For my final project I am doing an investigative piece on what teens and adolescents really do with their time and how much of it is spent using technological devices. I hope to explore what effect this technology use is having on the young teens. Are they becoming more social through use of social networking sites and communication applications? Or, is this large dependence and use of technology creating a habit of excessive and ineffective multitasking in some teens?
I have already interviewed a few teens from my community at home. In their interviews they told me what I had suspected, that they spend lots of time on various technologies and they couldn't imagine what their lives would be like without these technologies. Though I got great quotes and useful information from these initial interviews, I hope to go back and interview these kids again after I have talked to child education and psychology experts. I also think I need another group of sources besides kids and developmental experts, I was thinking that I could interview the children's parents about their thoughts on their kids' technology use.
Scheduling has also been a difficulty for me. The experts at Lehigh are very busy, but I hope to meet with a couple of them in the coming weeks and get their thoughts on the connections between technology and learning, specifically how teen use of TV, computer, and internet technologies are affecting their thoughts and interactions.
The piece has started off well, I have a solid idea, a few sources, and plans to meet with experts, but I know I have a lot more work ahead of me. I'm sure the experts I talk to will bring great insights to the topic and enhance the piece, I am interested to see how the shape of my piece changes after I talk to them.
Alyssa,
ReplyDeleteSounds like you have some good momentum going. One suggestion as you continue: Besides interviewing your sources -- such as the teens -- be sure to take some good notes about the setting. You'll likely want to describe in your piece the environment the teens inhabit. So, take note of the posters on their walls, how messy their rooms are, what books are on their bookshelves, how poor the lighting is, the manufacturer of their TV's or laptops. Whatever. Also, listen for the colorful words, vocabulary the kids use. Anything that might help you paint a vivid picture of the scene.
A lot of research companies like Nielsen and Simmons provide data about kid's technology use to companies. When I interned in the Media Sales & Marketing Dept of Disney last summer, we had tons and tons of research on kids' technology use, down to how much time is spent using different types of technology on a daily basis. Perhaps these companies might have some general, free information available online?
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