Tuesday, April 21, 2015

Problem-Solution Essay Draft 4

The advent of the Internet and social networking sites has given rise to the condensation of time and space since geographical barriers can now be overcome. However, the unprecedented ease from using the Internet has also resulted in numerous problems among youth in Singapore. One of such problems would be the difficulty to hold a real time conversation with one another because youth rely heavily on online tools for communication. In other words, social media has become youth’s dominant tool of communication.

According to Sproull and Kiesler (1985, cited in Bargh & McKenna, 2004), computed-mediated communication is an impoverished form of communication that will result in a behaviour that is more self-centered and less socially regulated. Accessibility has resulted in over reliance and this over-reliance on the Internet as a tool of communication could eventually erode one’s ability to carry out a proper face-to-face conversation. In addition, social networking sites can make it harder for youth to distinguish between the meaningful relationships they foster in the real world and the numerous casual relationships formed though social media (Jung, n.d.). As such, the imperative issue at hand would be to raise young people’s awareness about the need to form tangible interpersonal relationships though a proper real time conversation. Moreover, actions have to be taken to complement the former approach. Singapore’s Ministry of Education (MOE) should play an important role in propelling this two-pronged approach – the soft system approach and the hard system approach.

As mentioned above, social media and texting can damage young people’s ability to relate to each other (Titcomb, 2012). Such behaviour will also leave them ill equipped to communicate with the wider world (Barford, 2009). This is especially apparent in Singapore, where students prefer to use the online platforms to ask questions instead of physically consulting their teachers when in doubt. The lack of active participation in class has also resulted in a component for class participation where students are forced to engage in class discussions to get the grades they desire. Although the inability to voluntarily communicate on a face-to-face basis may not pose a problem to youth at that point of time, it may jeopardise their ability to integrate into a society that requires real time interaction.

It is firstly important to raise awareness about the current situation. Schools are the best place for such a purpose since students spend the bulk of their time in schools. Although schools have always been actively promoting the importance of disconnecting from the online community by organising field trips, camps and Co-curricular activities for young people to gather together and form interpersonal relations with one another, youth still failed to see the need of fostering strong and tangible friendship with their peers. They are not fundamentally aware of the detrimental effects of using social media as an alternative form of communication. It is then vital for MOE to propose the need for social media awareness lessons in schools. Workshops provide the most effective platform for information to be conveyed across to people, and schools allow such information to be brought across more efficiently to students. They help to create the awareness about the need for students to disengage from the Internet and form tangible relationships with one another. In addition, they do not only allow for knowledge improvement, but also create a space for networking, thus encouraging real time interactions. In the National University of Singapore (NUS), the Centre for Future-ready Graduates (CFG) has made it an imperative for all students to attend a module that will prepare them for their future. Many career and professional development workshops are also conducted for postgraduates to equip them with the necessary skills to get the job they want (Office of Student Affairs, n.d.). The creation of awareness about the need to disengage from the online community is the most vital solution to curb the abovementioned problem. It will set the foundation for youth to understand the reasons behind different actions and thus enable them to be receptive about the need to foster interpersonal relations. Just like the modules introduced by CFG, Singapore schools can also offer compulsory workshop sessions that will emphasise on the need for face-to-face communication. Although workshops can be time-consuming, the knowledge students can gain from such workshops will prove to be beneficial for them in the near future, and as such the advantages of workshops definitely outweigh its disadvantages.

Soft system approach must be complemented with hard system approach to encourage young people to disengage from the online community more effectively. The Internet and social networking sites have become more and more accessible as wireless Internet services are easily available on mobile phones. This can make it even harder for youth to disconnect from the online community, especially when 93% of the Singaporean teenagers own a mobile phone (Chua, 2010). As such, hard system approaches should be taken to propagate the importance of real time communication. In 2012 and 2013, a game known as the ‘Phone stack game’ became popular in many parts of the world (Tell, 2013). The game requires diners to stack their phones in the middle of the table, and whoever touches their device first will have to foot the bill (Tell, 2013). Such a practice will not only allow young social media user to momentarily disengage from the online world, but will also effectively give them the chance to conduct real time communication with their friends and forge a more substantial relationship with their peers. This is only possible after the soft system approach is being employed, as it will teach young users why it is fundamentally detrimental to use the Internet as an alternative form of communication. As young users are equipped with such knowledge, they become more receptive towards change and thus will be more willing to stay away from their phone. In addition to this, applications such as Rescue Time, Minutes Please and Facebook Limiters can serve as an intervention to limit the time spent on social networking sites (French, 2012). Youth who found it hard to disconnect can make use of these applications to set a limit for themselves. Thus, other than raising awareness about the need to conduct real time interaction, it is also important that certain actions are carried out to propel youth to appreciate the joy of talking to people on a face-to-face basis. This will not only improve the youth’s interpersonal communication skills, but will also improve their overall well-being.

As the Internet becomes more pervasive in users’ daily lives, it is important that they identify the possible advantages and disadvantages of utilising the Internet. The paradox regarding social networking sites is that users get more disconnected while being connected. Real time interactions should not be compromised by the use of social networking sites; online communication should be built upon real, physical relations. To encourage youth to disengage from the contrived online world and to form substantial relationships with one another, soft systems and hard systems approaches should be employed simultaneously to achieve the best result. Youth must not only be aware of the potential harm of not being able to communicate on a face-to-face basis; they must also be willing to change their habits readily. Singaporean youth have to start to learn how to strike a conversation with people in the physical world. This is an essential life skill that will enable them to have an edge over people from other countries.


References

Centre for Future-ready Graduates. (n.d.) NUS Office of Student Affairs. Retrieved from http://nus.edu.sg/osa/ncc/students/careerworkshop

Chua, T. (2010, August 2). Study shows young Asians inseparable from their mobiles. Singapore Business Review. Retrieved form: http://sbr.com.sg/telecom-internet/more-news/study-shows-young-asians-inseparable-their-mobiles

Barford, V. (2009, December 8). Mind your slanguage. BBC News. Retrieved from http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/uk_news/magazine/8388545.stm

Bargh, J.A., McKenna, K.Y.A. (2004). The internet and social life. Annual Review of Psychology,55, 573-590.

French, A. (2012, April 3). Programs that limit your time on social media. Sheknows. Retrieved from http://www.sheknows.com/living/articles/955407/programs-that-limit-your-time-on-social-media

Jung, B. (n.d.). The negative effects of social media on society and individuals. Small Business. Retrieved from http://smallbusiness.chron.com/negative-effect-social-media-society-individuals-27617.html

Sproull, L., Kiesler, S. (1985). Reducing social context cues: electronic mail in organizational communication. Management Science, 11, 1492-1512.

Tell, C. (2013, September 20). Step away from the phone! The New York Times. Retrieved from http://www.nytimes.com/2013/09/22/fashion/step-away-from-the-phone.html?_r=0  

Titcomb, J. (2012, May 3). Texting, tweeting and social networking are behind ‘rough behaviour’ of teens, says Pratchett. Daily Mail Online. Retrieved from http://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-2138791/Texting-tweeting-social-networking-damaging-childrens-ability-communicate-says-Pratchett.html

Sunday, April 19, 2015

Reader Response Draft 4

In the article “The Perils of Over-sharing in Social Networks”, Emm (2014) points out that users are immensely reliant on the Internet nowadays. With the advent of smartphones and tablets, the Internet has become a necessity in users' daily lives. Since "the mass of information we choose to put into the public domain" is for all to see, users are not only compromising their own safety, but are also potentially jeopardising their own credibility.

The widespread use of technology in today’s society has indeed affected users' daily lives. Just like what Emm has mentioned, users inevitably expose the “minutiae of their daily lives” because “more and more of what they do is dependent on” the Internet. The ubiquitous use of the Internet due to its widespread availability has led to the infringement of privacy since individual information is readily online. Personal economic wealth is also being threatened when criminal acts like online fraud are on the rise. With that, I do agree and believe that users are vulnerable on the Internet especially since personal safety can be easily threatened. 

Users' online security is essentially compromised when they make use of the Internet for daily uses. As the Internet becomes an integral part of their lives, users ingeniously utilise it to ease convenience and save time. The advent of online banking and online shopping can serve such purpose. However, careless use of these platforms will allow criminals to unscrupulously obtain their personal and financial information. In UK alone, £29.3million damages have been done due to online banking fraud in 2014 (Boyce, 2014). More than 8000 Australians were victims of online shopping frauds in 2013 (Gillespie, 2013). Evidently, the Internet does not promise and assure personal and financial security. Coupled with the fact that such crimes are hard to track, I will not be surprised if the above-mentioned numbers increase by an even larger extent in the near future.

By exposing themselves to the Internet, users' privacy will also be threatened. This is especially so since social networking sites like Facebook and Twitter encourage “registered users to provide as much information as possible” (Lewis, n.d.). Although such a practice may seem insignificant, it actually enables identity theft and fraud, and data mining. Social networking sites like YouTube and Flickr allow identity thieves to gain deeper insight into users' lives, thus facilitating their criminal plots (Lewis, n.d.). Data-mining companies intrude into people's privacy and use social networking sites to “compile user profiles for advertising companies” (“The Consequences of Over-sharing on Social Networks”, n.d.). This situation can be related to George Orwell’s Nineteen Eighty-Four, in which he highlighted the idea of how “Big brother is watching you”. Infringement of personal privacy will certainly bring about distress and complications, which I believe makes the Internet a potentially dreadful place.

Even though over-sharing on social media jeopardises users' personal safety, it still has its fair share of benefits. Over-sharing allows users to remain globally connected. Social media brings them closer to old friends and may even serve to reunite long-lost family members (“The Consequences of Over-sharing on Social Networks”, n.d.). For instance, Samantha Futerman, a Korean American, reunited with her long lost twin sister, Anais Bordier, who was living in Paris then, through Facebook in 2013 (Goldstein, 2013). Other than connecting with friends and family, a broad networking circle can also assure a better job. In fact, more and more employers are turning to social media to look for potential candidates (“Finding a job – Using social media: Intro, n.d.). Indeed, the integration of the Internet into users' daily lives has made it impossible for them to live without it. The perils of the Internet thus can be seemingly insignificant to the users. 

Judging from how dependent users are on the Internet, precautions have to be taken as they divulge information of themselves online. Emm urged the public to be vigilant and also provided advices to protect oneself from the perils of the online community. Users have to be careful of what they share on the Internet, and make sure that they are conscientious in protecting their own identity on the Internet. I believe that if they learn how to properly utilise social networking sites, the benefits of the Internet will definitely outweigh the drawbacks of sharing on social media.


References

Boyce, L. (2014, September 12). Online banking fraud increases by 71% in a year - and surging numbers fall victim to sneaky telephone scammers. This is Money. Retreived fromhttp://www.thisismoney.co.uk/money/saving/article-2753277/Online-banking-fraud-increases-71-year-according-FFA-UK.html

Emm, D. (2014, March 21). The perils of over-sharing in social networks. Huffpost Tech.Retrieved from http://www.huffingtonpost.co.uk/david-emm/the-perils-of-over-sharing-in-social-networks_b_5005276.html.

Finding a job – Using social media: Intro. Columbia University Centre for Career Education.Retrieved from http://www.careereducation.columbia.edu/resources/tipsheets/finding-job-using-social-media-intro.

Gillespie, I. (2013, August 9). Consumers warned as online fraud soars. The Age. Retrieved from http://www.theage.com.au/it-pro/security-it/consumers-warned-as-online-fraud-soars-20130809-hv1c9.html.

Goldstein, S. (2013, April 3). South Korean twins separted at birth? Two women connected on Facebook share eerie resemblance. Daily News. Retrieved fromhttp://www.nydailynews.com/news/national/adopted-south-koreans-twins-separated-birth-article-1.1307240.

Herrera, M. (2013, January 2013). Catfishing: new label for old scam. Better Business Bureau.Retreived from http://www.bbb.org/blog/2013/01/catfishing-new-label-for-old-scam/.

Lewis, K. (n.d.). How social media networks facilitate identity theft and fraud. Entrepreneur Organization. Retrieved from http://www.eonetwork.org/octane-magazine/special-features/social-media-networks-facilitate-identity-theft-fraud.

The consequences of oversharing on social networks. Reputation.com. Retrieved from http://www.reputation.com/reputationwatch/articles/the-consequences-of-oversharing-on-social-networks. 

The Role of Peer and Tutor Feedback

I was reluctant to bid for this module since last semester. I have never enjoyed English lessons in the past, because they made me belittle my own abilities. As such, I imagined ES1102 as another dreadful English module that would significantly reflect my inadequacy in the English language.

However, now that I am approaching the end of the semester, I am really glad that I took ES1102. Although I still commit expression errors and write grammatically incorrect sentences from time to time, I am now confident to say that I can write better as compared to the past. I have learnt so much more from Brad about using the correct form of English, and the encouragements he gave us have certainly spurred us to continue to improve. One of the many ways we utilised to improve ourselves would be though the use of peer and tutor feedbacks.

This exercise requires us to provide constructive feedbacks to our peers on areas regarding their content and language. Sometimes, we have to work together with our peers to evaluate on a particular classmate’s essay.

Peer evaluation has forced me to think critically and has also made me put in more effort in trying to understand how my peers convey their ideas though writing. It gave me the opportunity to reflect on the areas I am lacking and also allowed me to learn from my classmates on how they managed to pen down their thoughts more effectively. Giving feedbacks made me more aware of my own inadequacy and to avoid making grammar mistakes, I started to become more careful when I write. Feedbacks from my classmates reminded me of the many little mistakes I made throughout my write-ups and as a result, I became more mindful to avoid making the same mistakes again.

However, I feel that the only disadvantage of peer evaluation is that most of us are not confident with our own language skills. We were not absolutely certain on areas like expression and grammar and thus we were unable to provide constructive feedbacks for our classmates to improve on. Peer evaluation serves to only help me on improving the content for my essays since all of us are lacking in the ability to correct our peers grammatically. This is apparent for my essay draft 2. Most of my classmates gave me favourable comments and thus I thought my essay was clear. However, Brad told me that my thesis statement was too vague and I need to reorganise my content to make my essay flow. As such, although peer evaluation can certainly be helpful, I felt that it is only helpful to a certain extent.

I know I should not solely depend on peer evaluation if I want to continue to improve. I want to put in more attention when I read other people’s essays in future so that I can learn from the way they write, and also continue to proof read my essays to make sure they are coherent and organised. If possible, I would like to ask my friends to help me out when they are free. I hope to cultivate this passion for reading so that I will continue to read and learn more new things that will not only improve my vocabularies and the way I write, but also open up my perspective of the world. Eventually, I want to strive towards writing error free essays in future.


I am really thankful for this module, because I met a really helpful and encouraging teacher, and also managed to work with a group of fun and amazing classmates. I am more fundamentally aware of why certain mistakes should not be made, and now I am not just correcting myself according to what my teachers want. The module has benefitted me in many ways and although it can be time consuming, I believe my time was well spent.

Tuesday, April 14, 2015

Presentation Reflection

I had the opportunity to give my class a presentation about my essay today. Firstly, I find the presentation useful because it has actually helped me to reorganise the points that I was trying to convey. Even until now, I still feel that my essay lack focus, and I am still not happy with the outline of my essay. As such, the presentation has given me the chance to really rearrange the flow of my write up.

Secondly, it also gave me the opportunity to be more confident and to speak up in class. It has forced me to be well prepared because I tend to use a script whenever I give a presentation. I really enjoyed the experience and it has made me more aware of how I give presentation to a group of people.

However, I still feel that there are areas in which I can improve on. For instance, I have to slow down while giving my presentation. I always have this tendency to rush through what I want to say, and I believe it is very obvious to my audience. In addition, I feel that it is important for me to really start conversing in proper English. This is because whenever I forget the exact sentence of my point, I will present them in a very colloquial way.

All in all, I hope that my presentation has given my audience an insight into my essay and I hope that they remember some of the points I have pointed out during my presentation. I think it is also reassuring if your audience enjoyed your presentation.


Thank you all for the feedbacks, I will definitely try improve after receiving the feedbacks! (:

Sunday, April 5, 2015

Problem-Solution Essay Draft 3

The advent of the Internet and social networking sites has given rise to the condensation of time and space since geographical barriers can now be overcome. However, the unprecedented ease from using the Internet has also resulted in numerous problems among youth in Singapore. One of such problems would be the difficulty to hold a real time conversation with one another because youth rely heavily on online tools for communication.

According to Sproull and Kiesler (1985, cited in Bargh and McKenna, 2004), computed-mediated communication is an impoverished form of communication that will result in a behaviour that is more self-centered and less socially regulated. The over-reliance on the Internet as a tool of communication could eventually erode one’s ability to carry out a proper face-to-face conversation. In addition, social networking sites make it harder for youth to distinguish between the meaningful relationships they foster in the real world and the numerous casual relationships formed though social media (Jung, n.d.). As such, the imperative issue at hand would be to raise awareness about the need to form tangible interpersonal relationships though a proper real time conversation. Schools and peers will play an important role in the creation of such awareness among the Singaporean youth.

As mentioned above, social media and texting can damage one’s ability to relate to each other (Titcomb, 2012). It will also leave them ill equipped to communicate with the wider world (Barford, 2009). This is especially apparent in Singapore, where students prefer to use the online platform to ask questions instead of physically consulting their teachers when in doubt. Although this may not pose a problem to youth at that point of time, it may jeopardise their ability to integrate into a society that thrives on real time interaction in future.

Schools have always been emphasising on the importance of disconnecting from the online community. They actively encourage students to represent the school in a sport or performing art, and also organise field trips and camps for students to foster interpersonal relations with one another. Such varieties of programmes will focus on the engagement of youth, which will then serve to forge a greater interaction between youth and the society. However, the above given suggestions have long been used and applied before. Yet, students failed to acknowledge the purpose of such activities and are still spending the bulk of their time on social media. As such, it is vital for schools to conduct lessons and workshops to raise awareness about the need to disengage from the Internet and form tangible relationships with one another. Workshops are effective platforms to convey information to people. They do not only allow for knowledge improvement; they also create a space for networking, thus encouraging real time interactions. In the National University of Singapore (NUS), the Centre for Future-ready Graduates (CFG) made it an imperative for all students to attend a module that will prepare them for their future. Many career and professional development workshops were also conducted for postgraduates to equip them with the necessary skills to get the job they want (Office of Student Affairs, n.d.). The creation of awareness is the most vital solution to curb the abovementioned problem. It will set the foundation for youth to understand the reasons behind different actions and thus enable them to be receptive about the need to foster interpersonal relations. Just like the modules introduced by CFG, schools can also offer compulsory workshop sessions that will emphasise on the need for face-to-face communication.

The Internet and social networking sites has become more and more accessible as wireless Internet services are easily available on mobile phones. This can make it even harder for youth to disconnect from the online community. As such, hard system approaches should be taken to propagate the importance of real time communication. In 2012 and 2013, a game known as the ‘Phone stack game’ became popular in many parts of the world. The game requires diners to stack their phones in the middle of the table, and whoever touches their device first will have to foot the bill (Tell, 2013). Such a practice will not only allow youth to momentarily disengage from the online world, but will also effectively give them the chance to conduct real time communication with their friends and forge a more substantial relationship with their peers. In addition to this, applications such as Rescue Time, Minutes Please and Facebook Limiters can serve as an intervention to limit the time spent on social networking sites (French, 2012). Thus, other than raising awareness about the need to conduct real time interaction, it is also important to carry out certain actions that will propel youth to appreciate the joy of talking to people on a face-to-face basis. This will not only improve youth’s interpersonal communication skills, but will also improve their overall well-being.

As the Internet becomes more pervasive in users’ daily lives, it is important that they identify the possible advantages and disadvantages of utilising the Internet. The paradox regarding social networking sites is that users get more disconnected while being connected. Real time interactions should not be compromised by the use of social networking sites; online communication should be built upon real, physical relations. To encourage youth to disengage from the contrived online world and to form substantial relationships with one another, soft systems and hard systems approaches should be employed simultaneously to achieve the best result. Youth must not only be aware of the potential harm of not being able to communicate on a face-to-face basis; they must also be willing to change their habits readily. Singaporean youth have to start to learn how to strike a conversation with people in the physical world. This is an essential life skill that will enable them to have an edge over people from other countries.

(968 words)


References

Centre for Future-ready Graduates. (n.d.) NUS Office of Student Affairs. Retrieved from http://nus.edu.sg/osa/ncc/students/careerworkshop

Barford, V. (2009, December 8). Mind your slanguage. BBC News. Retrieved from http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/uk_news/magazine/8388545.stm

Bargh, J.A., McKenna, K.Y.A. (2004). The internet and social life. Annual Review of Psychology,55, 573-590.

French, A. (2012, April 3). Programs that limit your time on social media. Sheknows. Retrieved from http://www.sheknows.com/living/articles/955407/programs-that-limit-your-time-on-social-media

Jung, B. (n.d.). The negative effects of social media on society and individuals. Small Business. Retrieved from http://smallbusiness.chron.com/negative-effect-social-media-society-individuals-27617.html

Sproull, L., Kiesler, S. (1985). Reducing social context cues: electronic mail in organizational communication. Management Science, 11, 1492-1512.

Tell, C. (2013, September 20). Step away from the phone! The New York Times. Retrieved from http://www.nytimes.com/2013/09/22/fashion/step-away-from-the-phone.html?_r=0  

Titcomb, J. (2012, May 3). Texting, tweeting and social networking are behind ‘rough behaviour’ of teens, says Pratchett. Daily Mail Online. Retrieved from http://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-2138791/Texting-tweeting-social-networking-damaging-childrens-ability-communicate-says-Pratchett.html