My experience with this activity was very eye-opening. I realized, not only how much I use, but also how dependent I am of my phone. I actually began to get annoyed with how often I was using my phone (having to document it every time) and eventually had to force myself to part from it for several minutes or even hours at a time.
Quantitative Information:
- how many times you used the phone
76 time
2. the total hours and minutes you spent on the phone (remember, when adding seconds, 60 = 1 minute; I always make that mistake and go up to 100)
490 minutes/8 hour
3. the total textual, social, or both interactivities
Textual: 1
Social: 56
Both: 19
4. list and quantify the activities completed on the phone under the associated interactivity, such as (Both: texting: 43; twitter: 27; Social: phone call: 32)
Textual: Notes (1)
Social: FaceTime (2), Instagram (20), Snapchat (26), Facebook (9), Phone Call (2)
Both: Texting (6), Email (7), Facebook (3)
5. list and quantify the activities that were happening when you used your phone
Netflix (7), Nothing (10), Schoolwork (25), Laying in bed (9), Carride (2), Eating (8), Tv (12), Walking (1)
Rather than interrupting an activity like writing or doing homework, the diary entries were actually what were interrupting us from our phone use. Every time I picked up my phone, that also meant that I had to pick up my diary and my pen to record my actions. It was strange seeing how the diary entries were such an interruption of my normal everyday activity and realizing that, that is the role that my cell phone has everyday. It was also challenging to remember to carry around the specific notebook and specific pen everywhere I went rather than just being able to record my cellphone activity on any piece of paper and with any pen or pencil available. This is relatable to when we are limited to using only specific apps or even limited to using certain things on our phone if say, you aren’t connected to Wifi, or you ran out of data for the month so you need to limit your internet use on your phone. I definitely altered the way and the amount of time that a spent using my phone. I tried to use my phone fewer times and for shorter intervals, however this was difficult because of how natural it is to reach for my phone when I see that notification light up on your screen and it’s just sitting there calling my name. Some may call this an addiction. It is scary to think that we could all be addicted to the screens in front of us and the information they have to offer. I learned that I need to start living in the moment more and start relying less on my phone as much as I do. I learned that most of the time that I check my phone, nothing that is actually beneficial to my life is coming up. I realized that I am actually wasting my time more often than not when scrolling trough social media especially. At the same time, I realized that this is simply how our society and culture communicates today, and without my phone, I would not be able to stay as connected with friends and family as I am now. I learned that I rarely am ever without my phone; it is almost always on my person. My phone is capable of fitting in my pocket or being held in my hand at all times, therefore it is the most easily accessible technology that is offered to me (which is why I am drawn to use it as often as I do.) I use my phone in many different environments and spaces. In this day and age, it is almost impossible to be a student, an employee, and a social being without being digitally literate. Selfe defines digital literacy as, “a complex set of socially and culturally situated values, practices, and skills involved in operating linguistically within the context of electronic environments, including reading, writing, and communicating.” In my own words, I would define digital literacy as being able to use technology in the most efficient and culturally appropriate manner to communicate, work, and learn most productively. People, especially those of my generation, continuously create and discover new apps to complete daily tasks we carry out as students, employees, friends, and users and consumers of technology, more efficiently. For example, there is an unspoken set of social standards in regard to certain social media platforms. For example, majority of my classmates, including myself, know through social contexts the “correct” or socially acceptable way to use a platform like instagram. For example: don’t post several pictures over a short period of time, don’t make overly lengthy captions, don’t have a higher ratio of “following” than “followers”, among many more cultural standards. These standards are different in different age groups, cultures, and demographics. As a use of communication technologies I have learned that it is important to be aware of what the cultural norms and practices are in order to be digitally literate in that culture. I think that I truly use my phone as often as I do because I don’t want to miss out on a second of my social life. For most of my generation of technology users, it is important to constantly be updated, whether it be in the group chats that you’re in or on Snapchat to keep tabs on where your friends are and what they are doing at a specific moment of time. My phone is how I stay connected and updated with my friends. Even when I’m physically alone, I am always in contact with friends whether it be via Facetime, Snapchat, texting and so on. Without my phone, I learned, I would have a more boring social life, but would have more time for other (perhaps more beneficial and intellectually stimulating) activities. I have also learned that my phone effects my world in all other ways as well. Without my phone, it would be more difficult for me to contact professors or access my homework or to get updates on the news. The mobile smart phone has created a space where you can respond to employers, professors, friends, family, and followers in a matter of seconds in order to remain updated, entertained, and altogether, on the same page and the most important people and contacts in your life. When the computer was the hot new commodity, people wold have to wait until they were home and had down time to respond and communicate with others. And before that, people relied on telephone calls, newspapers and letters for information and communication. Our smartphones are mobile with us and convenient to our every needs. My phone provides me with so many services that I have been living with for so long, that it would be close to impossible to live without because of the digitally literate society we live in.