Technology
COMPUTERS AND INTERNET
SVA provides student access to over 130 computers and filtered Internet across five computer labs in the administration building, the library, and in each dormitory. Because there are many computers in multiple locations on campus, students are not permitted to bring their own computer to campus. Students are able to store and retrieve their personal and protected files on SVA’s file servers.
Teachers utilize technology in their classrooms with access to sixty Chromebook computers for projects/assignments, video projection, and the use of smartboards.
CELL PHONES AND SMART DEVICES
Students, staff, parents, and stakeholders value an environment that is optimal for spiritual, mental, and physical development. An increasing body of research points to the negative effects of social media and smartphone use, especially on young people. The effects include a growing mental health crisis. With this in mind, SVA follows a policy that will allow SVA to continue to be a place where relationships are real rather than virtual, a place where students learn to be creators, collaborators, and critical thinkers rather than mere consumers, and a place where Christ is served as Lord and Savior.
Resources on Social Media and Technology
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Surgeon General Dr. Vivek Murthy Urges Action to Ensure Social Media Environments are Healthy and Safe, as Previously-Advised National Youth Mental Health Crisis Continues
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Psychological scientists examine potential beneficial and harmful effects of social mediaa use on adolescents’ social, educational, psychological, and neurological development. This is a rapidly evolving and growing area of research with implications for many stakeholders (e.g., youth, parents, caregivers, educators, policymakers, practitioners, and members of the tech industry) who share responsibility to ensure adolescents’ well-being.b Officials and policymakers including the U.S. Surgeon General Dr. Vivek Murthy have documented the importance of this issue and are actively seeking science-informed input.
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Preparing a child for the world that doesn’t yet exist is not an easy task for any teacher. Step back and look at that picture from a broad perspective. What are the critical 21st century skills every student needs to survive and succeed in our world? What abilities and traits will serve them in a time that’s changing and developing so rapidly?
No pupil in the history of education is like today’s modern learner. This is a complex, energetic, and tech-savvy individual. They want to be challenged and inspired in their learning. They want to collaborate and work with their peers. They want to incorporate the technology they love into their classroom experiences as much as they can. In short, they have just as high a set of expectations of their educators as their educators have of them.
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Technology can be a wonderful tool, which is why our middle school students learn to touch-type and use the Internet for research. However, the promise of technology in education has fallen far short of its aims—while study after study warns of the harm technology and media use pose for children, particularly during the early years of critical brain development.
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Harvard Medical School
The growing human brain is constantly building neural connections while pruning away less-used ones, and digital media use plays an active role in that process, according to Rich. Much of what happens on screen provides “impoverished” stimulation of the developing brain compared to reality, he says. Children need a diverse menu of online and offline experiences, including the chance to let their minds wander.
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Poll after poll shows that a lot of parents are worried about what their kids consume and how they communicate with one another on the Internet. Earlier this year, Vivek Murthy, the Surgeon General of the United States, said that he did not think children under the age of fourteen should have access to social media.
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This paper seeks to address the relationship between social media and connectivity and communication in relationships, both online and offline. The paper employs a mixed methods survey distributed to college-aged students that addresses aspects of social media and their impact on relationships. The results found that social media makes relationships online seem superficial, while offline relationships suffer as well because of a general trend of declining mental health and self esteem that seems to be a result of certain aspects of social media.
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The general purpose of this review is to provide detail information about the impact of social media on society. A lot of studies indicated social media has both positive and [negative] outcomes. Some of the positive outcomes are, for example, Socialization and Communication; enhance learning opportunities and accessing health related information. Depression, anxiety, catfishing, bullying, terrorism, and criminal activities are some of the negative sides of social media on societies.
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At its core, social media is a powerful communication tool that has changed how individuals interact with one another. It speeds up how people exchange and share information, thoughts, and ideas across virtual networks. However, social media does have downsides. Some evidence suggests that its use — in particular, its overuse — can negatively affect mental health in numerous ways.