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November 29, 2016

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WISS experts weigh in on healthy social media habits

FACEBOOK, Twitter, Snapchat, Instagram, who can keep up with all of social media these days? While the “adult generation” heads are spinning with the newest and latest sites, our young people are completely plugged in and engaged.

So at WISS, we go to our experts, Carla Hockl, Paulina Kloss and Pelle Flodin, grade 11 students at WISS, to give us their expert opinion about how young people should engage with social media.

Our experts agree, social media is a great way to connect with people, to share experiences such as holiday photos, and also to gain knowledge of what is happening in the world. Especially in an international school setting, staying connected to friends back home, or friends that have moved away, is incredibly valued by kids and teens who are living abroad.

This “connectedness” is what makes social media so attractive and a convenient way to communicate locally but also on a wider, global platform.

However, our experts also agree that using social media cautiously is of utmost importance, especially when dealing with information, identity and integrity.

The ability of social media to influence a young person’s opinion on certain issues can be quite strong. “Social media is biased. You can’t believe everything you see or read on social media,” says Flodin.

Young people must be wary when they navigate the vast number of websites, newsfeeds and blogs. Sources of information can vary widely and it’s important to know what is the source of the information in order to determine if it is credible.

“While it’s interesting to read certain articles, if the information is something you can’t verify independently, then it’s not a good source of news,” comments Hockl.

In the world of social media, “it’s easy to get caught up in how many ‘likes’ my post has received,” comments Hockl. “This shouldn’t be a focus,” she says.

The “likes” on social media are an easy source of validation for a person. It makes them feel that what they post has garnered attraction which then feeds their self-confidence.

“Social media can also be very fake,” Flodin responds. “You will always only post the very best photos and so it’s easy to get caught into perfection because you want people to only see the best of you,” he says.

Our identities should not be determined by what others think of us. Hockl says, “Don’t get too caught up into it or care about what people think of you. Be yourself.”

More importantly than anything is to keep your integrity on social media. Our three experts agree, what you post on social media can come back to haunt you one day. Everyone has access and you never know if a future employer will be looking to see what you have posted in the past.

Additionally, the anonymity of social media can be dangerous.

“Being anonymous on social media gives people the excuse to be mean,” says Hockl.

Kloss agrees, adding: “Be careful with your comments. You never know who is reading.”




 

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