Participant Spotlight: Brayden Taylor
We are pleased to share an essay from SEUT Essay Challenge participant Brayden Anthony Taylor, a student at Tuscola High School. In “Technology: Crutch or Curse?” Brayden delivers a candid critique of modern technology’s addictive grip, especially on students, and questions the societal systems that make it nearly impossible to live without constant digital reliance. Drawing on personal experiences, he calls for cultural change, accountability from tech companies, and a return to skills and focus that technology has eroded.
You can read Zan’s essay below:
An undeniably brilliant man once said, “The Industrial Revolutions and their consequences have been a disaster for the human race.” That man was Theodore J. Kaczynski (A.K.A, the Unabomber). While his actions were certainly reprehensible (and he himself was something of a prick), he was not wrong about this. For all the good that technology can or could bring, it has also brought with it no end of negatives. In our modern times, we have become (much like drug addicts) inseparable from our technology and (in both our jobs and in our daily lives) wholly and utterly reliant on it, and we must attempt to resolve this before it becomes truly untenable.
Our society, particularly (but not exclusively) the youth of our society, are, frankly, addicted to technology. This is through no great fault of their own (even the best of us fall prey to such vices), the truth remains that they cannot quite quit, even if they wanted to. I have witnessed addiction (my grandfather died from his alcoholism, my father went to prison for selling and consuming various drugs, my mother can’t quit smoking for neither love nor money, etc), so trust me when I say that the people of today are well and truly addicted. Again, however, this is not really their fault. Technology is, by design, inherently addictive. The companies pumping out these phones, apps, games, etc could not care less about helping people, although that is what they will claim. All they care about… is profit. For that purpose, nothing is more effective than addiction. It is a physical need at this point for consumers to engage with their products, mindlessly and unceasingly.
This is not the worst of it, however. Some may argue that abstinence from technology or simple mental resilience should be enough to protect someone from the pervasive nature of such technology, but, while some may be able to pull this off for some time, the truth is that these plans are rarely effective for long and, in many cases, technology is not an option. In our modern world, if one wishes to be a part of the system, they require certain technology. Cars, for instance, are nearly essential if one wishes to travel any significant distance. Even if one is only traveling within their own city, the alternatives (due to lobbying and propaganda by car companies along with many other socio-economic factors) are few and far between. Public transportation used to be incredible, but now no one uses it. Most cities used to be very walkable, but now trekking from one side to the other in New York would take a day or more. I hope you get the point by now. Cell phones are another example. Sure, one could send a letter or use a landline, but those are both inefficient and unreliable, as well as useless in an emergency. Cell phones are so convenient, and, therefore, everyone has one on them at all times, if they are necessary or not. Not only are many people required to carry and utilize technology for much of their work, many individuals are finding themselves incapable of basic tasks because their phone or other piece of technology always did it for them.
Take, for instance, schools. In my experience (and in the experience of many of my teachers), technology is one of, if not the, greatest hurdle to overcome in education. I, for one, leave my phone in my locker and refuse to use much of the available technology, but even I tend to type all of my papers. My fellow students, on the other hand, are ot so disciplined. They cheat on nearly every test, steal the answers to homework, and are never without at least one device. AI is probably the worst tool because it does everything for them as opposed to just giving them the answer. The result is obvious. The majority of my peers (though not all), are borderline illiterate, incapable of simple mathematics, and lacking an attention span longer than five minutes, and my class is one of the better ones at Tuscola. I’m tired of having to explain simple concepts and words (such as a gerund or “villainy”), teach famous pieces of history (such as the Trail of Tears or the Battle of Blair Mountain), and be the only person in an advanced math class who knew how to do long division. All of which have actually happened to me. I am not vastly more intelligent than my fellows; I just have the mental fortitude to resist the call of my phone. The sad thing is, though, that I imagine it will only get worse.
We have to address these problems now, not later. My nine year old sister can barely read at a second grade level, and she is one of the best in her class. My classmates were utterly appalled when I accidently left my phone in my 8th hour class and then were genuinely upset when I waited until that hour the next day to retrieve it.I have one, maybe two, peers in my school who can read and compute on the same level as me. If all of that is not indicative of a greater problem, then I don’t know what is. We absolutely must address this somehow. Our government in Illinois is (for once) attempting to help by passing legislation, but (as it tends to be around here) I doubt it will work fully or for long. What we need is a major cultural shift. We need to hold companies accountable for their predatory practices, we need or teachers and students to hold our schools accountable, and we need to renounce our reliance on technology so that we can reach our natural potential. I do not see myself being capable of such persuasion, but I have hope, at the very least.
