Porter 1

Jake Porter
Mrs. Stanford
ENG 231
2 November 2016
New Technology Affecting Communication
Technology is taking over the world day by day and it is not slowing down. While
technology is advancing every single day, it is also making real life social interaction more
difficult. This happens very often in communities, including schools. On Tuesday October 25,
2016, I conducted an interview with Curtis Love, a tenth grade history teacher at Tuscarawas
Valley High School. This interview allowed its viewers to take away information to help them
better understand how people, inside this community, communicate with one another. With the
advancements in technology, making their way into the school systems, it is making face to face
communication between teachers, students, and parents more difficult but it can also be a helping
tool in educating the students.
Nowadays people, no matter what community they are apart of, would much rather use
technology to communicate, whether it be via email, phone call, or text message. People just find
it to be much easier. As Mr. Love had said in our interview, Naturally, sometimes, electronic
communication is just a simpler way to do things. I think sometimes we say things
electronically, that would be filtered out in a normal conversation (Post Observation Interview
2016). Internet can save some people time that they would spend traveling, and money for gas,
also it allows people to say things they might not in face to face conversation. It helps to get rid
of the possibility of awkward silence, and could also make any type of bad news easier to hear or

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say. Technology can also improve the way students learn and help teachers educate them (Porter
2016). Many advancements have come about in learning technology with this, Many schools
have started bringinging educational technologies into their schools with the ultimate goal of
improving the way students learn. Technologies like smartboards, personal computers, cell
phones, ipads, projectors and internet are being used in classrooms to give students the best
opportunities to learn (Ramey 2012). All of this technology can help students to communicate
with other schools, classes similar to theirs, and even famous historians, scientists, or another
well known scholars. An example of when technology has benefitted a school is when Canton
South had the opportunity to skype with Bill Nye the Science Guy. Without the technology being
in the classroom, this may not have been possible. This being said, technology is a good thing to
have in the classroom, however if there is too much, it can be bad.
Technology is hindering many social skills today in school systems. Since everyone
nowadays can communicate behind a computer or phone screen this, for some, is the only way
they communicate. Some may be scared to have face to face conversations because they feel
safer and more comfortable behind a screen, something that Curtis Love thinks should change.
After asking, Has internet communication weakened or strengthened your community and
why? He responded, I would say that it has weakened it, not just here, but nationwide. I think a
lot of kids struggle to have a real conversation today. It is something we as teachers must now
focus on more (Post Observation Interview 2016). This is a real problem in his eyes, as he said
teachers should focus on it more. This is because many kids can not hold real conversations
anymore and it shows. This is a major problem when students graduate high school and go into
the real world because they will struggle when having job interviews and business meetings in

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which they need to have face to face interaction. A proposed question late in the interview,
What is the best way, in your opinion, to communicate with students and other staff members?
Is this your most used form of communication, if not, why (Post Observation Interview 2016)?
Wondering if he had used the best way to communicate in his own opinion. He responded
accordingly,
I think that the best way to communicate is by face to face conversations, or at least,
conversations. One of the biggest problems within society today is a lack of
communication problems. I have always been somewhat good at getting students to feel
comfortable in my class to the point where they will open up and have dialogue with me
and other students. In digital communication, we generally are not afraid to say
something that would be easy through electronic communications. I most often, when
time permits, have face to face conversations (Post Observation Interview 2016).
Attitudes like this from Mr. Love is something that can help our society in changing the internet
culture back to a face to face culture.
As technology is advancing and leaking its way into school systems, it is slowly taking
away from our social skills, but when used properly, is of good help. There are many benefits to
having these advancements in technology, with a wide range of options, in what one can do. This
ranges from being able to communicate with other classrooms, teachers, or professors from all
across the globe. It can help students learn greatly as they can see the stuff they are learning from
an outside perspective. Also, the new technology has helped communication inside the school
with new PA systems, TVs that show news about the school and community that kids might need
to see, and smart boards to help teachers get their point across. Another major piece of

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technology, finding its way into school systems, is personal laptops or computers, thus having
lead to easier and faster communication via email. This helps students to ask questions to their
teachers, even when they are not in school. However, with these great advancements, it has also
harmed not only our schools, but also our nation. It has harmed us because now, some teachers
or even students may be as close as the same room, or one room away, and they still try to
communicate through email rather than getting up and speaking with them face to face. As Mr.
Love had said, I think when used correctly, electronic communication makes our lives much
easier, but when that happens from one room to another in the same house, it becomes an issue
(Post Observation Interview 2016). The problem is that some people actually do use technology
while in the same room, which is something that not only schools, but us as a nation need to get
away from.

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The Importance of Communication in a Small School

Interviewer: (JP)
Interviewee: Curtis Love (CL)
Interview Setting: The interview was conducted electronically, the interview was conducted at
12:28pm on Tuesday October, 25 2016.
Affiliation with Interviewee: I had no affiliation with Curtis Love. However, I was able to
observe his class because of Coach Williams.
(Notes)

(Start of Interview)
JP: How long have you been apart of the Tusky Valley community?

CL: I have been a teacher here for 16 years. (Thats a long time) I lived in a different district up
until 2 years ago. (Moved because of his kids)

JP: What is it like to be involved in the community?

CL: It's a great community. The parents care about their kid's success in the classroom and in
extra-curricular endeavors. (Kind of like ours)

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JP: What makes the Tusky Valley community different from other communities youve been
apart of? And why?

CL: I think the thing that makes it different is the focus on academics within the district. A lot of
schools are more concerned with what goes on outside of schools.

JP: How often are community events held? How often do you attend these events?

CL: A few times a year. I rarely go anywhere.

JP: How has the community affected you personally?

CL: It has been a great influence on me as well as my children. It is a nice place to have a
family. For the most part, the people here are kind and caring. (Goes along w/ my point of T.V.
being a strong community)

JP: Do you and other teachers still associate with one another outside of the school community?

CL: Most of the coaching staff does. A lot of the teachers live outside of the school district
which makes things tougher. (Our coaches at CS are also like this)

JP: Which inner community, in your opinion is strongest at Tusky Valley?

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CL: I would say the athletic teams have great chemistry. I am assuming that is what you are
saying with inner community. (Athetic teams are also similar to this or clubs, very close knit
groups)

JP: Do you think that a smaller school like Tusky Valley is closer with one another than a larger
school?

CL: I think overall, the small school atmosphere is very good. I think it allows students and
teachers to get to know one another much better.

JP: Would you leave Tusky Valley if you had the chance to go to a bigger school?

CL: Once my kids are graduated, I might look at other jobs, but for now, I will stay.

JP: If you had the ability, would you allow your kids to be apart of this community?

CL: I actually moved into the district 2 years ago, to bring my kids here.

JP: Out of the three classes in which I sat in on, which is your favorite and why?

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CL: I know most teachers say it, but actually they are about the same. They all bring different
aspects to the table.

JP: Has internet communication weakened or strengthened your community? Why?

CL: I would say that it has weakened it, not just here, but nationwide. (A very good point) I think
a lot of kids struggle to have a real conversation today. (That is sad) It is something we as
teachers must now focus on more.

JP: What is the best way, in your opinion, to communicate with students and other staff
members? Is this your most used form of communication, if not, why?

CL: -- I think that the best way to communicate is by face to face conversations, or at least,
conversations. One of the biggest problems within society today is a lack of communication
problems. (technology taking over) I have always been somewhat good at getting students to
feel comfortable in my class to the point where they will open up and have dialogue with me and
other students. I think when we have face to face communications, we must be willing to deal
with some uncomfortable situations. In digital communication, we generally are not afraid to say
something that would be easy through electronic communications. I most often, when time
permits, have face to face conversations.

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JP: Why do you think that communication has become mainly through email? And how does that
affect you and others?

CL: -- Electronic communication has become easier for the reason I mentioned above. I know
for a fact that when a parent emails me, their tone and verbiage are completely different if we are
having a phone conversation or a face to face conversation. Naturally, sometimes, electronic
communication is just a simpler way to do things. I think sometimes we say things
electronically, that would be filtered out in a normal conversation.
I think it has affected society by not allowing students to deal with the many forms of nonverbal
communication that comes with face to face conversations (body language, tone, sarcase, etc.) I
think for some kids, my delivery of message can be difficult for students because of my
personality. They just don't get it.

JP: How do you think this form of communication can become stronger?

CL: -- I think when used correctly, electronic communication makes our lives much easier, but
when that happens from one room to another in the same house, it becomes an issue.

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Works Cited
"Post Observation Interview." E-mail interview. 25 Oct. 2016.
Porter, Jacob P. Observation. 29 Sept. 2016. Observing History Teacher. Tusky Valley, Mineral
City.
Ramey, Karehka. "TECHNOLOGY AND SOCIETY IMPACT OF TECHNOLOGY ON
SOCIETY." Use of Technology. UseofTechnology.com, 12 Nov. 2012. Web. 1 Nov.
2016.

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While I was writing this paper I wanted to focus the most on the technological aspect of
communication and how it can be a benefit, and also have a negative effect on schools. In order
for me to write this paper, I had to use the observations that I had already done, and also had to
conduct an interview with someone who lives within the community I observed. So I figured,
who better than the head of my observation himself, the teacher Mr. Love. To do this I asked Mr.
Love questions that could help me find out how Tusky Valley communicated, whether it be
mostly face to face, or behind a computer screen. Along with an interview, there was some
background research needed to help write this paper.
I think that my paper overall is pretty solid, however it was difficult for me to write. At
the beginning I struggled to grasp what it was that we needed to write about, so my first
interview questions didnt seem to help much. However after talking it over with my teacher, it
led me to have a somewhat better understanding on what questions needed to be asked. I believe
that if my interview was done face to face or even over the phone it wouldve led to some better
questions and responses which could have overall helped my paper.