Technology: a double-edged weapon

 Technology has become a very useful tool for education lately. It facilitates the practice of students, and it allows teachers to evaluate student’s skills inside the classroom as well as outside of it. Indeed, there are many important aspects that technology can promote in education; such as autonomous learning, problem-solving skills, balanced class development, etc. Nevertheless, technology in education can bring up a series of disadvantages for students and for education itself. For instance, technology emphasizes the social inequalities as not all the students have access to computers outside the educational institutions that is to say, schools or universities. This example leads us to another disadvantage which is the importance of previous knowledge on how to use technology; a student that doesn’t master the use of computers should learn to do it because the fact of noticing that gap could make him/her feel frustrated with the task, which might become useless. In my opinion, teachers should be careful with the use and over-use of technology, and they need to make sure that all or at least most of the students in the class have access to a computer. When this factor is taken into account, all the advantages can come about, thus successful learning may touch off.

Sharing For A Living

Some years ago, a friend of mine told me to sign into Facebook. At that time, the only place where I would write my ideas, feelings, and what was going on my life, was my diary. She was so persistent that I decided to find out what was all about Facebook. I didn't find anything interesting in it, so I didn't do as my friend told me to. I remember she was very disappointed that I didn't create an account; she even told me that I would never going to be popular.

Now, after 5 years or more, I have fallen into the social network's world, and even though they are a great tool to communicate with people in a cheaper way, I still do not understand how people become so addicted to it. Although social networks are really entertaining and helpful to comunicate, I think it is dangerous for our own life. 

Being addicted to Facebook or Twitter, the two most used social networks nowadays, can effect your academic performance. Updating your Facebook status or scrolling down on Twitter every 5 seconds, can really affect your concentration on more important issues, like our studies, and our English homework. People spend more time on the internet and on these social networks than they could really imagine.

Let's picture this:

You wake up at 06.00, and check your e.mail, maybe the news, and of course, Facebook. Even if there is no one online at 6.00 in the morning, you stare at the chat, and check it every time you can. Then, you go to work, university or school; you check Facebook on the phone, and you keep doing that every hour of the day. 

Social Network Addiction is a serious problem, and it can also affect the way you perceive reality. Being in a virtual world almost the entire day, can really make you feel that you are still in the virtual world; therefore, you don't even know in what reality you are in. Your self-steem also depends on what status or comment do you read, what photo you were tagged in...

It is not possible that our lives depend on Facebook's updates. 

So I wonder: what can we do, then, to realize that we can become addicts before it gets worse?