Have you seen this yet?
It’s a new ‘smartphone’ commercial put out by Microsoft.
It’s pretty funny… but speaks to a growing problem in our culture — and on our campuses.
While I think the creators of this commercial are nuts for thinking that a ‘new’ smartphone is the answer to our screen-obsessed culture, I think they’ve hit the nail on the head when describing many of the ridiculous areas of life technology has crept in and made itself at home.
And if your campus is anything like the one I serve on, this commercial likely could have been created from just an hour of filming around campus.
With all of the benefits that technology has brought us… I wonder:
- To what extent are our students are being damaged?
- Are there ways we need to be challenging our screen-obsessed students to limit their screen time?
- Are we doing all that we can to model a healthy relationship with technology?
Please take a minute to share your thoughts in the comment section below.
3 thoughts on “We’ve got a problem!”
I regularly see students (and adults, for that matter) sitting at a restaurant in the same location physically but all staring at their phones in silence. Or walking on campus side by side while looking at their phones.
I don’t know if they are permanently damaged, but I think life can easily pass by while people look at their screens. I struggle with this as well. One idea that my family has recently begun to implement (with varying degrees of success) is a “media-free” day. One day a week we turn everything off and spend time face to face. It reminds us that physical presence and face-to-face contact are still critical. I’ve started challenging students to consider it, although I don’t know how many are actually doing it yet.
Thanks for sharing Matt!
I know that when we take our student leaders on retreat we strongly encourage them to turn their devices off so that they can be present — with one another and with God. For the first 24 hours many of them act like drug addicts going through withdrawl — it’s almost painful to watch. But by the end of the weekend most of them are typically grateful for the opportunity and challenge.
Similarly, from time to time I will here about students who have simply chosen to walk away from Facebook (or all social media) for an extended period of time. When they finally venture back on to it the often share that they wish they had remained “unplugged.”
Time away from the screens is SO important. I wish more of us were willing to take the necessary steps — or set the appropriate boundaries — to make this happen regularly.
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