Full pages are needed for this assignment. Reflection questions need to be on a separate page.

ASSIGNMENT: Using your outline and annotated bibliography from Touchstones 1.2 and 2.2, draft a 6-8 page argumentative research essay on your chosen topic.

In order to foster learning and growth, all essays you submit must be newly written specifically for this course. Any recycled work will be sent back with a 0, and you will be given one attempt to redo the Touchstone.

REFLECTION QUESTIONS:
1. Provide one example of a place where you have used rhetorical appeals or source material to support your argument. How does this enhance your essay? (2-3 sentences)
2. Touchstone 4 is a revision of this draft. What kind of feedback would be helpful for you as you revise? Are there parts of your draft that you’re uncertain of? (3-4 sentences)

ANSWER

Technology Has Negatively Impacted People’s Ability to Be Creative

Tralesser Hartley

Sophia Pathways

English Composition II

September 14, 2021

1. Introduction 

Technology has had a positive impact on the lives of people. However, technology has also harmed the levels of creativity of people. Ideally, creativity is a process that occurs in four stages; flexibility, fluency, elaboration and originality. Therefore, information technology can harm creativity depending on how it is used. The negative impacts of technology are linked to reduced creative thinking and creativity (Lazar and Irena, 2014). This is due to numerous information and ideas regarding various subjects. This paper will focus on how technology has led to distraction in developing ideas and creativity. As a result of the paradigm shift in the use of technology, creativity and development ideas have been on a major decline due to the high dependence on online platforms and sources. 

1. Digital distraction is easy to deny

Technology has many advantages that make it difficult to identify the negative impacts on people. Ideally, technology has led to many benefits on personal, social and work life. The technological benefits have made life easier, allowing people to do things more efficiently and quickly. Kapur (2018) stated that the use of different technologies in the implementation of activities and tasks had rendered an essential contribution to allowing individuals to achieve their desired goals and objectives efficiently. Technology has enabled people to access information and work faster and be more efficient. For instance, everyday tasks such as writing, reading and interacting with other humans are being replaced by scrolling through social media feeds and listening to music via smart devices such as phones and laptops. However, technology has enabled people to access information and work faster and be more efficient, but there is a cost to this. Technology’s ease of access and constant distractions have harmed people’s creative ability.

Digital distraction is on the rise as people become increasingly reliant on technology (Lindström, 2020). Due to its effectiveness, it makes it easy for persons to get digitally distracted and hence fail to be creative enough when undertaking tasks that require creativity. Ideally, between the live notifications from smartphones, desktops and vibrations from smartwatches, individuals have developed a lifestyle in the digital age that has raised the alarm about the adverse impacts on creativity and mental and physical health (Hyder, 2020). Being in a tech-centric world where digital distraction is rising, the life scale goes away from practical due to the relationship with technology.

Considerably, digital distraction has influenced practical thoughts. Lack of concentration has worsened society’s creative output, whether everyday tasks or highly involved brainstorms. The distraction that comes from the modern conveniences of smartphones and laptops keeps people from thinking as clearly as they could with paper and pencil, as was possible with previous generations. This lack of focus has led people to become shallower, causing society to lose the ability to deeply think about creative projects.

For instance, digital distractions have made it harder for students to be creative in schools. The internet, laptops and smartphones create a constant temptation for students to be distracted from their work. Teachers are now using various technologies in schools, such as interactive whiteboards, which can be just as distracting. The use of laptops in schools has been found to harm creativity, mainly because students use them for non-academic activities, such as watching videos or playing games.

According to Hyder (2020), technological distractions have made that easier for people since they are designed to seem so useful and nurturing. For instance, technology has influenced the way individuals learn, think and communicate. It has made learning more collaborative and interactive, thus making people better engaged. Relatively, the critical and complex processes can be carried out with greater efficiency and ease with the help of modern technology, thus leading to great distraction in critical thinking and evaluation of processes.

Digital distraction is stifling original thinking, thus killing creativity. After getting digitally distracted, one fails to be mindful of their imagination and creativity. The mind gets distracted from its abilities and concentrates on the use of modern technology for solutions, influencing an individual’s ability to utilize their full potential (Lindström, 2020). Creativity, an important part of life that helps us cope with stress and develop solutions to challenging problems, is disappearing rapidly due to this reliance on technology. People’s abilities to be creative has been impacted significantly since they fail to understand the importance of shutting off from technology. People expect instantaneous results thus rely heavily on digital technologies, which deletes any period for depth of thought or emotional reasoning that can help people give insight into lives and what they were doing. Thus technology has made people shallow and robotic, greatly influencing their creativity.

Ingram (2018) argues that technology is not killing creativity but enhancing it. For instance, video games have helped users to get more creative. However, the use of digital devices has surged in recent years, and with it, the number of time people spends on them. As the attention spans continue to shrink, people become less and less creative. Research shows that when the brain is constantly distracted by technology, the brain cannot focus on complex tasks, which can lead to a decline in creativity and development of the human brain (Lindström, 2020). Digital distraction also harms the ability to think deeply and develop new ideas. When people are constantly bombarded with stimuli from digital devices, their brains are in a state of constant distraction, which inhibits the ability to focus and come up with creative solutions.

III. Technology impact on children 

Depending on the manner used, technology can positively or negatively affect the child’s development and creativity (Lazar and Irena, 2014). Considerably, children in the 21^st century have become avid users of technology compared to the past generations. The rise in the utilization of technology has led to much attention on the impacts of technology use and how it impacts children’s brains and cognitive, socio-emotional and physical development (Graafland, 2018). Young people demonstrated their preferences for using the internet for chatting, gaming and social networking.

Addiction to technology among children is harming their creativity and social skills. Technology hinders creativity because children are too busy watching videos or playing games rather than using their imaginations (Woods, 2020). Considerably, digital distraction affects children’s cognitive development. More time spent on digital devices has led to a decline in creativity and social skills. Children’s creativity has decreased due to the growing use of technology. The amount of time children spend with screens has substantially increased in the past few decades. This habit harms their ability to be imaginative because it becomes more challenging for them to put down their phone or tablet.

In earlier days, children used to play outside, which used to enhance their creativity and physical health. In recent times, technological advancement has influenced their ability to think out of the box (Jalil and Sabir, 2019). Screen time replaces physical activity, which is essential for children’s overall creativity, growth and development.

According to Lazar & Irena (2014), too much dependency on technology can hinder a child from being creative and reduce creative thinking. Considerably, in a generation where technology is on the rise, children have decreased creativity due to reliance on technology tools. The predominance that technology and smartphones have had has led to suggestions that technology is killing creativity. Technology has forced children to sacrifice their original thoughts and give no room for problem solving and innovativeness. Most children have their heads in a computer, tablet or smartphone, thus lacking imaginative activities that enable their brains to promote creativity.

One of the biggest dangers of technology is that it can often lure children away from other activities that are important for their development, such as playing outdoors, reading books, and interacting with other children. This has led to many young children spending more time watching TV, playing video games, using their parents’ phones and tablets, and much more. As the time spent on screens increases, it becomes harder for children to find the motivation to participate in other activities that may be better for their creativity.

Many modern devices are designed with technology that allows them to provide immediate feedback after every action taken by the user. Everything happens immediately, from texting to posting updates on social media, making it easy for users to become distracted and never learn how to wait or work towards a goal or reward. This is especially harmful to young children coming across these different types of interactions at an increasingly younger age. With so much to distract them online, children can often find it difficult to focus on tasks that require creativity and concentration.

One of the most important elements of creativity is imagining things that do not exist in reality. With so much information now available online, children can easily find out about any topic they are interested in at the click of a button (Lazar and Irena, 2014). While this allows them to gain knowledge quickly, using Google as a substitute for thinking and imagining can harm their creative abilities. For instance, the internet offers access to all information which reduces the need for children to imagine possibilities or think outside the box for answers. Children are less willing to experiment and take risks, which can be a key element in developing creativity.

1. Conclusion 

As a result of the shift in paradigm in the use of technology, people’s creativity and development ideas as been on a major decline due to the high dependence on online platforms and sources. Technology has changed the way people access and transfer information making it difficult to control the access of information and how technology is being used. Technological tools have been linked with high dependency, which impacts creativity and the development of ideas. There is no doubt that technology has made lives easier in many ways. It has connected people worldwide, helped save time and energy, and given access to information anytime and anywhere. However, there is a growing concern that technology may be killing creativity. Technology has manifested negative impacts on children imagination and creativity. Creativity has lowered among children due to high reliance on technology in recent years. There is a need to control technology to prevent its harmful effects on creativity.

Reflection Questions 

1. Learning to conduct research is important because it is a skill you will use both in academia and in your professional life. It improves critical thinking and empowers you to find information for yourself. Consider the process of researching as a whole. What was the most challenging aspect of the process for you? (2-3 sentences)

The most challenging aspect of the research process was settling on the most suitable thesis for study. This is since it is a key determinant of the results of the research and had to be perfect. There was also the challenge of identifying the most relevant research questions which be used for the entire study process.

2. The working thesis statement is a proposed answer to your research question. It should clearly identify a debatable topic and take a position on one side of that topic. Analyze the effectiveness of your working thesis statement. (3-4 sentences)

The working thesis statement is effective since it touches on all the aspects of the study. It is detailed and ensures to fully support one side of the study. As a result, the entire research focuses on analyzing the thesis and highlights points that will either agree or disagree with it.

3. A detailed outline is an effective tool for laying out the progression of an argument. It allows you to consider the arrangement and organization of your ideas, as well as choose places to incorporate outside source materials. Review your detailed outline and summarize the argument you’ve presented. (3-4 sentences)

The outline is fully detailed, with all sections that will be covered for the research. It provides a summary of the key points which will be argued in the study. The outline also provides the guidelines which will ultimately help in making a conclusive argument for the research.

4. You will use the same topic on three of the remaining Touchstones in this course. What kind of feedback would be helpful for you? What are specific questions you might have as you go deeper into the research process? (2-3 sentences)

I will allow myself to research more in-depth to make sure that the remaining Touchstones are satisfactory and that I follow my outline or even add more to it. I am positive that my outline will help me fulfil my assignment. I want to make sure that my audience can fully understand what I discuss and will have an opportunity to summarize and reflect with a better understanding. I am sure that once this research outline is graded, along with feedback, I will be able to make my research paper better than I think I can do alone.

References

Graafland, J. H. (2018). New technologies and 21st-century children: Recent trends and outcomes.

Hyder, S. (2020). How Digital Distraction Is Killing Creativity and What to Do About It. Retrieved from https://www.inc.com/shama-hyder/how-digital-distraction-is-killing-creativity-what-to-do-about-it.html

Ingram, J. (2018). Information and imagination: why technology isn’t killing creativity. Retrieved from https://www.raconteur.net/creativity-technology/

Jalil, J., & Sabir, S. (2019). Mobile phone usage and distraction in learning sessions. PAFMJ, 69(1), 54-59.

Kapur, R. (2018). Significance of digital technology. Retrieved from.

Lazar, S., & Irena, S. (2014). Impact of Computers on the Creativity of Children. International Journal of Cognitive Research in Science, Engineering and Education, 2(2)

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Lindström, J. (2020). Understanding digital distraction: a longitudinal study on disruptive everyday media multitasking among diginatives.

Woods, A. (2020). Attention Seeking: Distraction as a Cultural Dilemma in the Digital Age.