The Amount of Time High School Students Spend on Social Media

Spending time on social media can impact various aspects of life. Since social media   has gained popularity nowadays, teenagers devote a lot of time on social media to communicate with other people, explore new areas or just watch movies. I interviewed the students and teachers in Hillcrest High School to find out how much time they spend on social media.

I’ve interviewed students in Hillcrest High School to see what social media is the most used and influences their lives. A 9th-grade student, Darla, stated “I use Snapchat the most and it affects my life because I meet a lot of friends there.” A 10th-grade student, who would like to remain anonymous, stated, “I use Snapchat the most and social media has a positive effect because it helps you to see different opinions in certain situations and also improves your mindset.”  When I asked about how often they use social media to study, a 9th-grade student, Sinai, stated “When I have to research the topic or have to do something based on other people's experience.” A 10th-grade student, Ugoona, also stated “It depends on how I understand something. If I do, I will never use it.” When I asked “Do you think spending a lot of time on social media has a positive or negative effect”, they stated “Too much time can have a negative effect but sometimes if you use it in the right way it can be positive.”

The National Alliance on Mental Illness says that social media has a negative impact on people’s mental health-especially young people, whose brains are developing. Teenagers often lose track of time while watching TV shows or chatting with friends. Most students in Hillcrest High School spend twenty hours a week using social media. While interviewing, a social studies teacher gave some advice for the students on how to use social media and resources properly. He stated “Students need to be taught in terms of how exactly to take advantage of those sources and learn about how some resources are beneficial or not beneficial. It is important for students to understand that there are some sources that are very much discriminatory or meaningless and there is no foundation in terms of educational benefits.” When asked “Are there specific platforms you find the most effective for educational purposes?“ An English teacher, Ms. Messina responded “On Facebook, there are some really good groups that are teacher based where other teachers share the ideas like the Creative Teachers, Creative of High School English where people post activities or ask for suggestions. I found those particular groups and got a lot of good stuff there. Sometimes I get ideas. I don't necessarily use them either way but create a file of creativity that I might use later.” 

Overall, when used correctly, social media can be a helpful tool. Make sure to limit yourself to how much time you spend on social media! Scroll accordingly!