ATAR Notes: Forum

VCE Stuff => Victorian Education Discussion => Topic started by: QueenDemetria on January 07, 2017, 03:08:45 pm

Title: Social Networking during year 12
Post by: QueenDemetria on January 07, 2017, 03:08:45 pm
Hi guys,

 I'm going into year 12 this year and just wanted to ask a question. Do you guys think I should deactivate my social networking apps like Facebook and Instagram to focus on my studies more this year? I don't want to become a hermit, but I feel like it will keep me from getting distracted throughout the year. What do you guys think? What worked for you guys in year 12? I'm not sure what to do now.

I'm thinking to only to deactivate my accounts this year and when i finish school to open them again.

Thanks guys! Your opinions would be appreciated.


Title: Re: Social Networking during year 12
Post by: Aaron on January 07, 2017, 03:12:28 pm
I don't think so. It's important to retain some sort of normal life in addition to your studies.
Title: Re: Social Networking during year 12
Post by: RuiAce on January 07, 2017, 03:30:29 pm
Tbh, I didn't deactivate until it was the time to prepare for the final exams. If anything, Facebook HELPED me in that I could always contact my friends if any of us needed assistance.

The distraction factor only became significant towards the end where I was already out of it.
Title: Re: Social Networking during year 12
Post by: HopefulLawStudent on January 07, 2017, 03:43:05 pm
Tbh there is no one size fits all solution.

I deleted facebook completely (deactivating it had about the same impact on me as logging out for some reason  ::)) but like that worked for me because most of my socialising I do in person as opposed to via facebook so like the loss wasn't that substantial. By comparison some of my friends heard me do it, and decided they wanted to do it too and I think the record among my friend group was a total of 3 days before they decided they "needed" facebook in their lives because that's how they primarily socialised, made plans to meet and chatted up their crushes.

Looking back, I don't think it was essential that I delete facebook (like I probably would have been fine had I not but I wanted to remove the temptation completely) and I know a whole bunch of kids who neither deleted nor deactivated their facebook accounts and they ended up doing pretty well in their VCE so tbh it's completely and utterly up to you and what you think is best for you.

EDIT: Want to be clear here, I'm not condoning a "study, don't socialise for 9 months" approach to VCE; I'm of the belief that maintaining a balance between your social life and your academic life is essential though it's up to you to figure out a way to strike a balance that works for you cos no one else can do it for you.
Title: Re: Social Networking during year 12
Post by: Coffee on January 07, 2017, 06:32:55 pm
I didn't because my school used Facebook to keep in touch with students, upload notes/missed work, discussion, etc. Either way though, I don't believe in deleting social media for Year 12.

If you find yourself getting distracted this is a learning opportunity for you to develop some discipline rather than avoiding the issue altogether. Year 12 also isn't the most important year of your life. Later there'll be uni and work and you'll need to learn how to balance this with your social life. I recommend Strict Workflow for Chrome which I used in Year 12. You can set a time for 'work' and 'play' and you can choose which websites to block during your working time. :)
Title: Re: Social Networking during year 12
Post by: K888 on January 07, 2017, 08:36:27 pm
I kept all my social media during year 12, facebook, instagram, snapchat, etc.
I don't think it really had a negative impact on my schooling at all. Sure, maybe at times I spent a bit too much time on facebook when I should have been studying, or I misused my frees from time to time, but I probably would have done the same even if I didn't have social media...also I think the cute pics of dogs made it worthwhile ;)

Plus, it can be a great chance for you to learn some self-discipline, and if you do find it too distracting just turn off your phone! You can also install extensions on chrome that let you block websites for a certain amount of time, etc etc.
Oh, and your year level will probably have a facebook group, and it's great to be a part of that - very useful for reminding you about events and also seeing some good memes :P

Have some faith in yourself and your ability to focus on the task at hand - that way it isn't necessary to completely ditch social media :) If you do decide that you need to step away for a bit, log off/uninstall the apps off your phone!
Title: Re: Social Networking during year 12
Post by: sweetiepi on January 07, 2017, 09:32:07 pm
I kept all the socials throughout last year, however I did learn to shut them out when I needed too. However there were absolutely times where I did procrastinate a ton on the social media, but sometimes a little break from homework/revision is well worth it. Just make sure it isn't consuming your life! :)
Title: Re: Social Networking during year 12
Post by: jamonwindeyer on January 08, 2017, 12:14:38 am
Just a little note on this topic, you can download apps to block certain websites while you study! This one for Mac is called SelfControl, and there are definitely others that work with Windows and/or specific browsers. Essentially, you tell the thing what sites to block, and you literally cannot get on for a specified amount of time. So at the beginning of your study session, set a 3 hour block, and away you go.

Note that there is literally no way to break these blocks (unless you are super computer savvy). For the one I listed above, no browsers work, restarting your Mac doesn't work, and uninstalling the app doesn't help (and might block you from the sites permanently, gulp). So even though it sounds like a light restriction, it's not. If you have the determination to click 'block' at the start of every study session, you will never have trouble with procrastination. Plus it means you can still do research on other sites, which is nice ;

Edit: Woops, this was mentioned above too, sorry K888!

But yeah, I kept all my socials. And a Youtube account (probably big mistake). I did fine, and you will too; no reason to suck the fun out of VCE if social media is a way for you to keep some sanity and connections ;D
Title: Re: Social Networking during year 12
Post by: Swagadaktal on January 08, 2017, 12:27:00 pm
Aha yeah gonna further affirm this. I kept all my social media, especially my snapchat where i made regular stories that some of my friends thoroughly enjoyed, and others who claimed they loathed but I know deep inside they loved it. I also replied almost instantaneously on facebook (that was probs a bit excessive) and my test marks were just fine :)

I never understood why someone would feel the need to deactivate facebook unless there's personal reasons (ie drama or something during yr 12) but other than that - you can spare the 30-1 hr (worst case scenario) a day on facebook alone without their education being jeopardised. If you think that spending that much time a day would seriously harm your test marks then i would probably take a step back and analyse your study habits. (not assuming anything here but if this is the case - > )
Title: Re: Social Networking during year 12
Post by: Elleeen on January 08, 2017, 12:39:55 pm
I never understood why someone would feel the need to deactivate facebook unless there's personal reasons (ie drama or something during yr 12)
This is the exact and only reason I deactivated my Facebook in late October through 'til after my last exam.
I personally don't think it's necessary to deactivate your social media accounts, but it's really up to you as an individual and how you manage your time and your own willpower. I definitely don't think you need to deactivate them before September/October though, because I used Facebook often as a learning resource to communicate with classmates, and we even had a group page for some subjects where we shared relevant photos/notes from class, etc.

So I wouldn't put it down as a definite rule for succeeding in year 12, but it's something to consider based on your own situation.
Title: Re: Social Networking during year 12
Post by: strawberries on January 08, 2017, 01:18:12 pm
I didn't really use social media and I feel like it was a negative. Even without social media there are other distractions anyway.

But it differs for most people so yeah  :) most people I know says that Facebook and stuff helped
Title: Re: Social Networking during year 12
Post by: spectroscopy on January 08, 2017, 05:17:29 pm
i feel like i might be one of the few people who used social media very heavily and as a primary form of communication AND deactivated for most of year 12.

did it help? The short answer for me is yes. I would log back in very often so i could organise meet ups/talk to people etc. but the big thing for me was the fact that when facebook is deactivated i dont have to worry about replying to people or missing anything. if something is important people will just text me. it really helped me when it came to things like practice essays where i would go home - log onto facebook for a bit - then deactivate and study for the rest of the night, eventually logging back in and then resuming normal activities when i had downtime again LOL it sounds kinda weird and annoying to deactivate instead of log out but it worked for me. if i could go back in time i wouldnt do it again thgouh, i missed out on a few party invites & social things where people would deal out invites and shit on facebook but because i deactivated i would get missed, until i saw them at school a couple days before the party and they said "spectroscopy do you need to crash at mine after my party?" and I would be like "whuuuut what party" and then we realised what happened and i decided to stop deactivating facebook after that happened LOL

moral of the story: dont deactivate, just turn off messenger notifications.
Title: Re: Social Networking during year 12
Post by: wyzard on January 08, 2017, 06:05:47 pm
Hi guys,

 I'm going into year 12 this year and just wanted to ask a question. Do you guys think I should deactivate my social networking apps like Facebook and Instagram to focus on my studies more this year? I don't want to become a hermit, but I feel like it will keep me from getting distracted throughout the year. What do you guys think? What worked for you guys in year 12? I'm not sure what to do now.

I'm thinking to only to deactivate my accounts this year and when i finish school to open them again.

Thanks guys! Your opinions would be appreciated.

Deactivating your social media is sure taking things a bit to the extreme. I know it can be really distracting, feeling the constant need to check out Facebook, Instagram etc. for any updates so we don't get left out on anything.

Fortunately you don't need to go the extreme length of deactivating your account, you can download some apps like SelfControl or Freedom to lock you down to connect to any form of social media while you're working. It's also a good practice to cultivate the habit to only check social media at certain times a day, like only at night.

Pretty sure your phone has social media apps too, so a great way to avoid distraction is to turn off all notifications, which is what I did. I only check my social media during study breaks or when I'm just chilling and not working.

If all those doesn't work and you feel like you're deeply addicted to social media, you might want to have the 'cold turkey' treatment. Turn off all social media for a month or so, and train yourself not to constantly feel the need to check on it. You'll find that life goes on as normal without social media, maybe even better.

Remember, social media is not really a bad thing, just need to use it in moderation :P
Title: Re: Social Networking during year 12
Post by: brenden on January 08, 2017, 06:14:11 pm
Well if you think about it, social media is a fucking poison :P. Beyond what's actually quite practical for life (i.e., instant messaging instead of calling someone's homephone like you would 30 years ago), things like the newsfeed is pointless. Instagram is entirely pointless. "Oh did you see Lala's photo?!"

You didn't see the photo? Big deal. You might feel like you've missed out on something, but that's the fear that makes social media successful. Missing the Facebook newsfeed? Oh well. If someone's in a relationship you'll probably find out at school the next day.

The good news is that you can keep Facebook Messenger when you deactivate. This is the ideal situation but obviously if your school is using Facebook Groups to communicate it's a different story.

I wouldn't recommend it for Year 12, I'd recommend it for the rest of your life :P.

NOTE: This is all coming off the back of me going up to the Murray River for a while over New Years and I had no Internet or reception, which meant I was Facebook-free. It was honestly glorious. Loved my life. Going to deactivate Facebook and keep Messenger in all likelihood.
Title: Re: Social Networking during year 12
Post by: HopefulLawStudent on January 08, 2017, 08:58:00 pm
ie drama

What is facebook without a good dose of drama?
Title: Re: Social Networking during year 12
Post by: QueenDemetria on January 09, 2017, 11:35:49 am
Thanks for all your help guys!

I think i will keep my social media accounts  ;)
Title: Re: Social Networking during year 12
Post by: jamonwindeyer on January 09, 2017, 11:40:16 am
Thanks for all your help guys!

I think i will keep my social media accounts  ;)

That way you can keep up with ATAR Notes on all our social media accounts #likeforlike ;)
Title: Re: Social Networking during year 12
Post by: Rathin on January 09, 2017, 05:39:31 pm
This is the way I do it..I have only kept Facebook (only messenger app) and Whats app but I have kept the notifications off so I dont get distracted and only check the social media when I HAVE TIME. Also I agree with brenden that social media such a snapchat and Instragram is completely useless..but thats personal preference.
Title: Re: Social Networking during year 12
Post by: biancaF on February 28, 2017, 07:37:27 pm
I was recently introduced to the Pomodoro method and went seeking a tool that could help me focus without being intrusive. A way that can enable me to work on Mac while at the same time block access to Apps and block specific websites on chrome or safari –this article is just enough of a tool to do the trick without being obnoxious or unnecessarily complex.