Tag Archives: Facebook

A College Student’s Guide to Creatively Keeping in Touch

Posted in college, college students, dorms, education, high school, money, parents, saving money, school, technology, universities by

By Natalie Posdaljian

Keeping in touch as a college student is vital for maintaining relationships with family and friends, keeping them in the loop and weaving your home life with your college life. Reliable ways of keeping in touch, such as texts, emails and chatting on the phone, can get redundant and don’t always provide the best insight into your life as a college student. Instead, spice up how you keep in touch with your family back home.

student video chat

Video Chat

Video chatting with a laptop isn’t new to the scene nor is it the most creative way to keep in touch. Expand your virtual horizons with the iPad Air 2, which is thin and light enough to take anywhere. Video chat with your family at a public park in your new town or while you enjoy a much needed caffeine fix at your favorite coffee shop. Or, your family can video chat you when they all get together for a birthday party or Sunday afternoon BBQ. Although you won’t get a bite of the cake, you can still chat with all your aunts, uncles, cousins and grandparents.

Snail Mail

With the speed, efficiency and reliability of technology, it’s understandable why snail mail is a thing of the past. Yes, you have to handwrite your letter, buy a stamp, stop at the post office and wait a couple days for your mail to reach its destination, but that’s what makes snail mail fun. The feeling of checking the mailbox and finding something addressed to you that’s not a bill or advertisement is priceless. Sending snail mail to your family leaves them obliged to write you back, giving you something to look forward to in the mail. You also can throw in a copy of the A+ paper you wrote. Snail mail is especially great for grandparents, who typically appreciate handwritten letters the most.

Vlog

A vlog (video blog) is a unique way to show others what a day in the life of a college student looks like. Whether you keep it private for your family to enjoy or you make it a public YouTube channel, vlogging is in. Model one of your vlogs off a cooking show, with a twist on ramen or PB&J sandwiches. Vlog a tour of your favorite spots on campus, such as where you get your morning coffee, restaurants you frequent, the gym and the library. Or keep it simple and just talk straight to the camera about school, your roommates, professors and anything else that’s on your mind.

Shared Photos

There are so many ways you and your family can share your photos. If you’re looking to keeping it virtual, create a private album on Facebook and make all your family members contributors so everyone can swap photos. Or, use a photo sharing site like Flickr or Photobucket. Take it a step further by sharing developed photos (yes, people still develop photos). Throw just a few photos into that letter you’re sending, or use an app like Groovebook to upload all of your photos for just $2.99 (college budget approved) to send your family a keepsake photobook.

Family Facebook Group

A private family Facebook group is great for quick life updates, such as acing that Calculus exam, or for sharing links to YouTube videos with each other. Having your family in one Facebook group creates a forum full of sharing, likes and comments between the people that matter the most to you. For those statuses or photos you can’t share with your entire following, a private group lets you share your silly selfies or embarrassing stories with those that will love you no matter what.

Author Bio: Destined to be an Armenian housewife perfecting her hummus recipe, Natalie Posdaljian instead chose a life of marine field biology and sriracha. Born and raised in southern California, her veins rush with salty seawater and sunshine no matter where she goes.  When she’s not saving jellyfish from extinction, Natalie is dancing in the shower, knitting on a plane or swinging in her hammock.

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Facebook Depression: Is It A Real Diagnosis? (Guest Post)

Posted in college, education, grades, high school, psychology, school, self-help, technology by

Tara Heath is a journalist who lives in California. She loves to write about health and wellness and parenting. She knows there are many dangers that come with social media and wants to help share her tips and thoughts on staying healthy and safe.

Almost everybody with access to a computer knows about the social media site Facebook. If you’re a parent, chances are your children use it, and more than likely, you use it yourself.

While social media sites are basically part of the culture for anybody under the age of 40, they tend to have more of an impact on high school and college-age teens. They are the ones most likely to be regularly active on Facebook, and they’re also the ones most likely to visit the site more than 10 times per day according to a study conducted by the American Academy of Pediatrics.

Unfortunately, this relatively new technology may be taking a toll on some teens and young adults in the form of something controversially known as Facebook depression.

signs

What is Facebook Depression?

Facebook depression is a relatively new term designed specifically to reference feelings of depression and anxiety that many teens feel due to social media sites, much like the depression teens experience on the playground when they aren’t accepted by their peers. Only, in the digital age, Facebook depression relates more to friend requests and friends unfollowing them on the web than face to face interaction.

In some cases, teens may do things that could be considered risky in order to feel accepted, and then brag about their activities. This has led some researchers to believe that kids who don’t feel accepted on social media sites may be more likely to engage in risk-taking activities like doing drugs or having unsafe sex. Some teens even engage in self-destructive behavior like posting pornographic images of themselves or sending them to others at their school in a misguided attempt to be accepted.

Is Facebook Depression Real?

Facebook depression might sound like a strange term to some parents who may not understand the role social media really has in their child’s life. However, 22-percent of teens check their Facebook profile and information 10 times or more per day and 77-percent have cellular devices capable of giving them this access no matter where they are.

That’s why Facebook depression is a real thing. However, it may not really be any different than the feelings commonly associated with not being accepted by peers – the same feelings children had on the playground long before tools like social media sites were available.

depression

With social media becoming more and more a part of the culture each day, it’s important that parents realize how it can negatively affect their children. The internet can be an excellent tool for children to learn and grow emotionally, but it can also be problematic if parents ignore its growing role.

As a general rule, you should be monitoring your child’s Facebook account until they are older teens – children under 13 likely shouldn’t have their own Facebook account at all. By being vigilant as a parent you can make sure your children stay safe and don’t experience any of the depression that can come with sites like Facebook.

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Education Update

Posted in education, technology by

1) There’s an interesting article about the 10 most educated countries in the world. The U.S. did better than I expected. China isn’t on this list, which is evidently a sign that even though privileged Chinese students have been beating American students in science and math, the country as a whole has a long way to go.

Here are the top 10, with postsecondary education rates:
1. Canada
Pct. population with postsecondary education: 50%

2. Israel
Pct. population with postsecondary education: 45%

3. Japan
Pct. population with postsecondary education: 44%

4. United States
Pct. population with postsecondary education: 41%

5. New Zealand
Pct. population with postsecondary education: 40%

6. South Korea
Pct. population with postsecondary education: 39%

7. Norway
Pct. population with postsecondary education: 37%

8. United Kingdom
Pct. population with postsecondary education: 37%

9. Australia
Pct. population with postsecondary education: 37%

10. Finland
Pct. population with postsecondary education: 37%

2) Technology in the classroom.
There’s a good infographic about how professors are using social media:
Key stat: 80% of faculty use social media for some aspect of a course they are teaching.
Reading professors like an open facebook, or how teachers use social media
Courtesy of: Schools.com
And here’s an infographic on how 100% of colleges and universities are using it:
Pros and Cons of Social Media in Education

On a related note, Education Secretary Arne Duncan and Federal Communications Commission Chairman Julius Genachowski have been promoting digital textbooks. I’m not about to join the debate on this divisive issue, but here are some thought-provoking articles:
The Promise of Education Technology (It’s Not Just About Lighter Backpacks), by Joel Klein
Who really benefits from putting high-tech gadgets in classrooms?, by Michael Hiltzik

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