Forced Partial Media Deprivation

I am posting an email conversation I had with a student from MCS 222 last semester.  The student is doing a study abroad in Reunion, which as she mentions is a small island in the Indian Ocean.  Here is the exchange which is interesting in terms of our discussion on Tuesday.

Student to me:

I was thinking that you might like to know that the Media Deprivation assignment has somewhat become my life now, making up its own rules for me. I'm studying abroad on an island in the Indian Ocean called Réunion. They are very up to date and Americanized however, I was told by the program coordinator that there wouldn't be Internet in the dorms and I didn't bring my laptop with me, just my iPad. Well, there is Internet (not Wifi though so my iPad is useless in the dorms). I'm obviously not going to buy a computer for the sole purpose of using it during my stay so if I want to use my iPad I have to go somewhere on campus that has Wifi. They do have a library with computers, but being French, the hours are limited. The library opens at 8 and closes on 5 Mon - Fri and 9-12 on Sat. Typing long emails on the iPad can be very annoying, so I usually wait to go to the library to send emails to my family and friends. After 5 however, I'm Internet less for the rest of the night. I usually read books on my iPad or play games that don't require Internet connection - or take a walk into town.

 

Another deprivation is no cell phone. I do not plan on purchasing one here and the friends that I've met have resorted to slipping notes underneath my door if they want to tell me something (because they know I also have no Internet).

 

Obviously I'm managing - because I have to - and not having a cell phone isn't that hard, it's not having Internet at your fingertips 24/7. Because of the time difference, I write an email in the morning (when everyone in Maryland is most likely sleeping) and won't be able to check for a response until the next day. It's frustrating and definitely made my first week alone very hard.

 

I'm curious to see upon my return home if I'll treat my cell phone like a brand new toy and run up the texting bill, feeling like I'm experiencing this new technology or rarely use it since I have gotten used to its absence. I've also noticed while yes, they do have iPhones here which surprised me, not everyone has a cell phone. You rarely see people using them if they do. I've never seen anyone sneak a text during class, or even texting while they're eating in the cafeteria. Facebook however...I've heard about that more than cell phones!

 

I hope the semester started off well and you can now tell your students that the assignment isn't impossible!

Me to student:

Thanks for the email!  Your experience sounds very interesting (and
yes, a little frustrating).  Are you the only one without Internet
access in the dorms or are there others?  I like the lo-fi solution of
sliding notes under your door.  In my day we all had white boards
outside our rooms that people would leave messages on.  Sort of a
low-tech facebook wall.

I would be interested in hearing more about how the students are using
facebook.  Are they using it the same way that American college
students are or are their differences?

I am glad you had some practice leading up to your forced media
deprivation.  Going for walks into the town sounds great.  I wonder if
you feel that not having access to these technologies has affected the
way you socialize.  Are you more or less social, especially in terms
of not having constant access to your friends back home?  Or is there
no impact whatsoever?  I am wondering if having constant access might
allow us to remain more detached in situations that seem foreign.
Anyway, me and my questions.

Good luck with your classes and make sure to have lots of fun.

Student to me: 

As far as I know, I'm the only person who doesn't have Internet access in their room. The people that I can see from my balcony all have computers.

 

I definitely think that not having access to the Internet whenever I want has caused me to be more social and get out into my surroundings. The first week here was really rough. All I wanted to do was talk to my parents and my friends because I didn't know anyone. On Sunday, the library is always closed and I just craved human interaction so much that I plucked up the courage to knock on a random persons door and said "Hi, I'm new here and I don't have any friends." Even though she speaks very little English and my French is so-so, she invited me in and answered as many questions as she could. Since then, we've stopped by each others rooms time to time. If I had Internet, I know that I wouldn't have even thought to go over there when I could just Skype with my friends from home.

 

I was very surprised to find that Facebook is used exactly the same way here as in the United States. When you go into the library, half of the computers have Facebook up, with people creeping through pictures. The girl that I met on Sunday immediately friended me. I met some German exchange students who spoke English and when they found I didn't have a phone they said "We'll find you on Facebook." Walking around with French people, I can understand very little, but I do understand when they say Facebook! I knew America was obsessed with it, but I didn't know the rest of the world was too (or at least on its way).

Let me know if there are any other questions I can answer. I would love to hear what your students think of my experience and wonder if I have turned any of them off from studying abroad! :)

Do any of you have any questions for her?  Would you enjoy a study abroad if you were cut off from Internet access for a majority of the time?  Do you think the technology you have access to changes the way you socialize in new situations?