Monday, December 2, 2013

Give this a read!

This essay struck me as exemplary! Some standout characteristics include the accurate use of quotations and proper citations. It's thoughtful and insightful and showcases her research! Great job, Madysen!
Madysen Kouba
Ms. Fordahl
English 10
7 November 2013
Cell Phones: How Have They Changed Us Socially?
    Ever since they were first introduced to the world, cell phones have been a huge part of our everyday lives. Most people these days don’t wear watches, navigate with maps, or use digital cameras. Cell phones all seem to have the necessary software on them, making the simplest things in life even simpler. Sure, it’s great having your important things on you at once in a small, compact ‘computer’, but its seeming that more and more people, especially teenagers, are becoming too attached to cell phones. So attached, it seems, that laws have been made, and are continuing to be made, in order to protect citizens from becoming too distracted by cell phones while doing everyday things. In this essay, I’ll explain how cell phones have worked their way into our culture and how they have changed us socially.
    Let’s say one walks into a restaurant or coffee shop, and they see a group of younger people sitting around a table. Of course, one might think they’d be having a good conversation face to face, but instead, they’re all sitting with their phones in their laps, heads and shoulders hunched over it as if their lives depended on it. CBS News “Scott Campbell states ‘What it [the cell phone] is doing is keeping [teenagers] perpetually connected between face-to-face communications.’” Today’s generation of young people are becoming less and less social, relying on the the cell phone to get them away from face-to-face communication. However, there are also some people who know when enough is enough, and when to put the phone down. According to CBS News, “Deb Cohen of The Parenting Center in Abington, Philadelphia, PA says ‘technology can be good for kids a little on the shy side, since there’s little anonymity.’” Why is it so hard for people to look someone in the eyes and have a meaningful conversation? Cell phones are definitely not helping with this at all, giving us a ‘get out of jail free card’ whenever we get the chance to text or call someone instead.
Cyber-bullying has also become a huge problem now that smartphones have worked their way into our lives. “The more extensively teenagers use their cell phones, the greater their risk of exposure to both experiencing and engaging within inappropriate mobile activity,” says Charlie Osborne. Teenagers who use cell phones on an hourly basis are more subject to cyberbullying, as opposed to the teenagers who only check their phone two to three times a day (Osborne). It is so much easier for a cyberbully to hurt someone over text messaging or social networking, due to the fact that they cannot be physically seen and confronted. In fact, around eighty-eight percent of cyberbullies indicate they have been bullied themselves across wireless networks (Osborne). Now, some parents are taking and have taken action against misuse of mobile devices, equipping their children’s cell phones with tracking devices and parental control software (Osborne). According to www.dosomething.org, “over eighty percent of teens use a cell phone regularly, making it the most common medium for cyberbullying.” These cell phones are helping bullies victimize others easier without harsh consequences.
Besides antisocialness and cyberbullies, cell phones are affecting how people write and speak. When one sends a text message ‘LOL’, it means ‘laugh out loud.’ Or, maybe one types ‘U’ instead of ‘you’ to make the message a bit shorter. Most people would say that these abbreviated words and phrases might hurt how students write. That might be somewhat true, but it’s not completely the case.  “[We conducted] a randomized evaluation of a mobile phone education program...in which adult students learned how to use mobile phones as part of a literacy and numeracy class. Overall, students demonstrated substantial improvements in literacy and numeracy test scores.” say Aker, Ksoll, and Lybbert. According to a Boston College student, and a very dedicated texter, ‘u dont have long txts instead u get to the point’(Steinkraus). Texting does help young people get their points across, but what about writing for professional essays and papers? Is it right to use these abbreviations in essays and assignments? Ruth Eversley, an English teacher, says that texting is to blame for students’ deficiencies in literacy. It is letting the students pass over the rules of writing and English language. (Steinkraus) However, Eversley also states that students are actually writing for fun. (Steinkraus) While it depends on the student, texting and using cell phones can be beneficial overall, as long as one takes the time to use correct English in papers and essays.
As I’ve stated throughout this essay, cell phones have greatly impacted our culture and how we communicate socially. Cell phones make our lives so much easier, but they also distract us from more important things in life. Instead of starting a conversation with the person in the same seat on the bus, we sit on our phones and check our social networks, or text our friends, or just simply play pointless games. Even though we can have fun on these phones, some people are being viciously bullied as well. Cell phones have become a ‘safe house’ for bullies, enabling them to victimize people without being confronted. I also spoke about the effect of cell phone use on today’s standard literacy. Students these days are using text abbreviations and phrases in their papers instead of using the proper grammar. Texting is a great way to get a point across without putting in too much extra detail, but it is also affecting our grammar negatively. Though, as stated before, texting is allowing students to write for fun without being told what to write or how to write (Eversley). It all depends on how much a student texts and if they have good grammar outside of texting. Cell phones are a great accessory that helps us with our everyday tasks, and even though it has changed the world drastically, its a great thing to have now that science and technology is advancing dramatically.


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