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English School Based Assessment
CANDIDATE NAME:
CANDIDATE NUMBER:
CENTRE NAME: Layman E. Scott Sr. High School
CENTRE NUMBER:
YEAR OF EXAMINATION:
TEACHER: Mr. Hassan Basarally
SUBJECT: English A and English B
TOPIC: Negative Influence of Social Media
TERRITORY: Cayman Islands
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Table of Contents
Plan of Investigation ................. 3
Artefact 1 .................................. 4
Artefact 2 ................................. 6
Artefact 3 ................................. 10
Reflection 1 ............................. 14
Reflection 2 ............................. 15
Reflection 3 ............................ 16
Group Written Report ............ 17
Written Report Artefact 1 ...... 19
Written Report Artefact 2 ...... 21
Written Report Artefact 3 ...... 24
Plan of Oral Presentation ....... 25
Bibliography .......................... 26
Question Score
Plan of Investigation (5 marks) 5
Participation Measure (5 marks) 5
Quality of Group Activity (10 marks) 10
Written Report (10 marks) 10
Reflection (5 marks) 5
Oral Presentation (10 marks) 10
Total (45 marks) 45
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Plan of Investigation
The theme is “Negative Influences of Social Media”, and the subtopic is
“Effects on Mental Health”. This was chosen because I have witnessed
classmates being depressed and anxious due to their social media posts. The
expected benefits to an English student are explaining literary devices,
persuasive speaking, and summary writing. The artefacts will be an article, a
poem, and a song. Reputable websites, newspapers, and textbooks will be
sources. Summary writing will be developed in the Written Report, explaining
literary devices will be improved in the Reflections, and improving persuasive
speaking will be achieved in the Oral Presentation.
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Artefact 1
Title: Social Media and Mental Health
Author: Lawrence Robinson and Melinda Smith, M.A.
Year of Publication: 2023
Source:
https://www.helpguide.org/articles/mental-health/social-media-and-mental-healt
h.htm#:~:text=The%20negative%20aspects%20of%20social%20media&text=H
owever%2C%20multiple%20studies%20have%20found,about%20your%20life
%20or%20appearance
The role social media plays in mental health
Human beings are social creatures. We need the companionship of others to
thrive in life, and the strength of our connections has a huge impact on our
mental health and happiness. Being socially connected to others can ease stress,
anxiety, and depression, boost self-worth, provide comfort and joy, prevent
loneliness, and even add years to your life. On the flip side, lacking strong
social connections can pose a serious risk to your mental and emotional health.
In today’s world, many of us rely on social media platforms such as Facebook,
Twitter, Snapchat, YouTube, and Instagram to find and connect with each other.
While each has its benefits, it’s important to remember that social media can
never be a replacement for real-world human connection. It requires in-person
contact with others to trigger the hormones that alleviate stress and make you
feel happier, healthier, and more positive. Ironically for a technology that’s
designed to bring people closer together, spending too much time engaging with
social media can actually make you feel more lonely and isolated—and
exacerbate mental health problems such as anxiety and depression.
If you’re spending an excessive amount of time on social media and feelings of
sadness, dissatisfaction, frustration, or loneliness are impacting your life, it may
be time to re-examine your online habits and find a healthier balance.
The positive aspects of social media
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While virtual interaction on social media doesn’t have the same psychological
benefits as face-to-face contact, there are still many positive ways in which it
can help you stay connected and support your wellbeing.
Social media enables you to:
Communicate and stay up to date with family and friends around the world.
Find new friends and communities; network with other people who share
similar interests or ambitions.
Join or promote worthwhile causes; raise awareness on important issues.
Seek or offer emotional support during tough times.
Find vital social connection if you live in a remote area, for example, or have
limited independence, social anxiety, or are part of a marginalized group.
Find an outlet for your creativity and self-expression.
Discover (with care) sources of valuable information and learning.
The negative aspects of social media
Since it’s a relatively new technology, there’s little research to establish the
long-term consequences, good or bad, of social media use. However, multiple
studies have found a strong link between heavy social media and an increased
risk for depression, anxiety, loneliness, self-harm, and even suicidal thoughts.
Social media may promote negative experiences such as:
Inadequacy about your life or appearance. Even if you know that images you’re
viewing on social media are manipulated, they can still make you feel insecure
about how you look or what’s going on in your own life. Similarly, we’re all
aware that other people tend to share just the highlights of their lives, rarely the
low points that everyone experiences. But that doesn’t lessen those feelings of
envy and dissatisfaction when you’re scrolling through a friend’s airbrushed
photos of their tropical beach holiday or reading about their exciting new
promotion at work.
Fear of missing out (FOMO) and social media addiction. While FOMO has
been around far longer than social media, sites such as Facebook and Instagram
seem to exacerbate feelings that others are having more fun or living better lives
than you are. The idea that you’re missing out on certain things can impact your
self-esteem, trigger anxiety, and fuel even greater social media use, much like
an addiction. FOMO can compel you to pick up your phone every few minutes
to check for updates, or compulsively respond to each and every alert—even if
that means taking risks while you’re driving, missing out on sleep at night, or
prioritizing social media interaction over real world relationships.
Isolation. A study at the University of Pennsylvania found that high usage of
Facebook, Snapchat, and Instagram increases rather decreases feelings of
loneliness. Conversely, the study found that reducing social media usage can
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actually make you feel less lonely and isolated and improve your overall
wellbeing.
Depression and anxiety. Human beings need face-to-face contact to be mentally
healthy. Nothing reduces stress and boosts your mood faster or more effectively
than eye-to-eye contact with someone who cares about you. The more you
prioritize social media interaction over in-person relationships, the more you’re
at risk for developing or exacerbating mood disorders such as anxiety and
depression.
Cyberbullying. About 10 percent of teens report being bullied on social media
and many other users are subjected to offensive comments. Social media
platforms such as Twitter can be hotspots for spreading hurtful rumors, lies, and
abuse that can leave lasting emotional scars.
Self-absorption. Sharing endless selfies and all your innermost thoughts on
social media can create an unhealthy self-centeredness and distance you from
real-life connections.
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Artefact 2
Title: Mirrorland / Will I ever be enough?
Author: Funmi Lijadu
Year of Publication: 2018
Source:
https://funmilijadu.com/blog/2018/8/13/a-poem-about-how-social-media-impact
s-mental-health
Mirrorland/ Will I ever be enough? by Funmi Lijadu
My bed
You’re just like the ocean.
Well, not really
Just overwhelming,
Forever awash
With tears overdue.
You creak and heave
At the weight of me
Tormented
Things that were said.
But you’re so uncomplaining in your motions
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Like the sun bowing down gracefully
Making way for the moon.
My altar of self-loathing
Soft, unforgiving,
Accommodating yet hostile
I know you can’t keep the thoughts from me
I writhe and writhe in these suffocating sheets
Till I’m weak and drift carelessly into sleep
I hate to pull myself from you
You’re my escape
A bitter truth.
Harsher truths find me
When I leave you
Embarking on journeys less comforting
(You’re the only one that stretches
To make space for me)
Mirrorland is never kind
Presenting myself to the one sided pane
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Gazing wistfully at the luminous rectangular mirror
I hold in my palm for too long
Yes. scroll and see those fleeting visions
Flashing, dazzling, reflecting in your eyes
Do you know how my eyes water for you?
Focused on you in the unforgiving dark
I follow, I envy, I like, I like, I dislike, I unlike.
Yes! Today
you can buy this
and be happy?
Happy, until you see that post
Convinces you you’re not enough
(You’ll be back tomorrow!)
Wish we could all be hashtag ‘blessed’
Wonder how many ‘best lives’ truly exist
What horrors are hiding behind the screen?
Late-night-thinking of my next plot to make them jealous
A harmless little show
Something to remind them that I’m here.
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(even though I’m drowning)
(should be sleeping but can’t)
Mirrorland oppresses me,
Reminding me of everything
I don’t have
I need to be.
Everything I haven’t been
I keep going back
Pathetic.
(like a moth to a flame, you never learn)
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Artefact 3
Title: Beautiful
Author: Christina Aguilera
Year of Publication: 2022
Source: Christina Aguilera - Beautiful (2022 Version)
Don't look at me
Every day is so wonderful
Then suddenly it's hard to breathe
Now and then I get insecure
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From all the pain
I'm so ashamed
I am beautiful no matter what they say
Words can't bring me down
I am beautiful in every single way
Yes, words can't bring me down, oh no
So don't you bring me down today
To all your friends you're delirious
So consumed in all your doom
Trying hard to fill the emptiness
The pieces gone, left the puzzle undone
Is that the way it is?
You are beautiful no matter what they say
Words can't bring you down, oh no
You are beautiful in every single way
Yes, words can't bring you down, oh no
So don't you bring me down today
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No matter what we do
(No matter what we do)
No matter what we say
(No matter what we say)
We're the song inside the tune (Yeah)
Full of beautiful mistakes
And everywhere we go
(And everywhere we go)
The sun will always shine
(The sun will always, always shine)
And tomorrow we might wake on the other side
'Cause we are beautiful no matter what they say
Yes, words won't bring us down, no, no
We are beautiful in every single way
Yes, words can't bring us down, oh, no
So don't you bring me down today
Ooh-oh-oh, yeah
Don't you bring me down today
Yeah, ooh
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Don't you bring me down
Ooh, today
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Reflection 1
Before starting the SBA, I knew little of social media’s negative impact
on teenagers’ mental health. The article “Social Media and Mental Health” talks
about how excessive use of social media can be damaging to one’s mental
health in several ways. I learned that social media could result in depression,
anxiety, isolation, social media addiction, and inadequacy about your life or
appearance. The poem “Mirrorland / Will I ever be enough?” expresses the
persona’s depression, low self-esteem and social media addiction. I felt
sympathetic as she was a victim of others’ opinions. The song “Beautiful”
discusses the negative body image social media has caused, by representations
of what should be “the perfect body” and the idea that you should get plastic
surgery to be perfect. I learned many impressionable children are affected by
today’s media and are subject to self-comparison, in turn damaging their
self-esteem and overall mental health.
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Reflection 2
The article “Social Media and Mental Health” uses statistics in “10
percent of teens report being bullied on social media.” This informs the reader
that a significant number of teens are negatively affected by cyberbullying and
creates urgency and empathy for the problem to be resolved. In the poem
“Mirrorland / Will I ever be enough?” a simile is used in “My bed, you’re just
like the ocean.” This shows her lying in bed, seemingly drowning and cannot
get up due to her depression. It shows the helplessness due to the weight of
emotions. The song “Beautiful” uses a metaphor “The pieces gone, left the
puzzle undone.” With the puzzle being someone’s mental health, being undone
refers to feelings of emptiness social media can cause to one’s mental health and
self-esteem due to addiction. It can damage someone’s mental health that they
are unable to feel ‘whole’ again.
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Reflection 3
Social media could do more harm than good especially when overused. I
now understand that there are several ways social media can negatively affect
someone, such as depression and worsening insecurity by self-comparison. The
SBA process created a better understanding of metaphors and other literary
devices and expanded my vocabulary. This has helped me to express myself
more confidently and creatively. I also learned to make consistent efforts in my
work as I had a responsibility for my own deadlines and contributions to my
group. I once compared myself to models on social media platforms such as
Instagram and TikTok, but now I realize that I do not need to look like anyone
in order to be beautiful. I now aim to work with my school’s Peer Counsellors to
help other students recognize the negativity spread throughout social media and
its impact on one’s mental health.
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Group Written Report
The topic chosen for our English SBA was "Negative Influences of Social
Media". The subtopics were "Cyberbullying", “Social Media and Mental
Health” and "Social Media and Crime". The group had six artifacts which were
easy to find since the topic gathered much attention since the pandemic. We met
and selected artefacts from the group, identified the issues in each, then planned
the report and wrote a draft. It was submitted for feedback by the teacher and
then further edited. The artefacts chosen were “Internet War” by Hailey Ngo
(2105), “Cyberbullying a Top Concern on Safer Internet Day” (2022), and
“Cyberbullying” (n.d.). They were chosen as they warned us about spending too
much time on social media at the expense of life’s real priorities.
The poem “Internet War” tells that cyberbullying is a very toxic thing to
deal with. We learnt that it is usually unknown if someone is being cyberbullied,
victims do not let other people know due to embarrassment. The article
“Cyberbullying a Top Concern on Safer Internet Day” tells us that most people
think that cyberbullying is a big problem due to experiencing it. What we learnt
is that people our age, 15 to 24, use the internet the most out of all age groups. It
is disheartening that people have become fearful of expressing themselves
online due to cyberbullying. The poster “Cyberbullying” tells us ways that we
can deal with cyberbullies such as blocking them and saving messages. Also, is
that it is better to ask for help than going it alone.
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After learning about the topic, we decided to create a social media page
of inspiration for teenagers/adults that are having mental breakdowns or who are
even being harassed online. We need to address the rampant cases of
cyberbullying, decrease in self-esteem, and decrease in academic performance.
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Written Report Artefact 1
Title: Internet War
Author: Hailey Ngo
Year of Publication: 2015
Source: https://hellopoetry.com/poem/1252949/internet-war/
I look online
at this virtual world
we all live in today.
And I find a hidden war
that never seems to end.
Cruel words hidden as bombs.
Barbaric comments hidden as guns.
As I walk through this torn battlefield,
with blood spilled everywhere,
I find not a single page
with peace instead of war.
People seem to become so mean
just because it isn't face to face.
People turn into monsters,
monsters that bite and ****.
It's like people seem to think
their words have no impact,
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their message is just a joke.
But this war on the Internet
is more real than before.
There are crying people,
bullied people,
who catch these bullets
that people have sent,
and decide that maybe life isn't worth living anymore.
There are wounded people,
wanting for just some love,
only to find hate and anger
written wherever they go
in this Internet war today.
This war may be virtual,
but it's real and alive
even as we speak.
Some people wonder why
suicides are so often.
Some people wonder why
teens are becoming so depressed.
All they have to do is open
their computer and their minds
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to this Internet war we have today.
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Written Report Artefact 2
Title: Cyberbullying A Top Concern on Safer Internet Day
Author: Unkown
Year of Publication: 2022
Source: https://news.un.org/en/story/2022/02/1111512
In the lead up to Safer Internet Day this Tuesday, 8 February, the UN
agency polled its followers on Twitter and LinkedIn to find out what
worries them most about children being active online.
Tweet URL
We all have a role to play in ensuring the #OnlineSafety of our children.
Here’s how you can take action on your role this #SaferInternetDay
https://t.co/WiEu3cvJxY pic.twitter.com/8PUC4xpBVZ
Int’l Telecommunication Union
ITU
They were asked to rank three common online fears: cyberbullying, data
protection lapses, and the threat of grooming, which refers to abusers
deliberately exploiting children online.
Roughly 40 per cent listed cyberbullying as the chief concern, with the two
other choices at 27 per cent and 26 per cent respectively.
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Youth online
Respondents also cited other fears that were not featured in the poll, such
as the risk of excessive screentime, or whether children are aware of
mechanisms for reporting online threats.
That cyberbullying emerged as the top concern is hardly surprising,
considering how the internet permeates nearly every facet of life.
Young people spend more time online than the rest of the population, ITU
said. an estimated 71 per cent of people aged 15 to 24 using the Internet,
compared to just 57 per cent for all other age groups.
The Internet has also evolved over time, giving rise to the emergence of new
threats, making the protection of children and youth online ever more
critical.
Targeting ‘toxic’ language
ITU recalled that the problem of cyberbullying inspired Gitanjali Rao,
TIME magazine’s first-ever Kid of the Year, to use technology to tackle the
issue.
Ms. Rao, now 16, conceptualized Kindly, an open-source API (application
programming interface) that uses machine learning algorithms to detect
“toxic” language in text messages, emails, or social media posts before they
are sent.
Speaking to UN News last November, she described it as like “the
spellcheck of bullying.”
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Children receive instantaneous feedback on their draft messages, thus
allowing them to reconsider or modify what they have written. As the
Kindly website puts it, the goal is to “end cyberbullying one message at a
time.”
A kinder, safer internet
Kindly is the result of a collaboration between Ms. Rao and the UN
children’s agency, UNICEF, which is developing it as a Digital Public Good.
The ITU has several programmes that address cyberbullying, including a
game for younger children, and training for children, young people,
parents, carers and educators.
UNICEF has also created an online resource that brings together
specialists, international cyberbullying and child protection experts, and
teamed up with Facebook, Instagram, TikTok and Twitter, to answer
questions and offer advice.
Written Report Artefact 3
Title: Cyberbullying
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Author: Unkown
Year of Publication: Unkown
Source:
https://thinkingtoys.ie/products/cyber-bullying-beat-it-now-poster-set
Plan of Oral Presentation
Topic: Social Media
Genre: Speech
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Language Strategies: Examples, statistics, anecdotes.
Sources: Hellopoetry.com, news.un.gov
Bibliography
Title: Social Media and Mental Health
Author: Lawrence Robinson and Melinda Smith, M.A.
28
Year of Publication: 2023
Source:
https://www.helpguide.org/articles/mental-health/social-media-and-mental-healt
h.htm#:~:text=The%20negative%20aspects%20of%20social%20media&text=H
owever%2C%20multiple%20studies%20have%20found,about%20your%20life
%20or%20appearance
Title: Mirrorland / Will I ever be enough?
Author: Funmi Lijadu
Year of Publication: 2018
Source:
https://funmilijadu.com/blog/2018/8/13/a-poem-about-how-social-media-impact
s-mental-health
Title: Beautiful
Author: Christina Aguilera
Year of Publication: 2022
Source: https://youtu.be/7kEwGXLdbZ8
