By Haley Ng

Access to social media and games can be addictive, with no limits to screen time. Procrastination of homework and keeping up with grades are two of the reasons why this addiction can be harmful. But how can this be correlated with academic performance?

A meta-analysis of several studies done by Science Daily claims that students who study while occasionally checking their social media tend to have lower grades. Doing this could be considered multitasking, which humans are not the best at since it diverts focus. But Sophie Ng, a studious sophomore at Lincoln, claims that social media is not the main concern for her grades.

Ng says, “I don’t think it affects grades, but I think it does affect how long I could memorize things... or [how I can] focus.”

She does claim that social media does affect her study habits, but not necessarily her grades.

Ng states her phone is put away for homework and study time and is brought back out after all of her work is done.

Brian Delapena, an algebra teacher at Lincoln, observed that his students have little to no focus in class when they have their phones, which he thinks contributes to students having lower grades.

He says, “Students that are definitely on their phones more, I have to reteach them... because, as a teacher, I have to repeat myself to six different kids and say the same thing over and over.”

Delapena claims the focus is diverted towards the screen rather than the class lectures, which is why he tells his students to put away their phones in order for them to focus on the lesson. He believes that students having short attention spans are a cause that social media has on most students in this generation.

Attendance can also have a correlation with grades. Students who miss more than 18 days of class have lower grades because of missing class material and readings. But do faculty agree that attendance is related to grades?

Some people assume the Wellness Center is a hangout for students who want to skip class. Cristina Ibarra, the Community Health Outreach Worker at Lincoln, thinks this isn’t the case for students who come to wellness when it comes to skipping class intentionally.

“I don’t see [skipping class] as often with social media use. I do see that more often with people who are playing games on their phones. Playing the game on their phone feels more stimulating than the class.” Ibarra states.

Ibarra thinks breaks are reasonable when class can be overwhelming. Coming to the Wellness Center would be fine if anyone needed a break since they allow phones. But they also believe that social media and the entertainment industry cater to short attention spans, which can affect students by making them more bored in class and making them want to be on their phones. Eventually, skipping class intentionally may be the only option for students to turn to.

Social media can have many other negative effects on mental health as well. The Child Mind Institute states that people who are on social media tend to have more anxiety and lower self-esteem. According to Lee Health, a higher social media addiction causes a higher mental health risk.

Social media gives glimpses into another person’s life, but it’s usually on the positive side rather than the negative. It can make you think “Why don’t I do anything fun like them?”. Delapena explains as he sees how social media can affect people’s lives and mindsets.

He says, “You go down a rabbit hole when you start focusing on other people rather than working on yourself."

Constantly comparing yourself to others can lead to more depression and anxiety, even though the full story of why this person is posting about this point in their life may not be known. Everyone is different in their own way, but most people forget that.

Ibarra also explains the bad parts of social media, which can teach students to feel bad about themselves.

"That might make them believe that bodies should look one way or that we’re supposed to be... getting A’s all the time, and it’s easy to get A's... It really might affect the way they even perceive themselves,” Ibarra claims.

But social media can have positive effects if it is used in the right way.

Ibarra believes it can help more people connect in different ways. From finding mutual aid chat rooms to reconnecting with peers that go to other schools or live somewhere farther away, Some more positives of social media include raising money if there isn’t any other option.

Social media is a great way for people to connect with others around the world and to hold fundraisers to let more people know about your situation and if they could help out. But social media can also affect mental health by distorting reality, and your academic performance could struggle because of addiction and the constant comparisons to other people.

By Olivia Slangle 

A constant in this world is that the teenager abandons the noise pollution of the outside world and drowns themselves in the musical abyss of a hip swaying rhythm, a hypnotizing melody, and a foot-tapping beat. However, unlike the CD-sharing and radio-listening time of before, TikTok and Instagram are now a big part of how teens connect and source music.

Jeremiah Arriola, Lincoln junior, prefers Brent Faiyaz, Lauryn Hill, Bossa Nova, and the chill smooth beats of R&B accompanied by the soothing voice of Erykah Badu.

“I [Arriola] already knew some songs but Tiktok and Instagram Stories helped and had some influence, like how everyone would post to songs–I used to discover music through that.” 

A google form released among Lincoln reveals that a number of students also find music mainly through social media. Of course growing up listening to whatever friends and family would play is part of the equation too, but the presence of the internet is still ever looming. 

Lincoln sophomore, Landon Kan-Huy shares his greatest influences, “Number one is social media, number two is influences of people around you, and number three is just not using a playlist.”

Kan-Huy enjoys K-pop and views it as a way to connect with his Asian identity. The upbeat songs and empowering messages are very popular with his friends so he naturally became attracted to the genre. But K-pop didn’t become more widely popular in America until 2012 when “Gangnam Style” by PSY was released and streamed over one billion times on Youtube.

“I’d say now, it’s actually kind of exciting because artists can put their music on social media and people can discover their music that way rather than getting music from radio stations,” states Lincoln Ceramics teacher, Daniel Stingle.

Stingle currently listens to old school House music and soulful melodies reminiscent of his adolescence when he used to frequent dance clubs. His home state Minnesota was big on the Reggae scene in the 80’s and so was he. He enjoyed steel drum beats as a teen but also explored Ska and the raw noise of Punk Rock.

Stingle explains, “[Songs] were on the local radio and late at night there was a DJ that would spin reggae music. Eventually Punk Rock was playing too.” 

The radio has long since been left behind for streaming platforms because local radio stations are a small puddle in comparison to the vast ocean that is the internet. With so much information just at our fingertips, it’s no wonder that we’ve become so attached to the internet and social media.

“[Social Media] has influenced my music taste because there’s a few artists I wouldn’t have heard of without it.” Lincoln freshman, Keira Mountain expresses.

Mountain is a lover of Weezer, The Cure, and The Smiths. She seeks out emotional lyrics followed by equally emotional instrumental breaks. She believes how we discover music now compared to how the teens before us did isn’t fundamentally different, it’s just a different format; “instead of sharing CD’s we just send each other songs.” 

While a trending song that’s inescapable for a couple weeks is annoying, social media has become a tool for delving into a musical abyss and discovering what kind of sounds tickle our ears.

By Athena Somogyi  

A nationwide trend of teens waiting later and later to get their driver’s licenses seems to continue at Abraham Lincoln High School. Many juniors and seniors at Lincoln who are not only pressured by advanced classes but also stressed from choosing their future colleges just don’t have time to go through the entire process. 

The Federal Highway Association has done surveys, and the data reflects that teens aren’t getting their driver’s licenses as early as they used to. In 1978, 46% of 16 year olds had their driver’s licenses. That number has dramatically decreased to just over 28% in 2012. 

“I don’t really have time I can set aside to study for the test or time to practice driving once I have my learners permit,” says Kaylee Glass, a junior at Lincoln.

“The DMV website is really hard to use, and I need to do 30 hours on it. It's really difficult to navigate in general,” states Wayne Graham, another junior here at Lincoln.

With the California DMV requiring so many hours of classroom instruction (or an online equivalent), it's no wonder that most don’t have time. Even after passing the written test, anyone under 18 then has to complete 50 hours of behind the wheel training, ten of those being at night.

“In addition, money for driving lessons has made me hesitant to get my license before 18,” writes Glass. 

Driver’s education in California can be between $30 to $60, which, in addition to the $150 to $350 that driving instructors cost, can be more than what families are willing to pay.  

Parents also play a large role in acquiring a driver’s license. Not only do they have to pay for the driver’s education course, the written test, and a licensed training instructor, they also have to spend much of their time driving in the car and teaching their child. 

During the 50 hours of behind the wheel training the student has to complete, they must always have someone over the age of 25 with a valid driver’s license with them. Usually that person is a parent, as hiring a driving instructor is expensive. This means that if a student wants to get their driver’s license but has two parents that work full-time, it would be extremely difficult to get someone to practice with them.

Teens face many more obstacles when trying to acquire their driver’s licenses today than they did decades ago, and this has led to a very visible change in how many go through the process to get one.

By Jessica Tu 

At 6:30 a.m., a door opens at Abraham Lincoln High School, the kitchen lights turn on, and a hard-working lunch lady ties an apron around her waist. Jessica Patzan, who prefers to go by her first name, is setting up for her day at work: cooking and serving meals in the cafeteria.

She is on her own for the breakfast service but is supported by four other staff for the lunch rush. Working for 16 years in the cafeterias of SFUSD has allowed Jessica to refine her skills in the kitchen, and she takes immense pride in being able to cook and provide for 1,920 students. 

The lunch staff strategically plans out the number of meals to cook throughout the week. “I don’t like wasting, so we avoid waste,” Jessica states.

 Jessica and her team work hard on organizing and preparing meals, but nothing compares to the busyness in the two hours before students go on their lunch break. The team runs around the kitchen packaging the hot meals, washing fruits, and cooking vegetables.

“I eat the school lunch every day,” Jessica says with a smile on her face. She looks forward to indulging in the team’s hard work. Many students also look forward to lunchtime.

Students line up to grab a main dish, a piece of fruit, a scoop of some veggies, and optionally, a cup of milk. 

Molly Ling, a student who eats school lunch, likes how many different meal options are considerate of dietary restrictions, but she finds the meal portions to be inconsistent. Some days she is still hungry after lunch, and other days, there is too much food.

Another student, Matthew Tran, finds certain meals rather tasty.

“Like, the stir fry the other day was actually so good,” he says.

On the other hand, he does wish lunch were in larger portions or that students were allowed to grab seconds. “Usually after lunch, when I’m walking into fifth period, I turn to my friends [who also eat school lunch] and say, ‘Y’all, I’m still hungry.’”

The lunch staff are not allowed to serve seconds. School lunches in SFUSD are designed by the Student Nutrition Services (SNS) based on child nutrition experts’ advice. Each meal that students receive are proportioned exactly the way SNS have directed.

“We get the recipes and then follow all of the directions to cook [the meals],” Jessica says. 

Jessica and her team stays at school until 3:00 p.m., preparing supper meals for the after-school program. Eduardo Gayton-Gomez and Minh Le supervise the after-school program, where they hand out supper. 

“[Gayton-Gomez and Le] order the amount of vegetarian and meat meals two weeks in advance,” Jessica states. Numbers are counted based on the number of students that sign in to the after-school program weeks prior.

Gayton-Gomez and Le try to hand every meal out, but at the end of the day, the milk and hot dishes need to be tossed out because they are no longer deemed safe for consumption. 

“We bring the leftover fruits and vegetables to Ms. Ziegler,” Le explains.

Valerie Ziegler is the Green Academy Teacher. Her 2016 class set up a share bin system so students and teachers can snack on the produce.

A majority of students don’t want their fruits or vegetables, but a requirement for free lunch is for students to pick at least three of the five provided items, where one of them must be either a fruit or vegetable.

The intention of the bin is to collect unwanted school lunch items, but they also omit the compostable waste free lunches can create. 

“Today, I picked up at least 25 pears and apples,” Ziegler states. Other times, Ziegler receives at least 30 pieces of fruits from breakfast and lunch, especially when they serve fruits that students do not want to peel, such as oranges.

Oftentimes, Ziegler cuts up the fruits, incentivizing more students to eat the fruits and vegetables to prevent further compost waste.

In the Spring, the school’s Green Academy will begin working with Copia, a service that picks up high quality foods and redistributes it to people in need, in hopes to continue reducing the amount of produce waste that lunch creates.

By Ellie Meyerson

Recently, the tortilla snack company Paqui pulled their infamous “One Chip Challenge” from store shelves nationwide, despite a resurgence in purchases of the product in prior weeks. The discontinuation of the notoriously known spicy chip came after a Massachusetts teen, Harris Wolobah, supposedly died after eating one chip.

Despite this highly publicized death, the chip purchases did not cease. The popular social media app TikTok is one of the major influencers behind the recent resurgence of the “One Chip Challenge,” with the main audience consisting mostly of teenagers.

         Lincoln High School’s head nurse, Sara Chalk, is one of many staff members in the Wellness Center who have had to adapt to these recent trends.

         "The kids that I’ve seen come into [the Wellness Center] have had unpleasant experiences with it. It is not something I would recommend," she says. “I know that prior to pulling it from the shelves, it was marketed for adults only; it did say ‘not for consumption by adults or teenagers,’ so it did have that warning on it.”

          Darian Valencia, a senior at Lincoln, ignored that warning label on the package in his sophomore year. He recalls that he did not have any side effects. He believes that students should have the choice if they wish to do the “One Chip Challenge”.

          “I would say if you’re good with spice and want to try something new, go for it. If you struggle a lot with spice, though, I wouldn't recommend it.” Valencia advises. 

          He understands why Paqui decided to pull the product from store shelves but believes that customers need to take responsibility for their actions.

          Still, Chalk isn’t the only staff member who has had to face the participation of Lincoln students in dangerous school fads. Another TikTok challenge, where students vandalize bathrooms, has resurfaced in popularity.

           Jordan Loey, the Assistant Principal, explains that the recent damage to the New Building boys’ bathroom is not a new trend but has been re-occurring since SFUSD students returned from online learning. Loey describes the utter destruction of the bathroom—broken urinals, clogged toilets, stolen paper towel dispensers. The vandalism was reminiscent of the same issue in recent years.

           The lack of staffing delays the process of receiving new materials to replace broken facilities, which results in prolonged closures of the boys’ bathrooms. This inconveniences not just students who use these restrooms but also staff and custodial workers who must clean and maintain the functionality of all rooms in the school.

          “Now, when things happen like this, I have to put in a work order. Then the district shops at buildings and grounds, but they’re shortstaffed in every department.” Loey says.

           So, as students continue to participate in these harmful challenges, let’s trace these actions back to the original source of it all—TikTok, where one high-risk fad turns into hundreds.