Last week, our very own Director of Technology Mr. Trevor Shaw was the featured presenter at our MS Assembly. His topic? Social media and technology, of course. Mr. Shaw stressed three points when using social media: 1. Be nice, 2. Think about Privacy, and 3. Stay Focused. He had the students complete a quick survey on their iPads, and it looks like the vast majority of our youngsters are already being pretty NICE and being pretty careful about their PRIVACY. However, it seems like many students need some work staying focused.
Mr. Shaw did a quick google search and found these apps that help manage attention span. Ironically, some of them are designed like games, giving you rewards for streaks of productivity.
Have a look: https://appolicious.com/top-ios-apps-to-stop-distractions/
There is also an app called Bark that we have been looking at as a school. This works in conjunction with parents. The youngster gives the Bark app access to his/her social media accounts and it monitors them for things that look like they could be dangerous. If it detects a problem, it alerts the parents. The nice thing about it is that parents don’t have access to the student’s entire account. They only get an alert if there is a problem. Some people might find this easier than starting an awkward conversation with Mom or Dad after a problem has gone too far.