The Impact of Internet Knowledge on College Students

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Impact of Internet Knowledge on College Students
Knowledge is an essential prerequisite that is needed before anybody can conduct any research. “Knowledge is a critical component in social research”CITATION Wei08 p n.p l 1033 (Wei and Zhang n.p). Unlike before where knowledge was concentrated in dusty old books, the past 50 years have represented a paradigm shift in the accumulation of knowledge from people and books to the internet. Today, almost any kind of information can be found on the web, which is simply at the click of a button. The biggest beneficiaries have been researchers and college students who do not have to spend countless hours going through books in the hope of finding something useful. All such data has been digitized, and this has made things easier and faster. Conversely, however, one can argue that college students are a lot lazier than they used to be. Not having to struggle to get access to information has seen an increase in plagiarism and an unwillingness to go beyond what is only on the internet. In light of this, it becomes prudent to understand the exact effects that internet has had on the knowledge of students who are in college. This paper highlights the negative effects of internet use on college students and further, how the internet can be used positively by such students.
BACKGROUND
An increasing number of students are turning to the internet every time they conduct research while even more, course instructors are making internet use compulsory.

The vastness of the internet makes its use entirely different from using conventional research methods such as books and journals. “The net is a tremendous resource that must be used carefully.”CITATION Macnd p n.p l 1033 (MacDonald n.p) Most printed sources have been evaluated and analyzed by experts before being placed in bookshelves and even after. This process is known as peer review, and it is done to enhance the credibility of a source. Even when stocked in libraries, there is a delicate process of organizing and cross-referencing with other books. This is in stark contrast with the internet, which has no set rules. Anyone who wishes may put anything he or she wants on the web with no kind of verification or accreditation required. Depending on how you look at it, this non-regulation can be a good thing or a bad thing. What is not in doubt is that students often rely on the vast amounts of data that is on the internet without stopping to think about the reliability of the data.
LITERATURE REVIEW
The internet is responsible for many things. One of these things is the revolution of computers and communication CITATION Lei12 p n.p l 1033 (Leiner, Cerf and Clark n.p). However, none of those compare to what the internet has done concerning access of data. No other single place has as much information containing so many topics. Today, the internet is considered an informational infrastructure. It has earned the nickname “information highway” as there is a wide variety of content. Due to its vastness and content, some have claimed that it is slowly turning its users into zombies. This has been brought about by the fact that “to be everywhere is to be nowhere.”CITATION Car101 p 1 l 1033 (Carr 1) That although there is so much data on the internet, it also provides so many distractions that it is almost impossible to concentrate on the taskCITATION Car101 p 1 l 1033 (Carr 1). Further, the various interruptions often mean that thinking is scattered and becomes superficial for a majority of the users. Only those who can focus can reap maximum benefits from using the net. The article by Carr also focused on how deep human thought is rather than how fast we can think.
There are many drawbacks to using information that is contained on the internet. For instance, anyone who watches several multimedia presentations is less likely to remember what he saw compared to another person who took his time to either make a presentation or focus on just one. The distractions provided by emails, pop-ups and videos also break the concentration of anyone trying to research or concentrate on a particular study. Trying to multitask by surveying different internet sources often leads to confusion and those who can focus on just one source are more likely to understand it more and betterCITATION Car101 p 2 l 1033 (Carr 2). In countries like China, students form the bulk of internet users. “About 28.8% of the roughly two hundred million internet users were found to be students”CITATION Chi08 p n.p l 1033 (China Internet Network Information Center n.p). The effects mentioned in Carr’s article apply to such a population as they are the most likely to be conducting research. Although internet users vary in age, the most active group of internet users who are students is the younger generation. More often than not, they are the first ones to use the internet for research and rarely rely on books. Further, it is this group of users that is most distracted by non-research related issues. This makes understanding the content and delivering it promptly close to impossible.
The common factor in all the cases above is a division of attentionCITATION Car101 p 3 l 1033 (Carr 3). The mind is naturally drawn to new things, and as a result, anything novel that comes up either on the screen or in our minds will keep us from focusing. With the constant distractions, the mind is unable to form the necessary connection that is required to give any depth or distinctiveness to a person’s thoughts. This ultimately affects what he understands and how he comprehends it. Ask him about the same thing two days later, and the chances are that he recalls very little of what he learned. In this regard, development of knowledge is impeded. The biggest problem that arises when trying to dissuade students from relying heavily on the net as a source of information is that in many cases, there is the illusion that it makes you smarter when it, in fact, does not CITATION Aks15 p 1 l 1033 (Akst 1). Students who consistently use the internet to source for data often “inflate” what they know. There is every chance that they will catch a glimpse of something and extrapolate what they read. This is something that happens more frequently than people think. In a recent study that was conducted by students from Yale University, two groups of volunteers were formed. The researchers allowed only one group to use the internet while the other was not. Questions were posed to the two groups. After that, they were then asked a completely unrelated question and asked to assess their ability to answer the separate the question. The group that had used the internet rated themselves highly despite the fact that they responded to the question in almost the same manner that the other group had. “The net effect of such inflation and self-belief is that people are less likely to admit that they do not know some things and consequently fail to appreciate gaps in their understanding”CITATION Fis15 p 674 l 1033 (Fisher, Goddu and Keil 674).
The issue of internet dependence among students is also a cause for concern. Recent studies have shown that a vast majority of students are entirely dependent on the webCITATION And01 p 21 l 1033 (Anderson 21). This dependency is not only limited to research but things like entertainment and a host of other functions. It, therefore, follows that if they are as dependent as has been discovered, then the internet poses a significant risk for them. Knowledge is not only derived from the comfort of one’s living room, but it is also found in people when they interact. The interaction may be through sports or any other outdoor activity. Unfortunately, for those who spend every minute in front of the computer screen sifting through gigabytes of data, such interaction is limited and consequently, any chance that they have of obtaining knowledge from people goes with it CITATION And01 p 24 l 1033 (Anderson 24). Further studies revealed that ironically, students who have access to the internet are more likely to submit their assignments later than those who use other methods of research. This has been attributed to distractions and an inability to choose which content is best to include in his or her assignment. Distractions are also the leading cause of reduced hours of sleep with some students admitting to getting less than three hours of sleep a night because of the net. The brain requires time to rest and refresh. Without proper hours of sleep, understanding core concepts will be challenging, and ultimately, knowledge will be affected. There have also been cases of people missing meals due to spending more time than is necessary on the net. A single meal may not do much but continually missing meals or eating at irregular hours is unhealthy. Declining grades have been a standard feature of student performance in recent years that have over-indulged on the internet. This is particularly when the student uses the Internet for non-academic purposes.
The phenomenon where an individual is unable to detach him/herself from the Internet has been labeled as the “internet addiction.” It often leads to dysfunctional attitudes, depression, a decline in self-esteem, and a radical personality change. It often arises from an inability to balance between social and private life. It is also common with people who have introvert personalities. “A recent study showed that about 7.2% of the student population is addicted to the internet” CITATION Şen14 p 1387 l 1033 (Şenormancı, Saraçlı and Atasoy 1387). The study found that there is a direct correlation between internet addiction and medical conditions such as depression, insomnia, and a dysfunctional attitude. Therefore, this means that about 7.2% of the student population cannot live without the internet either for research or other purposes. An over-reliance on the web means that the probability of such students conducting research using other methods is highly unlikely and this will take a negative toll on their knowledge levels. Further, the fact that they suffer from certain medical conditions upon the withdrawal of the internet means that they cannot cope in other fields that do not require the internet.
The pressure on students to perform has been so much that some often resort to unfair means such as cheating to obtain and maintain good grades. “The most commonly cited reason for cheating is a desire to excel” CITATION Robnd p n.p l 1033 (Roberts n.p). This is especially familiar with students who have scholarships and are required to maintain a certain GPA to keep the scholarship. Most local schools do not emphasize the importance of original research and seem to accept the ‘copy-paste’ method of doing research that is supplemented with simple paraphrasing. As a result, those who do qualify for international scholarships have a hard time maintaining good grades. This copy-paste method of conducting research has also been brought on by the widespread use of the internet. Many who use it are either too lazy or too afraid to use something that has been tried and tested; books. It is this kind of research coupled with the encouragement from local teachers that has seen many students’ academic grades plummet at international level. Their levels of knowledge focus on or concentrate on the same thing. All that they do is chop it and change it without ever adding anything newCITATION Robnd p n.p l 1033 (Roberts n.p).
It must, however, be pointed out that it is not all doom and gloom when it comes to internet use. Credit must be given where it is due. The invention of the internet has completely revolutionized researchCITATION Jon05 p 3 l 1033 (Jones and Johnson 3). In many colleges, a majority of the students no longer visit the local library physically because most school libraries make all their hard copy materials available online. “Most faculties interviewed felt they spent less time in the library”CITATION Jon05 p 6 l 1033 (Jones and Johnson 6). This has eased the congestion that is experienced in the libraries and ultimately made things easier for the students. The internet is also responsible for helping students keep up with their individual disciplines. Many have subscribed to online journals and are regularly notified of any upcoming seminars or meetings. “Here, they can exchange ideas and thoughts”CITATION Jon05 p 6 l 1033 (Jones and Johnson 6). In this regard, the internet has been a revelation and has contributed to an improvement in student research. This has had a net positive effect his or her knowledge.
Despite all the negative things that the internet has brought, there are many ways that it has been used positively. One such area has to be communication. Communication has been labeled as one of the most important reasons why students use the internet. Even in the day-to-day discussions that are involved when doing research as a group, communication is vitalCITATION Jon09 p 7 l 1033 (Jones and Johnson 7). The exchange of ideas and thoughts is pegged on communication. “The email represents the most basic kind of internet use.”CITATION Pot06 p 2774 l 1033 (Potosky 2774) It is also the most professional. However, with the rise of social media, the email has been relegated to communication that is considered formalCITATION Pot06 p 2776 l 1033 (Potosky 2776). Facebook, WhatsApp, and Twitter have taken over. With the added advantage of features such as creating groups, meetings can even be discussed online and thus include everyone, even those who may not be around.
Social networking has also been a plus of the internet. The net has been responsible for a positive change that is social networking. Today, the average student has access to more people than ever. “Six-in-ten students spent at least two hours a week online engaged in social communication”CITATION Jon09 p 7 l 1033 (Jones and Johnson 7). Again, this has been made possible through social media platforms such as Facebook and Twitter. People can meet online and arrange physical meetings where they can share ideas and thoughts. The best part, however, is that they do not have to. Such exchanges can be made online with people who are half-way across the globe. The ability to connect with other people also presents the chance to be friends and to share a lot more than just issues relating to class or studies. Some have reported that the sight of a new friend request on Facebook boosts their confidenceCITATION Jon09 p 9 l 1033 (Jones and Johnson 9). None of this would be possible without proper knowledge of the internet and sufficient access to it as well. Although internet addiction is not something to be encouraged, students have also found other uses of the web that are very beneficial. Watching YouTube tutorials and do it yourself (DYI) videos has helped many students who confessed that they were able to do the same thing they saw on the internet. “Many students have also created YouTube channels and are earning from such ventures” CITATION Joh16 p n.p l 1033 (Johannson n.p).
CONCLUSION
The invention of the internet has led to several negative effects. Research is an area that has been mostly affected. People have taken to habits of copy pasting and using data that is unverified. Consequently, the resulting projects have been half-baked and convey information that is not accurate disappeared. Internet addiction is also on the rise and people have been known to suffer from medical conditions such as depression whenever they do not have access to the web. Social connections have disappeared and it is no longer possible to have long conversations and physical contact. Social media in the form of Facebook and Twitter has taken over. Like with almost all other things, the internet also has positive effects. There have also been positive impacts of the internet that include ease of communication and improved communication. In general, the negative effects of the internet far outweigh the positive ones.
Works Cited
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