Recently, our school has been considering participating in the national “Screen-Free Week”. This is an annual event where families, schools, and communities stop using all electronics for one week. This event is thrown in hopes of spreading fun, connection, and discovery beyond screens and social media. However, this event is ineffective as it hinders everyday life and does not change or assist people in any way. In addition, our school should not participate in the national “Screen-Free Week” because those who use the internet are already more likely to be exposed to a diversity of ideas and people and they are half as likely to be socially isolated than the average American because of the close social ties the internet provides.
The national
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For instance, “A recent follow-up study, ‘Social Networking Sites and Our Lives’ (Pew Research Center), found that the average user of a social networking site had more close ties than and was half as likely to be socially isolated as the average American,” (Source 1). Since people who use social media are half as likely to be socially isolated than the average American, that means that social media is benefiting those who use it rather than harming them. Moreover, since social media users tend to have closer relationships and social connections, social media helps its users become more social and closer to other people. Some would argue that because the Internet keeps us distracted, we never really learn and grow. However, even if the internet distracts us, there are many benefits that the internet provides that make the distractions worth it. These benefits include access to more information, closer social connections, and a greater variety of diverse ideas. In closing, our school should not participate in the “Screen-Free Week” because those who use the internet are half as likely to be socially isolated and have better social connections, so if we remove the internet for a week, we could be removing social connections as