Over the last decade or so – and especially since COVID sent everyone online – the internet has become an essential part of the teaching and learning process. And while the internet has made information more accessible to all students, it has also created distracting behaviors.

Ms. Emma Doerfler, an English teacher at Jesuit High School Sacramento, thinks that students have become attached to the internet because of how easily it entices them, becoming an integral role in both their academic and social lives. 

“[The internet is] really easy to become addicted to because it’s so easy to access,” Ms. Doerfler said. “Because we have our phones with us all the time, and because we use the internet so much for work and school, it’s just something that’s always present so it’s really easy to be reliant on it.”

Jesuit’s Information Technology (IT) assistant Mr. Jared Bercea has seen the disciplinary issues many students experience because of their addiction to popular social media platforms. 

“Tons of students use TikTok,” Mr. Bercea said. “Guys get in trouble everyday for Snapchat on campus in the middle of class, or doing something stupid to make a TikTok.”

Matthew Palchak ’23 admits that he sometimes struggles with using the internet too much, and often observes his peers experiencing the same problem. 

“I do struggle with [internet addiction] somewhat,” Matthew said. “Sometimes I get addicted to a game or so and I play it too much so I have to delete it as a way to get rid of it. I do see others struggling with it, like they can’t get off the internet to do what they need to do.”

Mr. Bercea encourages students to not get caught up in their online lives and try to have more in-person interactions among one another.

“So I just say use the internet, use your phone, acknowledge that it’s a tool that can be good or bad and don’t forget that you’re still a human being,” Mr. Bercea said. “You still need to put the phone down and go outside for a bit or do something with a real person in real life.”

Jesuit students need to understand the problems that come with internet addiction and work to minimize the need for it. The merit of in-person interaction and the Jesuit brotherhood should not be replaced with online conversations, as it helps us develop not only as outgoing individuals but also as men for others.