Students and young adults spend significant number of hours on their smart-phones to access social media platforms such as Facebook, Instagram, Snapchat and Youtube etc, but to blame social media for poor performance in examinations or wasting time when the student should be studying is incorrect.
What it real boils down to is self discipline; some students waste their time in watching TV, listening to music, reading books and magazines, gossiping or just simply day dreaming. What bothers parents with the smart phone is that small and handy device and that the student can in incognito access the internet on the phone when they should be studying.
Both the student and the parent should encourage self restraint when they are studying for exams, the parent should not have to monitor the student constantly. The student needs to be given guidance on how much time they should be spending on social media, so that it doesn’t interfere with their studies.
As a clinical psychologist with over 20 years of experience my research and experience as a de-addiction specialist has led me to the following guidelines regarding social media:
During normal school and college days one should not exceed 45 minutes of social media everyday
During exam preparation, one should not spend more than 15-30 minutes per day on social media. This includes all platforms such as Facebook, Youtube, Instagram etc.
The student should know how to “reward” themselves with access to social media when they have completed chapter, subject, etc.
Accessing useful information on the internet to learn and prepare for exams should not be mistaken for wasting time on social media by the parents.
Exceeding these guidelines leads to social media addiction, which is no different from other forms of addiction.
Research shows that the attention span of normal students is of 50 minutes. Hence my advice is that after every 45-50 minutes of studying take a break of 10-15 minutes. In which you can do a relaxing activity such as stretching exercises, yoga, meditation, reading a book etc. Don’t relax by going to Facebook. My advice to students who are studying for exams regarding social media is as follows:
Remove the “Facebook” app from your phone. So every time you need to check Facebook from your phone, you need to open the browser and log in. Reinstall the app after your exams are over
Restrict yourself to 15-30 minutes of Facebook every day, and only go to Facebook when you need to reward yourself for a set of activities completed. If you target is to study 8 hours in a day, then only go to Facebook, once you have completed those 8 hours of study.
De-activate Facebook during this period
Install getcoldturkey.com on your device, this will limit the time you can access Facebook
If you feel that you don’t have self control when it comes to Facebook and other social media, hand over you phone to someone else for the period that you are studying
As a student you need to understand that by wasting your crucial pre-exam time of social media, and by not preparing for the exams, you are only cheating yourself, and nobody else. You can pick up your social media friendships from where you left off after you are done with your exams.
More about Dr. Prerna Kohli
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About Dr. Prerna Kohli
Dr. Kohli believes that “You can talk with a close friend or relative about what’s troubling you; but it’s not the same as professionally-trained experienced psychologist who knows exactly what kind of help you need.”
She is a 100 women Achievers Award Winner (2016) from the Honorable President of India, Shri Pranab Mukherjee.
Dr. Prerna Kohli is a Clinical Psychologist, a Public Speaker, a Workshop Facilitator and a Holistic Practitioner. She offers Heart-based workshops and lectures that focus on Life Balance, Self-awareness and Inner Peace. Dedicated to sharing her knowledge and compassion with others, Prerna blends intuitive wisdom with solid understanding, creating a powerful holistic approach, specializing in the areas of Emotional change.
Dr. Prerna Kohli is a leading Psychologist in India with over 20 years of experience and has been providing families, individuals, parents and children counseling on being happy.
