MLIS Journey '98

If there has been one constant in my life all these years, it's that my mental health has had its share of ups and downs. Most notably, the COVID-19 pandemic totally destroyed it, with me being completely consumed by fear and anxiety, and even depression at first, due to the unprecedented stress of being confined inside and having to adapt to virtual learning among many other things. The pandemic aside, however, there are many other things that certainly shape our mental health, for better or worse, and social media is a prime setting for such things. I was both intrigued and unsurprised simultaneously to read about how even (or perhaps especially ) celebrities such as Tom Holland are not immune to the potentially corrosive effects social media use may have on us all from a mental standpoint. As Holland noted, these platforms can be "overstimulating" and or overwhelming, causing us to "get caught up and spiral," as has happened to myself given that COVID basica...

As someone who majored in political science, I’ve always been fairly outspoken about my views and have found it hard to shy away from sharing them. My parents, however, have always advised me to be careful, as one post, whether right or wrong, could land me in trouble with other people, especially a future employer perhaps. The reason to be cautious about what we post is because everything we post becomes what is referred to as a 'digital tattoo', what many of us once referred to as a "footprint." Defined by the Wisconsin Department of Public Instruction as  " the information that exists online about you and your activity," d igital tattoos are hugely important for us all, but it's especially important that younger people who use the internet and other digital platforms understand the potential consequences of their trails. That is why they must learn it as early as possible. Indeed, as Sarah Ludwig puts it, "digital citizenship is a messy subject...

I first joined Twitter in 2014 back in high school, alongside Facebook, Instagram, and Snapchat. Unlike the latter three social media sites, however, I've almost never used Twitter for casual purposes for a number of reasons. For one thing, I'd always found its features to be fairly boring compared to those of the other apps, and many of my friends and peers used the others more often. But most of all, I have come to see Twitter as having greater use for more professional purposes. For example, I commonly retweet stuff pertaining to politics, my undergraduate major. Image Source: Screenshot It's because of the more professional lenses I viewed Twitter from that my presence on there has historically been on-and-off to put it bluntly. I've used it in times that I needed it, such as for an internship with the advocacy group Common Cause Illinois , where I learned to use it to spread awareness regarding political causes among other things, and once those times were done I ...

While I had never heard of David White's theory on Visitors and Residents until this week, it certainly made complete sense to me. According to White, "Visitors" are those who use applications of the internet from time to time for various reasons, while "Residents" use them on a regular basis. As well, he identifies the sources used as being for either personal or professional purposes. Made in Google Drawings; Images from Google Images As you can perhaps tell, almost all of my apps are for personal use, while of the ones that could be considered "professional," only two of them can be considered completely as such while the other three may be used for both. For example, Twitter is considered a "social" app and while I do indeed use it as such periodically, lately I mostly make use of it for professional purposes, usually academic. I do, however, seem to have an even balance of apps I visit and reside in. While I may look at Instagram every ...

Digital Citizenship: Nearpod and Learning Apps The outbreak of the COVID-19 pandemic has caused us to reevaluate our perceptions of the role technology plays in society, in particular digital tools. The educational news website ISTE, in fact, has published an article listing nine current trends in edtech, the first being digital citizenship. Digital citizenship is defined a number of ways, first as ensuring safety and security online through means such as password protection, and second as using digital tools responsibly and effectively. It is listed into five focus areas including, as defined below, inclusivity, being informed, engagement, balance, and alertness.  Image Source: ISTE A platform that caught my eye pertaining to digital citizenship was Nearpod, a   hybrid digital tool which allows teachers to create interactive, slide-based resources for students. There are over 22,000 interactive lessons, videos, and games/activities from grades K-12 for a multitude of subject...