Get Off Your Phone!!

Blog Post #6 - 2016

Finding a balance between what is too little or too much leeway for use of social media or electronic communication devices (cell phones, lap tops, etc.) in academic settings is a struggle every school and its administrators is facing. 

Teachers don’t want to outright ban such devices as they realize they have benefits to student learning and development. For example, the opportunity for students to collaborate with one another and for communication between students and their teachers is made much more accessible. Furthermore, a student’s ability to multitask, research, and practice their right to freedom of speech is greatly improved.

However, the distraction, implications to privacy, and negative affects on personal or face-to-face relationships social media imposes makes allowing these devices within classrooms and schools a bit more difficult.

“The need for up-to-the-minute updates is negatively impacting a younger generation’s ability to mature socially and could be stunting academic growth,” says Kathryn Gregory in the Sunday Gazette Mail.

There is no doubt that these devices have impacted how we communicate within our every day lives. The need for face-to-face communication has drastically reduced as many people choose to text something they would have previously waited to say to someone in person.

As a result, the very dynamic of social interaction has changed. Being friends with someone online that you have never met in person is now a commonality and people are able to create personas on the Internet that may not completely coincide with how they are in person.

It is a newfound freedom today’s youth can benefit from. However, with electronic communication replacing a lot of face-to-face communication, impacts to all types of relationships, whether with parents, teachers, or peers, is undeniable. Even an individual’s relationship with himself or herself can be affected based off of how they believe others view them on the Internet.

That being said, please consider and respond to the following questions regarding the policy of electronic/ social media devices in schools and how they affect relationships:

How do you believe social media and electronic communication devices have changed a variety of relationships you have in your life (with friends, parents, teachers, etc.)?

Do you believe these changes have altered these relationships for the better or worse? 

What are some things you do/ can do to make sure these relationships aren’t hindered by the constant use of such social media devices?

Do you believe such devices should or should not be allowed and/ or incorporated in academic settings such as schools and classrooms?

What are some rules and regulations school administrators could put into place to ensure these devices do not detrimentally affect the students within their school?

Celebrities Behaving Badly

Blog Post #5 - 2016

The list of celebrities that have been exhibiting bad, erratic, or controversial behaviours is extensive. Notable figures such as Lindsay Lohan, Charlie Sheen, Chris Brown, Justin Bieber, and Kanye West have all become regulars in tabloid headlines depicting their latest misadventures.

Most notably, Justin Bieber spent most of the last two years misbehaving in the public eye. Defacing public property with graffiti, being rude to fans, becoming known for 'bratty' behaviour, and causing over $20,000 in damages by vandalizing a neighbour’s home were just the beginning. Bieber was also arrested and charged for driving while intoxicated, dangerous driving, and assaulting a Toronto limo driver.

Kanye West is another frequenter of these headlines of mischief. He is notorious for his Twitter rants of over 80 tweets, being verbally and physically abusive to paparazzi (eventually escalating to his arrest for felony vandalism after damaging a paparazzi camera), and his numerous disrespectful award show stage crashes (including the infamous interruption of Taylor Swift mid-acceptance speech at the 2009 MTV VMAs). West is also well known for his ‘God complex’, as can be seen in his ‘I Am a God’ single from his Yeezus album and his cover for Rolling Stones Magazine where he poses in the likeness of Jesus with the caption 'The Passion of Kanye West'.

Most recently, West has made headlines after Deadmau5 publicly called him out on Twitter for using Pirate Bay, a website used to illegally download music and television content. West was caught using the website after he posted a picture of his computer screen where the website can be seen opened in his web browser. 

West has publicly spoken out against the website in the past, and even threatened to sue them for making his albums available for illegal downloading, prompting Deadmau5 to highlight West’s hypocrisy for using the website. However, instead of facing the issue head-on, West attacked Deadmau5 personally by mocked him and his music.

Unfortunately, regardless of how frequent such misbehaviours are in the public eye, these celebrities seem to come out unscathed and with their careers fully intact. Regardless of the recklessness, disrespectfulness, and arrogance these celebrities exude, the devotion and admiration they receive by their fans is unchanging.

Please consider and discuss the following:

Why are fans are willing to put up with so much when it comes to overlooking their favourite celebrity’s misbehaviours?

As notable public figures and role models to many, should their behaviours not have consequences like they would for a normal person such as you or me? 

Just as our careers and social lives would be affected if we were to break the law or get caught with illegal substances, shouldn’t celebrities have similar consequences? Or has our celebrity culture elevated to the point where celebrities are above the law and their actions void of consequences? 

Safe Schools?

Blog Post #4 - 2016

                                 Image courtesy of THE CANADIAN PRESS

At 8:30am on Tuesday February 23^rd, a 14 year-old female student brandishing two knives injured six students and three faculty members at Dunbarton High School in Pickering, Ontario.

Since the attack, more information has been reported on the mental health of the girl. Tricia Goodchild, an Educational Assistant that worked with the accused, reported that, “Bullying is a huge thing that she had to deal with and I think people should know that was something that could have triggered her. I felt that she was so sad and so depressed. I though that, if anything, she would try to hurt herself. I never thought she would try to hurt other kids,” she said.

 Goodchild also said although the girl reported bullying to school administrators, noting was done to correct it. Instead, even after reporting the bullying, the girl told Godchild, “Nobody believes me.”

            As a result, Goodchild believes the school failed the little girl and could fail others, as well. “Is it really safe at that school? I don’t think so. This happened; it was only a matter of time. There are probably other kids who are also struggling with bullying and other issues,” she said.  

Image courtesy of THE CANADIAN PRESS

We are all aware of many past acts of violence that have been committed at other schools. The impacts of such incidences are felt not only within the community they happen in, but across the world whether any injuries or deaths occur or not.

Schools are intended to be safe communities where members protect and build one another up rather than tear each other down. However, we are all also aware of instances where such communal support is not always the reality. Instead, some individuals are singled out, torn down, and bullied to the point they feel alone in a school full of people and as if they have no one to reach out to for help.

How do you think schools and communities can avoid these acts of school violence in the future?

What services are available to you at Mary Ward that allow you to reach out in the event you or someone you knew was being bullied?

What are some new services you think your school could provide to better help students being bullied in and out of school?

Of Course the Internet is Telling Me the Truth!

Blog Post #3 - 2016

Lately in the news there has been much buzzing going around about the upcoming American lottery that is worth 1.3 billion dollars.  A huge amount of money is up for grabs, and both Americans and Canadians alike are scrambling to try and get their hands on a winning ticket.  Well that's all fine and dandy - and quite frankly, of no importance to me.  But of course, with anything that is making the news it isn't too far behind that a meme will show it's face on the internet.  Just look at how quickly all of those memes of Steve Harvey appeared after he accidentally announced the wrong winner at Miss Universe!  It doesn't take long for someone out there to quickly put together a meme!

So, of course - there is a meme running it's course on the internet about this upcoming lottery.  And I am sure that the creator had good intensions in mind ... but, well, take a look ....

Do you see the problem?  Take a look at it this way ....

So .... math is important I guess .. but to me this just demonstrated a bigger problem ... people are just too quick to believe what they read on the internet!  I can't tell you how many people decide to share this post of Facebook, believe it to be true - without even taking a minute to think for themselves!  I am no math whiz ... but as soon as I saw this I said to myself ... the math just doesn't seem right!

But what amazes me more is just how many people DIDN'T notice this ... according to this article by Matt Novak, as of January 11 this meme had 253,266 likes and 574,007 shares!!! Wowza!

So I guess then the thing that bothers me the most is just how quickly people accept what they see and read on the internet.  To me this is a big concern, to think that so many people don't really stop and take a moment to think for themselves.  Here is a great article about how we can try and make things a little better for ourselves when reading things on the internet.  Take a moment to give it a read.

Think of how much traffic the internet gets on a daily basis.  Do you see a problem with what was discussed in this blog post?  How do you feel about memes and the kind of impact they can have?  What do you think about the millions and millions of bytes of information that comes across your computer screen every hour? And what measures can you take to maybe make a change?  Have you ever fallen victim of maybe accepting what you read without taking a moment to think for yourself or do you know someone who has?  Be honest and think about what this could mean or do to others and yourself.  Think about this from a different perspective ... if others are quick to believe things that are on the internet, what kind of responsibility do we have when it comes to posting information? Reflect and respond.

Would you pay???

Blog Post #2 - 2015

Ads!  They can drive you nuts - pop ups on your computer, ads within your downloaded game, ads on Facebook, ads on Youtube - those darn ads are everywhere!

Of course there are measures out there to help keep those pesky ads at a minimum, software for your computers that can block those ads from appearing when you least want them.  But they don't always work, and if it is a game on your phone, then there isn't much you can do other than purchasing the full version game.

Well here is one thing you can do ... Youtube is releasing a subscription you can get, that will be totally and completely ad free!  Sounds too good to be true - maybe so, because this little feature will cost you $9.99 a month.

Read this article about Youtube's new launch.

So is this something that you would purchase just to eliminate those ads?  Is the price worth it?  Or do you feel that this is over-priced?   What about looking at this from the side of the advertisers?  It's their job to reach out to the people to sell their product - do you think that this will be a hit for advertisers who rely on this medium?  Or do you think they will be fine on their own?  Tell me what you think about an ad-free option for our digital outlets.

TV is DYING! ... or is it?

Blog Post #1 - 2015

Ahh the TV - for me the television and I have a love/hate relationship.  I love watching shows and I think it can be a great form of entertainment, but I hate how it takes up time as if you got sucked into a black hole!  I love being able to watch shows that I find interesting, I hate commercials, boy - I really hate commercials.  I love finding time as a family, sitting down together - watching some of our favourite shows, having a good laugh.  But I hate scheduling my life around the tv show schedule.

 ... You see, my relationship can probably be described as quite the oxymoron.

Since the introduction of wonderful inventions such as Netflix, Apple TV, Shomi, Crave TV, and of course Youtube, people are starting to 'watch' tv on their own terms.  So what does this mean for regular cable tv?  Is it really dying out?

kanelart.com

Some business insiders and entertainment promoters are predicting that TV may very well be dead in only ten short years!  I find this very interesting and something to ponder.  More and more families are opting out of cable packages these days - and instead are adding more GIGs to their internet plans at home.

Think about your own TV usage at home, or that of your family.  Observe over the next couple of days who watches the TV and who decides to get their entertainment from other vices.  What do you think will happen to the life of the TV - and cable networks?  Do you see an end on the way?

Blogging Rules!

Image Source: awesomelytechie.com

Having an online presence can be a lot of fun, but also holds a lot of responsibility!  Here are some key tips to remember when creating posts for your blog.- Don't divulge personal information: use your FIRST NAME ONLY, don't give any details with regards to contact information, home address, phone numbers, last names of friends or relatives, instant messaging names, age, or birth date.
- No questionable photos of you or anything else: If you wouldn't show it to your grandma, don't post it on the web! Avoid posting photos of yourself.
- Remember the internet is permanent! Anyone on the Internet can easily print out a blog or save it to a computer.
- Use blogging provider sites with clearly stated terms of use, and make sure they can protect the actual blogs, not just the user accounts, with password protection. (Even so, it's better to assume anyone can see it.)
- Avoid trying to "out-do" or compete with other bloggers.

- Keep it clean and positive: Our blogs are reflective of our Catholic values. Sexist, racist, homophobic, or any type of oppressive and offensive language will not be tolerated!