From The Mashable
Dealing with phones and social media can be a drain on educators.
By Rebecca Ruiz on September 16, 2023
Managing phones and social media in the classroom can contribute to teacher burnout. Credit: Bob Al-Greene
For the past two decades, New York City school teacher Sari Beth Rosenberg has guided high school students through the annals of U.S. history.
Rosenberg’s generation-spanning vantage point gives her rare insight into their education. She can tell you what happened, at least in her experience, when nearly every teen started showing up to school with an internet-connected device and one or more social media accounts.
Rosenberg noticed the shift about a decade ago. Her students’ attention span seemed shorter, and the teens became more prone to distraction. Conflicts over being excluded or bullied via social media became routine. Students brought that tension into the classroom and hallways. Rosenberg noticed, through observation and conversation, how social media wore down her students’ mental health.
The pandemic supercharged all of that, says Rosenberg. Devices became a lifeline, not only for school but for social connection. The rise of TikTok has further diminished their appetite for long-form content, she notes. While students once welcomed watching a documentary, they’re now less excited by the prospect. Rosenberg adapted her curriculum accordingly, focusing on short video content with high production values.
Read the rest of the piece here from Mashable.