DIGITAL ADDICTION: WHY TEACHING AWARENESS MATTERS MORE THAN PROHIBITION

This past school year, I worked with my students on two texts dealing with social media, digital addiction, algorithms and the growing concern about the effects of excessive screen time on young people.

The topic immediately generated lively discussion. Almost every student recognised some of the behaviours described in the texts: checking notifications repeatedly, opening social media apps without a specific reason, losing track of time while scrolling, or feeling the need to stay constantly connected.

As teachers and parents, we often hear alarming messages about social media. We are told that young people spend too much time online, that platforms are addictive and that digital technologies are damaging attention spans and mental health. Some governments have started discussing  or even passed  age restrictions and bans.

Yet I have become increasingly convinced that prohibition alone is not the answer.

What young people need most is awareness.

GROWING UP IN AN AGE THAT FEARS ADULTHOOD

 

 

As a teacher, the end of the school year always brings the buzz of the Esame di Maturità. While I wasn’t directly involved in the exam commissions this year, I couldn't resist checking the exam papers assigned on the first day for the Italian essay. Among the several different options available to the students, the B3 task immediately caught my eye.

Ironically, I found myself thinking that the prompt—centered on the boundaries of maturity—was actually far more suitable for an adult to reflect on than a teenager! Yet, if I had been sitting at one of those desks taking the exam myself, that is absolutely the task I would have chosen. The prompt was based on Frank Furedi's book I confini contano (Boundaries Matter), which references Julie Beck's article in The Atlantic, "When Are You Really an Adult?", to show how contemporary culture portrays adulthood as a nuisance where independence becomes loneliness and responsibility turns into stress.

USEFUL OR USELESS KNOWLEDGE: A DEBATE ON EDUCATION

Should schools primarily teach practical, useful skills for the real world, or is there value in cultivating knowledge that some might consider as useless? Recently, I had a thought-provoking discussion with my students on this very topic, and I shared a compelling quote by philosopher Agnes Heller with them: "If someone were to ask me, as a philosopher, what one should learn in high school, I would answer: first of all, only useless things - ancient Greek, Latin, pure mathematics, and philosophy. Everything that is useless in life. The beauty is that in this way, at the age of 18, you have a baggage of useless knowledge with which you can do anything. While with useful knowledge, you can only do small things." In this blog post, I’d like to point out the key moments of our debate about useless versus useful knowledge, exploring the merits of both sides while ultimately standing alongside Agnes Heller's perspective.

WHY I CONTINUE TO CHERISH TEACHING: A TEACHER'S REFLECTION

Teaching, undoubtedly one of the most demanding professions, is often associated with burnout and health concerns. While I acknowledge the inherent stress that comes with the job, I can't help but wonder why I still hold such a deep love for it, even as retirement approaches, casting a shadow over my career. Admittedly, I'm aware that my days of being as effective and active as required to engage with energetic teenage students are numbered. However, instead of succumbing to sadness about the inevitable transition, I'm working on embracing this new phase of life with acceptance. Here's why I still adore my teaching profession...

WHY SHOULD STUDENTS STUDY LITERATURE?

(by Melisa Marzett) 

One who reads a lot knows a lot, a Russian proverb says. Does it apply to books in English? Is it worth reading? Previously, literature and newspapers were almost the only sources of information. In the modern world, you can watch movies, videos, listen to podcasts to practice English, and receive new information. We offer to figure out why to read books in English.

1.Increasing vocabulary and improvement literacy skills

Everyone has their preferences in the literature. But, regardless of the genre of the book, you will run over the eyes of a hundred different words in the text. It is an incredibly effective way to enrich your vocabulary because the vocabulary is always used in context. Instead of mechanical searching and memorizing words from a dictionary, you can easily “absorb” them from a book. The more attractive the work, the more quickly you learn the new vocabulary.

2. Activation of passive vocabulary

You understand the meaning of many words and use them efficiently in speech. This vocabulary refers to the active vocabulary. But there are such words and grammatical structures that become passive. You can guess the meaning of the latter in the context, but do not use it in speech. Why? Because it is always easier to use a standard set of phrases, one that you know well. However, it is reading in English that helps activate passive vocabulary. Your speech becomes richer; you will not notice how you will begin to speak with the words of your favorite book characters.

CHOOSE THE BEST CAREER FOR YOUR GOALS AND PERSONALITY

Did you know that work can make you happy? At least, it’s one of the major factors in determining overall happiness, and a large part of how happy work makes you is determined by the career you choose. Here are some things to consider when you’re deciding on a career.

1) How do you enjoy interacting with people?

If you’re very much a “people person”, you may enjoy a career that allows you to constantly meet new people and, in many cases, solve their problems. This can be anything from standing on stage as a public speaker to helping people with research as a librarian.

If you prefer to have somewhat limited contact with other people, look for a career where you’ll be able to work as part of a small team instead. You may never need to deal with more than a few individuals, but you will be able to form steady, ongoing relationships with the people you know.

Humans are inherently social beings, and it can be hard to be happy when we’re totally isolated. That’s why your career should include a way to interact with others in a way that’s comfortable for you.

MY KIDS GROW UP AND THEY ARE PRETTY SPECIAL: VERONICA & THE BEST CONSEQUENCE OF STUDYING

Veronica and her Erasmus mates in Innsbruck

To grow up and find your own place in the world is never easy, especially because that is something you start doing when you are a teenager, which is a very complicated moment in everybody’s life. Well, complicated as well as exciting.  This series of posts dedicated to my former students and their after-school experiences has the aim to help my present students to become more aware of what expects them out there once they leave the safe environment of high school and to give them suggestions and advice on how to brace themselves.

Today it is Veronica’s turn. She’s had quite a brilliant academic career so far. She can be a model,  an inspiring example with her will strength and unsatiable curiosity. Recently, she was even awarded a very special prize by the President of the Italian Republic,  Sergio Mattarella. 

Hi! I’m Veronica and Mrs Spila was my English teacher, though only during my last year at grammar school. I spent a nice period there and I was really satisfied. My school career was quite brilliant and I got my degree with the highest grade… but not because I love studying… just thanks to my willpower.

In my life I’ve often changed my mind about what I wanted to do in the future. When I was in  middle school, my dream was to become an archaeologist. This is why I chose grammar school. But I loved also literature, reading good books and writing, too. So I thought “why not a journalist?”. Yes, good idea. But I loved cinema, as well. So I decided I might have been a film critic.
 Actually,  I’ve always loved lots of things,  but none was my “true love” and, in short, after leaving high school, I decided to study Economy at University.

You maybe wonder why. At that moment it was a very simple decision actually, because I knew exactly what I wanted in my life: I wanted to be a manager. Not an easy goal, but that  was my ambition.

MY KIDS GROW UP AND ... THEY' RE PRETTY SPECIAL - EMANUELE GIARLINI, LIVING IN ETERNAL BETA VERSION.

After Maria Sofia and her touching story from Palestine,  full of hope and enthusiasm, here is my second guest in this series dedicated to my former students and their successful careers in the world of work, university or research. 

Emanuele has always been the nerdish type with his love for fantasy books - "prof.,  what about  reading some good Tolkien pages in our classes"? -  rock music and computers. Achievement after achievement, he now lives in Milan, has an important job, works in a field he loves but still dreams to achieve more. He wrote this piece for my present pupils - see it on Learn Online - in order to share his love for Computer Science and pass a few good tips  to them.. 

Hello, I’m Emanuele and Mrs Spila was my English teacher during my high school years,  so I’m really proud to write a post for her blog.

Let’s see what happens when I try to sum up my whole life in a short post... Well, let’s start from the beginning. My high school career wasn’t that brilliant, mostly because I spent those years playing the guitar, listening to music and reading fantasy books. I was quite weir and it was really  hard for me to study something I couldn't  find cool, exciting or useful. So,  I have to admit, high school was really boring for me.

After leaving school  I had no idea of what I was going to do in my life so I enrolled to University, Computer Science Department of  La Sapienza, in Rome.

The first year was a nightmare! I couldn’t pass any Maths exam because they were so hard for me and I had no skills for programming.  Till then I hadn’t written a single line of code in my entire life. I started feeling really frustrated and, at the end of the first year, I started thinking that computer science wasn’t the right choice. However, I decided to resist just another year  before quitting definitely.

Guys, guess what? My second year was amazing!

I started  studying  hard, I totally changed my attitude and, finally, I discovered the creative and fun aspect of this world. I clearly remember those years, they were tough but, at the same time, challenging. I studied a bunch of new things every day and all classes where based on cutting edge technologies: algorithms, artificial intelligence, micro processors, data bases and other nerdy stuff I’d always loved!

READING BOOKS & LANGUAGE LEARNING

(from SoloIdiomas Language School) 

Nowadays both language teachers and learners have an immense choice of learning resources and it is obvious that traditional methods usually applied during classes are being substituted by digital activities. This is an inevitable outcome considering we live in a digital era and our students are digital natives. Sometimes we teachers question ourselves about what language learners would choose : using a popular app to memorize new words or reading a well-known novel? Of course, many of them would find the former far more appealing than the latter.

MY KIDS GROW UP AND ...THEY'RE PRETTY SPECIAL: MARIA SOFIA

Maria Sofia and two of her little friends in Bethlehem

Maria Sofia was in a peculiar class I only taught for one year, in their final year, in preparation of their school - leaving exams. It was back in 2008. What was peculiar in their group? It was made up of really motivated, hard-working young people. I can assure you,  that is rare, precious experience for a teacher nowadays. 
I have often written about teaching, about my students and the ups and downs of a difficult job here at FLY HIGH! But, as I told you in "And then they come back", sometimes it is meeting students after they leave school that makes me understand how important our work was and is. That is the moment I can sit and learn from them. This is why I decided to introduce a few of them to you. Because we all can learn something from these young people. 

Hello, my name is Maria Sofia and I am one of Mrs Spila’s former students.

When I left school I wanted to discover the world, to travel, to meet people; for this reason I decided to study Arabic Language and Culture at Rome University "La Sapienza". The Arab world is so close to us, geographically speaking, but it can be considered so far for the misleading idea that we, the westerners, have of it.

So during my studies in Rome I had the opportunity through the Erasmus Mundus Project to spend eight months in Cairo, in the aftermath of the Revolution,  then ten months in Irbid, a Jordanian town located 30 km from the Syrian border. These experiences gave me the chance to know several people, to learn and understand their culture, to discover, that despite the different religion and traditions, we have more in common than we can imagine. I noticed more similarities between Italy and Arab countries than between Italy and Northern Europe, we are Mediterranean people after all!

After graduation,  I was not completely satisfied of my achievements; I had learnt the language  and studied the culture of Middle East and North Africa, but the chances that the University could offer me did not match my expectations.

So I decided to sign up to a Master in Cooperation and Development in Pavia.  I wanted and I still want to do my part to improve our world, I want to contribute to the creation of a beneficial change and have a positive impact on people's lives. Development is freedom, as my wise professor says, so I like to think that I’m working for freedom in the world.

BECAUSE TEACHERS MATTER: HAPPY WORLD TEACHERS' DAY!

I still remember my primary school teacher, her sweet,  authoritative style and her fundamental teachings. I owe to her my starting reading books very early, though coming from a humble family and from a house with very few books inside. She gave me my first two novels,  when I was 7 or 8, Little Women and Cuore, thus  giving start to a never-ending passion for literature. 

A few years later, I started loving everything British when an extravagant, cheerful, colourful teacher of English entered my classroom.  I was 12  then, and I became curious,  eager to learn that language so foreign to me and to discover more and more about Britain, which I would only visit at 21 for the first time, but which I started dreaming of since our first lesson together. 

WALKING HOME BLOG TOUR - INTERVIEW WITH AUTHOR ARLEEN WILLIAMS: SEEKING TO UNDERSTAND THE LIVES OF EMIGRANTS IN OUR EVOLVING COMMUNITIES.

The Book

Walking Home is a compelling glimpse into the lives of emigrés in modern day America – refugees from genocide and war. The book journeys from loss and grief to survival and joy. The story hits the ground running, literally, with Kidane’s escape from Africa that reaches far into his future into Seattle, Washington. Kidane battles with survivor guilt while he struggles to settle into Seattle, a new life, relationship, school and work. He wants the American dream but is haunted by the past where he survived horrific violence in Africa, and was forced to leave everything and everyone he loved, behind.

Beautifully written, this poignant and intimate portrait of survivors is a must read for anyone seeking to understand the lives of emigrants in our evolving communities.

I'm glad Arleen Williams accepted to answer a few questions and even to give me some precious teaching tips! Here's our exchange. I hope you'll enjoy it .

My interview

The new overwhelming flood of immigration to  Europe  is present–day breaking news. Thousands and thousands of desperate human beings are fleeing from their countries at war and coming to our countries in search of safety and freedom. Your book is a perfect chance to focus and reflect on this urgent matter. So many thanks, for accepting to answer my questions, Arleen!

It is my pleasure, Maria Grazia. Thank you for reading my work.

My first question  is : what led you to write “Walking Home”?

I've been working with refugees and immigrants at a large urban community college for thirty years. As an ESL instructor, I find myself in frequent conversations with students dealing with the extreme hardships of leaving homelands they  may never see again while also trying to adjust to the challenges of a new culture and language.

MONEY, FAME & YOUTH

Young people, money and fame

Ask young people about their top life goals and the answer is clear, resounding and a bit worrying: they want to be rich and famous. Worrying for me as an educator, as an adult. To be ambitious is not wrong a priori, of course. I constantly work  at stimulating teenagers' wills to set goals and reach them, to set them high and do their best to pursue them. But I'm also sure that money and fame are not naturally connected to happiness. I am convinced that "money doesn't buy happiness"  is not just a popular saying, but an old truth. This is something my students and I often discuss about but it is not so easy to convince them since they are sent hammering messages persuading them that the opposite is true: money and fame are the keys to happiness.

WATCH THE SUNRISE, DREAM YOUR LIFE, DANCE SHAMELESSLY: SUMMER ASSIGNMENTS FROM AN ITALIAN TEACHER TO HIS STUDENTS GO VIRAL

In the last couple of days, these summer tasks went viral. They were posted by an Italian teacher, Cesare Catà, on his facebook page  and from there they made it to the national press and were spread all over the Net. What's special in them? See it for yourself.  I've translated them for you. Useless to add, I'd sign them myself.

In the mornings, sometimes, go and walk along the seashore in complete solitude: look how the sunlight reflects on it and, thinking about what you most love in life, feel happy.

Try to use all the new words we learnt this year: more things you can say, more things you can think;  and more things you can think, more free you are.

Read as much as you can. But not because you must. Read because the summer inspires adventures and dreams and  reading you feel like flying sparrows. Read because it is the best form of rebellion you have (for good reading advice, ask me)

Avoid all things, situations and people that make you negative or empty: look for stimulating situatuations and the company of friends who can enrich you, understand you and appreciate you for what you are.

THE GOOD AND THE BAD OF BEING A TEACHER

In the latest days I have been writing two very different pieces which contain reflections connected to my job. They are about students and teachers, not about methodologies or technicalities. In fact,  what I am most interested in in my job is the chance we have to build relationships, to communicate and interact with young people. 

The bad or ... they say it is because they are bored

My husband comes into the kitchen, sees my laptop on - I'm writing final reports for the end of the school year - and he just drops there: when you have a moment, google "baby doccia" (Italian for "baby shower"). Why? What is it? I ask, but he takes his coffee and goes away without adding one word more. He knows me well. I immediately stop, whatever I'm doing, and google those words apparently meaningless together. I click on the first link and I'm immediately disturbed by the picture. I don't want to see a video of young people having sex in a toilet! But I start reading the article and it announces a TV programme about teens and sex...at school. Ok, now I understand my husband's suggestion.  I work with teens and he knows how interested I am when it comes to school and education.
This is a shocking report from a woman journalist which will be on a Sky Tg 24. It's not the first one, there have been similar ones recently.  It's the story of a few girls (14-year-olds),  going to a private school in Milan and having sex between lessons in the toilets with any boy who asks them via txt messages. Baby prostitutes, not for need but for their own choice, for fun they say, because lessons are too boring. Not enslaved, nor bullied, nor forced.

GOOD MUSIC, BRIGHTER CHILDREN - BLOG TOUR & GIVEAWAY

About the book

 Good Music Brighter Children is written for parents, educators or anyone who wants to build a bigger, better brain using music. Scientific studies indicate that children introduced to classical music at a young age read earlier and perform better on achievement tests. Adults can also revive tired brain cells using music. This book gives you a step-by-step program that any parent or individual can follow. You’ll discover how introducing your children to good music can accelerate language development, improve math and science skills, enhance physical coordination, strengthen memory and reading retention, and benefit children with learning disabilities. Discover how to choose an instrument and music teacher for your child; how to get your kids to practice and how character traits such as confidence, responsibility, creativity and teamwork are taught when learning a musical instrument. Learn how to introduce your child to the music community and how to appreciate all kinds of music. Last, if you want to advocate for music in your schools, this book gives the ammunition and data to do so. Also includes a 35-page Resource Section on the best music, books, and DVDs for kids.

BACK TO SCHOOL: MAY THE ODDS BE EVER IN OUR FAVOUR!

Back to work, which  in my case is back to school, of course. Honestly, I can't remember what it meant for me as a student. My memories, influenced by the nostalgic mood typical of the middle-age syndrome, makes me recall my teenage self as longing to go back after an endless boring summer. But, perhaps,  I was nothing like that. Maybe I was just like them, my half-resigned, half-bewildered, totally "I'm happy but I mustn't show it" students. Poor kids (they are not exactly kids, but they are to me)! What do we want? Do we want them already alive and kicking after coming back from the summer holidays country,  where night is day and day is night? You know, jetlag can be tough to deal with. 

HOW TO USE BOOKS TO WRITE ACADEMIC ESSAYS

Hello! I'm Eileen Archer and I'm here at FLY HIGH  as Maria Grazia's guest blogger. My post is a short guide for those who use books as part of their academic pieces of work. 

Why should I use books?

To write academically and correctly we must make use of the literature available to us. You must read as much as you possibly can before even starting to write your academic piece. Take notes of each book you have thought interesting and the relation between that and your own forthcoming work. Remember to mark the pages too, so you can come back to ideas later.

Which books?

When it comes to using the information from a book that you have absorbed, been interested in or found highly relevant to your field, you must decide when and where to use it. If there are two books that have the same idea, choose the one that clarifies the point better, and cite that one in your own piece of work. The clearer the idea, the easier it is for you to expand on the point and the easier it is for the reader to follow.

AND, THEN, THEY COME BACK ...

I know,  I've been often very critical to my students here at FLY HIGH! Who can forget my disappointment while in Dublin or Malta on school trips! There are posts here and there about school and about my constant sense of frustration or disillusionment, if you click on the tag school. To be honest, there are also rare ones in which I write about successful moments, lessons or activities, but as I just said, they are pretty rare. 

What I want to discuss today is a part of my job I still feel quite uncomfortable with. To be a teacher includes a very stressful task,  which is to  assess  and evaluate, and that is what makes everything so complicated in terms of relationship. If only I could give my lessons and avoid tests, marks, reports and final decisions that would make my job perfect. Education without evaluation. This must sound irrational or utopian to many of you,  but that would make everything much, much easier, you know. Will the students learn, anyway? I'm sure they will,  somehow.

TEACHING SAROYAN, READING CASSANDRA CLARE

Teaching Saroyan

I’ve been flustered and terribly emotional these last few days. What’s going on? Is that the “getting older” mood? “I’m going soft in my old age”. This is  a quote, but I can’t remember where I heard it. It was a TV movie or series, can’t tell you more.   OK.  Add "has bad memory" to "gets flustered and emotional". 

These last days I have been giving my last lessons to my last year’s students (doesn't that sound really final?) reading them a couple of chapters from The Human Comedy by William Saroyan,  which I had chosen to say good-bye and wishes good life to them. And what happened?  I just couldn’t avoid it: my voice went broken,  my  eyes filled with tears.  Problem is they were all so silent and so focused on me and some girls had tears in their eyes too. Boys? They must be tough, you know.  But they were not giggling, nor being distracted. They looked, let’s say,  surprised?

This has actually hardly ever happened to me before. Not that it was a bad experience, it was just … weird. That’s all. Here are the “guilty” words: