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Students too reliant on techology

Since I have set foot on Bradley’s campus, I have become addicted to my computer, and I know I am not alone.

I can’t go a day without using it, and I freak out when I don’t have Internet connection. I feel like college students are too dependent on computers, and I am a perfect example of this.

Its crazy that I have become so attached to something material, and I am definitely not proud of the fact that I always need my computer in order to get anything school-wise done.

I’m not necessarily addicted to my computer because I’m aching to check my Facebook or Skype my best friend, but because the majority of my academic career relies on technology.

I am addicted because college life is built around a computer.

The bulk of all my schoolwork takes place on a computer. All of my papers and research can only be completed with the help of my small laptop.

Class notes, grades and professor contact information is all posted online on Blackboard or Sakai. Students pay tuition and register for classes through Webster.

Last but not least, Bradley’s e-mail system is the main form of communication across Bradley’s campus.

Virtually every area in a college student’s life is connected to the Internet. To be an active and successful student, you have to be connected to technology. Doesn’t this seem a bit obsessive?

For example, I check my e-mail every morning before class. On Monday I checked it before I went to my 10 a.m. class and then out of habit checked it again when I got back.

Within an hour, I received 11 Bradley-related e-mails, all from different senders.

Now not all of these e-mails are personally important to me, but the majority of them are important to my academic career.

They range from reminders, notifications and messages from peers and professors providing information that is necessary for me to do well in my classes.

How frustrated would you be if you didn’t check your e-mail for a whole week, and you went to log in and you weren’t able to do so because you failed to change your password because you didn’t receive an e-mail prior to the password change deadline?

I think it is awesome that all the resources students need are easily accessible with just a few clicks, but I feel like our dependence on the Internet and computers is growing too strong. In this way, our reliance on technology is becoming more of a burden than a blessing.

It is to the point that students cannot ignore their computers and still stay in touch with the campus.

Because of the way we both rely and depend on our computers to complete a lot of our business and school work, many have grown incapable of doing the same work without their computers. Girls on my floor (including myself!) freak out all the time when the Internet connection is down, and, sometimes, these Internet and computer malfunctions can get in the way of completing classwork.

I want to be able to encourage my peers to close their laptops and give themselves and their computers a break – but I really can’t do that because for college students, the world really does revolve around technology.

Madeline Gregory is a freshman journalism major from Downers Grove. She is the Scout assistant copy editor.
Direct comments, questions and other responses to mmgregory@mail.bradley.edu.

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