Smartphones and social media have dominated us for a long time now. Now, it’s hard to find someone without a smartphone and a social media account. And life without them is also unthinkable as it has become the major medium of communication. Earlier, the grandparent-generations were not much influenced by these new trends. But now they are the ones who are more active and crazy about it, as they have more free time than working people and students. Everyone is falling into the highly attracting trap of social media. Such is its power!
The power of social media to attract more users is as high as its power to destroy people. The major ones who are affected are children and students. Even small kids have their own phones and social media accounts! Parents don’t mind buying their kids what they ask for now. In most families, both the parents are seen working late into the night, and they have no time to look after their kids. Eventually, the responsibility of taking care of the kids is given to the grandparents, but that does not happen in every home, as we see more of nuclear families nowadays, with only the parents and their children.
Why is Social Media good?
YES, social media is good. It is the proof of the developing nation and the modern world’s evolution. As a student , I myself find social media and the Internet very useful because:
1. Just imagine school life without WHATSAPP. How would you get your friend’s book and notes if you were absent for a few days? How would you contact your friend or a teacher regarding something very important or conduct a group discussion in the last minute for a project?
2. HOMEWORK is a very tough task if we don’t have sites like Brainly, Topperlearning, Tiwariacademy, Vedantu, CBSEguide, and so on. How is homework simpler than before? It’s because of such helpers.
3. ONLINE CLASSES are quite common now. Home schooling is more easy now. If you didn’t understand something in class, it’s nothing to worry, just type it out in Google for the full, detailed explanation, or into the YouTube searchbar to see a live, classroom explanation.
4. NCERT SOLUTIONS available on the Internet is something which I find really useful. We don’t have to buy books and rely on them anymore for NCERT solutions when it’s so clearly given out in the net.
5. SAMPLE PAPERS, worksheets, exercises etc., help students to work more and get good grades.
Okay now, why is social media bad?
1. DISTRACTION: Students spend more time on their phones than on books. This is obviously because scrolling through the Net is more easier than memorising facts and working out sums, hence the students tend to get more distracted in this way.
2. Reduces the face-to-face interaction. There are things which can be said only when you face that person. Chatting doesn’t give you that feel. And people have become more introvert because of these mobiles. They refuse to speak up and become cowardly.
3. LAZINESS. It’s a major effect of social media. Suppose you want to ask your mom who’s in the kitchen for something, but you feel lazy to even get up and go to the kitchen. So what do you do? You message her or make a video call to her! Such incidents are common in most homes.
4.RUDENESS: People can be very rude when they chat,even if they don’t mean to. Chatting gives that inauthentic communication, when we don’t exactly understand what the other person is really trying to say.
5. People are really crazy over how many likes, followers, and comments they get when they post things on media. They go crazy over new trends and invite danger into their lives by trying out adventurous things trending on the media.
HOW TO OVERCOME THE OBSESSION?
First of all, as a student, DO NOT own a phone. Using a parent’s mobile is nothing to be ashamed of.
While studying, switch off the phone or disable the wi-fi network. If you are researching on the Net, don’t waste much time on it.
So what if everyone knows about what is trending and you don’t know it? Isn’t it good that you are not hoodwinked to the media? To know what’s happening around the world, reading newspapers are enough.
Going for regular classes (be it studies or any other activity like dancing, drawing, playing instruments etc.) help in taking you away from these traps. You will have to concentrate on these activities rather than waste yourself on the phone. Reading lot of books also helps.
Finally, the parents have to be strict enough to correct their kids and prevent them from wavering from the right path.
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