what is happening in the real-world.

I know that many will argue that cell phones keep them aware of what is happening in the world, but I would argue to say, so does actually being present in the world.

I believe that cell phones should not be the primary source of our information. I think that the world around us should serve as our primary source of information. Cell phones are more for enrichment purposes. However, there is such a wealth of information, communication, and observations around us, if we would just put the devices down as often as our work, internet obligations will allow.

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This was an eye-opening article.  One of the main takeaways was the fact that the author mentioned "The more things change the more they say the same."   I received insight when Danah Boyd mentioned how in the 90's we depended on the telephone, going to the mall, and just hooking up with friends.  So if we think about our needs, it's the same desire we longed for like the kids today. We craved a sense of belonging, the desire to stay connected, and just the opportunity to chat and being able to express ourselves. The teens of today are using a different platform but have the same needs as previous generations.  Security and privacy have always been an issue but because of the range that social media can reach it is more impactful now.  I understand that parents want to protect their children but understanding them is also crucial. As educators, we know the importance of communication and the importance of being heard. I feel that parents should step back and communicate with their children. Also, we must get input from the teens.

Shannon Monnie Lain

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How can we minimize Instagram's harmful effects?

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How can we minimize Instagram's harmful effects?

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The main takeaway from this article is that researchers know very little about how social media affects mental health and the fact that social media affects self-esteem and causes depression should be a top priority.  It is important to understand that whatever is not monitored is not done. A key point is that this is a key factor when looking at the effects of social media.  Adults experience some of the same effects as teens. Adults participate more in edited images which can result in eating disorders and body image concerns. Social comparison causes anxiety and mood. The solution should be that all participants monitor and control the negative effects of their posts.
Shannon Monnie Lain