Hit the Books...with the Internet

With our dependency on the internet in mind, it is difficult to imagine a world without it. Daily the internet is used for work, school, play, and more. For me, the internet has more advantages than disadvantages to my education.

The internet has benefited my educational career immensely because it is now part of my career. One of my majors is Computer Information Systems, a cousin of Computer Science. Many of our projects concern the internet in that we take into consideration the needs of some internet users and morph that into class projects. Through studying and completing projects, we are conditioning our minds to look at the internet a different way. We are challenged to look at the internet and examine how we can improve upon it. In addition to acting as a great research tool for us, it is also a great model for predicting what is next in the technical world because of its constantly evolving nature.

While the internet has obvious benefits for me as a Computer Information Systems student, it also provides great benefits for me as a Theatre student. My other major is Theatre Arts. Within our curriculum, I have gained motivation to create my own material. The internet provides a wider audience for my creative projects, much more than a theater can possibly offer. YouTube is a great outlet for the creative type. Within the past year I have gained an interest in the YouTube industry because of its unlimited possibilities and creative freedom. Now I take what I learn in my theatre classes and incorporate that into my YouTube channel where I write, act in, and edit all of my own videos.

Like previously stated the internet has impacted my education so much by expanding my mind and opportunities. However, the internet creates some drawbacks to education as a whole. First, the internet has decreased our work ethic. We are lazy. Students now have unlimited access to academic sources, which is great for research papers. However, we are too prone to copying and pasting what we see and crediting ourselves for these ideas. The internet, in a way, damages are creativity in terms of creating topics for papers. It is a great advantage for brainstorming but should not be used to find a concrete essay topic.

Another prominently negative impact the internet has on education is that it decreases productivity. It is a distraction in some cases. We desire for instant gratification, which is what the internet offers. Even worse, so much content exists on the internet that begs for the attention of students. One large example of this is social media. We are so dependent on our phones and on social media with a new status or tweet from a friend making its way to our phone almost constantly. It has even affected me. I clicked way from this essay to check my Instagram feed to find only one new picture was posted within the past five minutes. Today, the internet has many disadvantages to our education.

While the internet is a great tool for education, it has some drawbacks. However, I have learned how to use the internet to my benefit for education. I feel more prepared to take on the real world – even as the internet evolves faster than the real world itself.

Explore More Through the Internet

Most often, the internet is used for connecting with family and spending countless hours looking at pictures of who-knows-what. What most people forget is that the internet can be used to benefit ourselves. I use the internet to explore my world through working, reading, and garnering a perspective on current events.

The most prominent way that the internet has helped me explore the world is that has now become part of my career. Currently I am studying Computer Information Systems and Theatre Arts at Azusa Pacific University. In all of my computer science classes, I get to learn about different areas of computer science, which helps me gain a perspective on the field that I am in. I also gain a new perspective on the world around me while working in this field. I have the privilege of working in the field that I am currently studying. As a freelance web developer, I work with multiple types of businesses and organizations. These clients have ranged from a house for unwed mothers to a blog focusing on kids in the entertainment industry. Through working with my versatile clients, I get to explore that world for a brief period of time – an experience I would not have the chance to do otherwise if I did not have internet.

Moving on, the internet has helped me explore the world through reading. Abundant new articles about both computer science and theatre are published daily. With the free speech and freedom of the press nature of the internet, vast amounts of news sources exist on the internet, which brings many new opportunities to learn about different areas of both industries. It is simple for me to jump from one article to the next while still absorbing useful material with each article. The most important idea that I take away from every article, regardless of its subject matter, is the reaffirmation that I desire to work in both of these fields after graduating college. I feel discouraged sometimes while engaging in challenging activities related to computer science or theatre. However, reading articles from working professionals helps me to know that I am on the right track.

Lastly, the internet has helped me gain a perspective on current events. Social media is prominent now more than ever. Again, because of its free speech nature, many people have the freedom to state their opinions whether that opinion is expressed through YouTube or Facebook. Additionally, the internet has given individuals the opportunity to expose current events to people that may not have known about these events otherwise. One YouTube channel who completes this successfully is SourceFed, a news channel which presents five news stories during the week. These stories are not just current events that would appear in the nightly news, but also news about interesting research and news stories almost too outlandish, but still contains some value, to speak about on the nightly news. From these videos, you not only receive all the information you need to stay informed on the subject but you can also read about other people’s opinions on the matter in the comments section. The internet helps me stay informed on important current events and opinions.

The internet can be extremely beneficial for an individual through working, reading, and staying informed on current events. Limited knowledge of the internet’s capabilities is the only thing stopping most individuals from using the internet to gain a well-rounded worldview. However, through education and awareness, this problem can fix itself.