Benefits and Challenges of Internet on Student Performance - Essay

This individual essay explores the significant impact of the internet on student performance in higher education. The essay begins by highlighting the positive aspects, such as the ease of access to online learning resources, enhanced communication between students and instructors, and the availability of e-learning platforms like Moodle. It then delves into the challenges, including internet addiction, privacy concerns, and cybersecurity threats like viruses, hacking, and identity theft. The essay examines these issues in detail, offering insights into how the internet can both enhance and hinder academic progress, and how students can navigate the digital landscape safely and effectively. The student suggests measures such as using anti-virus software, securing browsing history, protecting personal information, and using secure connections to mitigate risks. The essay concludes by emphasizing the importance of universities providing guidance on the beneficial aspects of the internet and offering cyber counseling to address potential issues like addiction.

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Integrated Professional Skills in Digital Age
By (Name)
Course
Professor
University
Date

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Individual essay
Introduction
Technology has influenced many aspects of modern life. The rise of internet use in the
21st century has tremendously grown. The internet has facilitated a new method of learning in
universities through online education tools and research. A study has revealed that the number of
students using the internet for learning activities has doubled over the last six years. Online
learning creates a serene atmosphere for students by developing a smart approach and innovation
in learning. Universities across the world are now able to carry out research and studies with so
much ease due to the improved technology of information and communication technology (ICT).
The internet exposes the university students to the dynamics of change in the world and ongoing
technological transformation that are taking place. The internet is gradually replacing the
traditional forms of learning characterized by whiteboards, chalkboards, and hardcopy of
textbooks. The changes, however, act in two way traffic by enhancing the performance of
students while also contributing to a decline in the performance if not properly controlled. This
study is investigating both the benefits and challenges of the internet to the students in the 21st
century and the challenges and measures of security in using the internet.
The advent of the internet has made learning so much easier in universities across the
globe. The internet has facilitated the connection between the student to peer and student to
instructor. The internet has facilitated the development of study through research, enhancing
communication and thinking capabilities among the students, facilitating their collaboration and
interactions within the learning environment (Kuznekoff and Titsworth, 2013, pp.248).
Additionally, the internet has enabled students to share important academic files through online

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platforms such as e-mail. The student is also able to interact more with the facilitator through
such form as e-mail to seek clarification and guidance from the tutor. Another way through
which the internet has facilitated learning in the universities is through e-learning and Moodle.
Nowadays, many universities offer their courses through online platforms. This has facilitated
the interaction of the student and the course facilitator from any part of the world. For example, a
student in Africa may engage in learning from an Australian university, provided he has an
internet connection. The Moodle enables convenient transfer and deliveries of learning materials
from the instructor to the students. The course instructor uploads electronic learning materials
such as pdf and PowerPoint slides in the Moodle and the students are required to download them.
This method ensures that the students gain access to the reading materials and can use them for
future reference. It has replaced the traditional chalkboard content delivery, where the students
had to physically attend classes and take notes of important reading materials. Perhaps the most
convenient and important usage of the internet for university students is its ability for the student
to access online reading materials. There are numerous educational resources such as articles,
journals, blogs, e-books and education sites that are available to the student through the internet.
Most of these materials are available for free and the student has to log in to academic sites such
as Proquest to access them. The students are able to access these materials in any location
provided there is an internet service provider. The students are shifting from carrying loads of
textbooks and many are opting for laptops, iPad or even smartphones that are much lighter and
one can access most of the learning materials just by a click of the button. The internet has also
made learning more engaging as students are able to compare theoretical materials to real-life
examples. Additionally, the internet is a more engaging form of study as it uses visualization and
images that make learning more interactive. The internet has also facilitated video learning

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through sites such as YouTube. The instructors are able to share video tutorials over YouTube
while also directing students to videos that have relevance to the course. The students, on the
other hand, are able to watch and download these videos and share them with their peers.
Despite the internet playing a critical role in easing education access and facilitating
student performance at the university, it can destroy the progress of the student by having a
negative impact on academic performance if not well controlled. Internet addiction is among the
contemporary challenges facing university students in the 21st century. This is the inability of
the student to control his or her internet use. Internet addiction can impact student
psychologically, socially, and academically (Dalbudak and Evren, 2014, pp.500). The student is
increasingly vulnerable to internet addiction due to the many free hours they might have and the
availability of free internet provided by the academic institution. The university student may
engage in unproductive activities such as logging in to social media sites such as Facebook,
Instagram, Twitter, and Snapchat (Yan, Li and Sui, 2014, pp.8). Additionally, the internet can
impact the student morally when he visits pornographic sites which can ultimately lead to sex
addictions. All of these practices may result in the student performing dismally in academic. This
is because the student may procrastinate important academic work or skip lectures as a result of
late-night social media browsing.
The internet has transformed our lives in countless ways but it has a dark side. Among
the major global concern on the advent of the internet is the privacy concern. There have been
many issues such as the Snowden scandal that shows how our information from the internet is
mined by the government and multinationals corporations. The Cambridge Analytica company
also mined Facebook user data in the United States and sold the information to political players
(Kortuem, et al., 2013, pp.58). Much of our personal information winds up online and privacy is

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a key challenge in the use of the internet. A computer virus can be spread through the internet
when one is downloading files. This viruses cause malfunction of the computer hardware and
interfere with our personal information. Hackers may lock your files or steal your identity
through the malware and virus. I would use anti-virus software to protect my data from malicious
harm and uses. I would make sure my operating system is updated with the latest security
patches that will detect malicious files and insecure web pages. Another challenge in the use of
the internet is the digital trail that is left behind through the use of browser and search engines.
Most marketer and hackers capitalize on these by spying on the trail to know ones browsing
habit. I would protect my browsing history by turning off third-party cookies. Additionally, I can
use HTTPS browser that is more secure and encrypts my sites and digital data (Roman, Zhou and
Lopez, 2013, pp.2268). Identity theft is another challenge of using the internet. Many hackers
capitalize on these by stealing one's information such as bank details, identity cards, and debit
cards and use that information for monetary gains. To protect myself against such, I would
ensure I do not share personal information on social media sites. Additionally, I will secure all
my devices with passwords to prevent my information from getting into the wrong hands in
instances where it has been lost or stolen. Similarly, I will password encrypt all my social media
sites and enable the two-factor authentication feature in sites that su[ports it. This feature
prevents the hacker from obtaining my information even if he has my password. I will also
secure my router. Lastly, I would ensure that I do not use public Wi-Fi or always use a VPN to
encrypt all data I send through such Wi-Fi connections (Yang, et al., 2017, pp.1254). Another
key challenge lies in the software that is downloaded on the internet. Some of this software from
untrusted sources are complete scam and hackers use them to collect data. For example, the

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Meitu Photo app collected a mountain of data from its users. I would protect myself from this by
installing software from trusted stores.
Conclusion
From the foregone, the internet plays a major role in improving the academic
performance of the students. The advent of technology has catalyzed a major shift in the world
particularly in the education sector. The internet provides a vast platform where course
instructors and student can interact through e-learning and Moodle. Additionally, the students
can gain access to a diverse range of supporting materials and other course work that can
supplement their studies. The internet is gradually replacing the traditional model of hardcopy
textbooks and whiteboards with online classes and paperless studies. However if not controlled
well, it impacts on student performance. Some of the key challenges that have been experienced
include online addiction to social media sites and other unproductive elements of the internet.
Universities should put a lot of emphasis on exposing the students to the beneficial sides of the
internet. The universities should also provide cyber counseling courses to the students to enable
them to avoid internet addiction. The internet also as challenges such as identity theft, online
hacking, and privacy concerns. The discussed challenges can be well curbed by applying such
measures that ensure ones online activity is protected and instituting measures that secure the
digital trail created through web browsing.

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Bibliography
Dalbudak, E. and Evren, C., 2014. The relationship of Internet addiction severity with Attention
Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder symptoms in Turkish University students; impact of personality
traits, depression and anxiety. Comprehensive psychiatry, 55(3), pp.497-503.
Kortuem, G., Bandara, A.K., Smith, N., Richards, M. and Petre, M., 2013. Educating the
Internet-of-Things generation. Computer, 46(2), pp.53-61.
Kuznekoff, J.H. and Titsworth, S., 2013. The impact of mobile phone usage on student
learning. Communication Education, 62(3), pp.233-252.
Roman, R., Zhou, J. and Lopez, J., 2013. On the features and challenges of security and privacy
in distributed internet of things. Computer Networks, 57(10), pp.2266-2279.
Yan, W., Li, Y. and Sui, N., 2014. The relationship between recent stressful life events,
personality traits, perceived family functioning and internet addiction among college
students. Stress and Health, 30(1), pp.3-11.
Yang, Y., Wu, L., Yin, G., Li, L. and Zhao, H., 2017. A survey on security and privacy issues in
Internet-of-Things. IEEE Internet of Things Journal, 4(5), pp.1250-1258.

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Report
Introduction
Communication in business is not only about the process of transmitting the message or
the message itself but it encompasses the understanding of the message and how it is mutually
transmitted from the sender to the receiver. Communication in business is very essential and its
importance cannot be stressed enough. It is integral in the management of a business function.
Majority of business operations cannot be carried out if there is a lacuna in the mode and means
of transmitting information between departments, stakeholders, and management. This kind of
communication in the business setting is known as business communication. It involves the flow
of information among the business hierarchy, from the low end to the high end and vice versa.
The organization is growing immensely and with it the number of departments, employees, and
customers. In a large organization, effective communication entails the day to day running of the
business. Communication facilitates direct feedback and addresses misunderstandings that may
occur in the business. The advent of information technology provides business with diverse
platforms that speed up communication. Through technology, modern business has a wide range
of communication tools such as emails, mobile phones, the internet, and visual tools. It is at the
predisposition of business managers to use these tools for effective communication. Email is one
of the communication tools developed through information technology. Majority of businesses in
the contemporary world have email addressed. Companies should be choosy of the type of email
to operate for the business. This report will discuss the difference between email providers and
how such assist the business. It will also look into the skill for evaluation of online resources.

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Comparing and contrasting Gmail and yahoo
There are a number of sites that provide free email. Among the most notable ones are
Google mail (Gmail) and Yahoo mail. Google is a large company with other sites such as Google
docs, Picasa, and YouTube. On the other hand, Yahoo mail can be used with sites such a Flickr,
yahoo messenger and del.icio.us. Yahoo mail takes much information about the users as possible
on the startup page. This includes information such as social media sites, news, and recent
updates. Gmail takes a simpler approach by going direct to the inbox and has very minimal
clutter. Gmail is also a better site when it comes to filtering spam messages. Yahoo tends to miss
on some of the spam messages and in a few instances, it sends legitimates mails into the spam
folder. One of the main key features of Gmail is that it allows the user to send instant messages
to his contact list easily and in a short period of time (Ranganathan, Madupu, Sen and Brooks,
2013, pp.200). Yahoo mail also has this feature but it is not as accessible as the one found on
Gmail. This is because this feature is separate from yahoo mail service and one has to pay a
monthly subscription to access it at yahoo mail plus. In Gmail, it is much easier to put up
attachments in the mail and one can use as many attachments as they are needed. In Yahoo mail,
the user has to go to a separate screen for one to put in attachments, and it limits one to only 5
attachments. Yahoo mail is the better service when it comes to the organization of the folders. It
allows better creation and organization of the folder and one can customize them according to
preference (Mazmanian, Orlikowski and Yates, 2013, pp.1340). In Gmail however, one has to
keep all his folder in the same area making organization quite difficult. One of the critical
advantages Gmail has over Yahoo is in attachment file size. Yahoo mail allows the user to attach
up to 10 megabytes in its free version while Gmail allows 20 megabytes. Gmail has a clear
advantage when one needs to put large attachment files in the mail. Gmail provides the user with
tabs such as primary, promotion, social, and updates. One can customize these tabs by either

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adding or removing them. Gmail categorizes each message in each tab as they arrive creating a
systematic view of the messages. Yahoo mail uses a different approach by categorizing the
messages a little bit differently. The emails are categorized as photos and documents, coupons
and travels. In yahoo mail, one cannot remove or add the categories. Gmail is also considered to
be more secure than Yahoo due to its smaller session expiry time than yahoo mail. Additionally,
in Gmail, one is secure from phishing attacks by checking the actual email address of the sender.
Gmail is also free from pictures ads but has few ads in forms of single lines. Yahoo mail, on the
other hand, has huge pictures of ads on its platform. Gmail has established its brand based on
credibility (Gangoso, et al., 2013, pp.177). Many people consider it to be more ‘professional’ as
compared to the other free email service providers. Gmail offers better business support and
suitability. For example, the business user can label folders and label emails by client name. It
also enables the user to customize the tabs and separate business mail from personal emails.
Additionally, Gmail supports the management of multiple emails accounts from one spot. The
business owner can have more than one email account and manage all of them from a single
account. Additionally, the authentication service in Gmail protects the business owner from
phishing attacks. Additionally, Gmail supports multiple signatures lines. One can choose which
signature line to use for specific emails.one of the notable benefit of using yahoo mail for
business is the ability to assign a personalized email address to the employees that conduct
operations on behalf of the business. This helps in creating a professional high-quality solution
for the business.
Skills for evaluating online resources.
Following the advent of the internet and information technology, both teachers and
student are faced with unprecedented information from a variety of sources on the internet. The

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internet has provided a means of accessing information about various topics in a timely manner.
The main reason why access to the information has become so fast is that the traditional method
of quality control and assurance mechanism do not apply in the information and resource
creation and sharing on the internet (Moskal, Dziuban and Hartman, 2013, pp.18). The education
stakeholders are therefore faced with a variety of information from the online sources that must
be evaluated to gather their credibility. Unreliable and fake information on the internet can take
many forms. There is satirical information that is not meant to cause harm, but they can fool the
receiver. The false connection includes such instances when such anecdotes as visuals and
captions do not support the content posted. Misleading content is biased and is relatively used to
subvert an issue or an individual. In the other hand, false content includes genuine content that
does not support the context (Litt, 2013, pp.620). Imposter content is whereby genuine sources
are hacked into and the authors impersonate by propelling their own views. Manipulated content
is posted for the sole purpose of deceiving, while fabricated content is entirely false and aims at
deceiving. By understanding the type of online misinformation, one can gather enough skills to
cushion themselves against online deception. These skills are especially important to teachers
and student alike to ensure they online use information that can be verified. Among the skills for
online content evaluation include;
Questioning skills
It ensures for one to question the credibility of online sources. In the online platform,
anyone can post information (Van Laar, van Deursen, van Dijk and de Haan, 2017, pp.578). One
needs to question the credibility and qualifications of the author. Most of the web pages give
brief information of the author at the bottom of the page.

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Data analysis skills.
Data analysis skills enable the user to evaluate the accuracy and quality of the
information. One can check on whether the information from the source is specified. The data
and information should be based on observations, measurement, analyses, interpretations, and
conclusions. One should evaluate whether the methods of scientific research are well explained
and the hypothesis leads to a specific conclusion. It is also important to analyze the references
and bibliography to ascertain whether they are reliable.
Researching skills.
This skill is important in the evaluation of multiple online sources to ascertain whether
the information correlates with each other. I should consider the purpose and coverage of the
information and ascertain whether the depth serves the purpose of your study. Researching skills
will additionally assist me in checking crucial dates like the date when the content was updated
when it was posted, and when as the research carried out.
Conclusion
The online communication plays a critical role in modern business operations in bringing
various stakeholders such as the employees, customers, investors, and suppliers together.
Communication models such as emails have removed the earlier boundaries occasioned by time
and distance. Online communication transforms the business world by making globalization
apparent. Online communication in business facilitates faster decision making as there is rapid
dissemination of information across the channels. There exist a couple of free email service
providers such as Gmail and Yahoo. It is important for a business to evaluate the functions of
such emails and choose the one that best suits their business operations. Additionally, such skills
as observations, questioning, and data analysis are critical for evaluation of online resources.

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Bibliography
Gangoso, L., Agudo, R., Anadón, J.D., de la Riva, M., Suleyman, A.S., Porter, R. and Donázar,
J.A., 2013. Reinventing mutualism between humans and wild fauna: insights from vultures as
ecosystem services providers. Conservation Letters, 6(3), pp.172-179.
Kumar Ranganathan, S., Madupu, V., Sen, S. and R. Brooks, J., 2013. Affective and cognitive
antecedents of customer loyalty towards e-mail service providers. Journal of Services
Marketing, 27(3), pp.195-206.
Litt, E., 2013. Measuring users’ internet skills: A review of past assessments and a look toward
the future. New Media & Society, 15(4), pp.612-630.
Mazmanian, M., Orlikowski, W.J. and Yates, J., 2013. The autonomy paradox: The implications
of mobile email devices for knowledge professionals. Organization science, 24(5), pp.1337-
1357.
Moskal, P., Dziuban, C. and Hartman, J., 2013. Blended learning: A dangerous idea?. The
Internet and Higher Education, 18, pp.15-23.
Van Laar, E., van Deursen, A.J., van Dijk, J.A. and de Haan, J., 2017. The relation between 21st-
century skills and digital skills: A systematic literature review. Computers in human
behavior, 72, pp.577-588.