The Bubble of Silicon Valley
[Music]
what is the first thing you think about
when you hear the phrase silicon valley
our agriculture right all the oranges
and grapes and almonds that we grow here
of course not it’s technology
here we pretty much live in the backyard
of apple headquarters
and several huge companies are also
located here
from apple to google to tesla
nowhere else in the country is the
community so heavily impacted
by technology it’s how our state has the
fifth
highest economy in the world isn’t that
mind-boggling and this technology which
has the capabilities
to connect people over thousands of
miles
has put us inside somewhat of a bubble
we are distanced from the regions around
us as our communities are vastly
different
the rise of technology present in
silicon valley has been able to benefit
its residents
greatly by increasing our economic
growth as well as improving
our education systems but has also
pushed people out of our cities due to
high housing costs
as well as introduced a harmful
competitive spirit
in our schools but to truly understand
what is going on
we must start at the beginning with the
birth
of the internet
in 1969 leonard kleinrock a professor at
ucla
along with the student charlie klein
devised a way to send a transmission
from their computer to one at stanford’s
research center
thus launching the start of the internet
they revolutionized the meaning of
technology
as they were able to send information
over long distances
in a short amount of time suddenly
huge corporations from all across the
nation started popping up
in the silicon valley and a mere seven
years later
apple had been founded right here in
cupertino
california as these corporations started
moving into the region
they brought in large sums of money into
the state in order to fund their
projects
as well as the construction of their
buildings and this money
is vital to the development of silicon
valley
almost immediately entrepreneurs
business owners
ceos from all across the nation
started moving to the region in order to
benefit off of the technological boom
of silicon valley thanks to these
companies
our colleges got immense funding for
their research
and their projects this money allowed
our professors
access to resources that we never would
have been able to afford
and these resources allowed our students
to enhance
their learning capabilities but
it doesn’t stop there even our public
schools
benefit of being located right next to
these huge corporations
for example lawson middle school pretty
much
borders apple headquarters and is now
known as an
apple distinguished school this title is
given to schools that are centers for
academic excellence
and leadership as well as use apple
products
in order to inspire student creativity
and critical thinking
now although using ipads in school is a
very controversial topic
these devices have been able to enhance
the learning of the majority
of the students in the school according
to state test scores
about 891 percent of students are
proficient
in math and about 87 percent are
proficient in reading
now no matter what your opinions are on
the devices themselves
these statistics are astronomical and
are way
above the national average
it is clear that these devices have been
able to enhance the learning
of our students by providing resources
that we
never would have been able to afford but
technology
is also able to change the environment
in which our students
must learn if you ask
any student in silicon valley what they
are most concerned about
they’re probably going to say something
school related whether it be getting
a a in an ap class getting the 1600 on
the sat
or being able to juggle two sports a
seven class course load
and a ct classes after school
crazy right can you imagine taking so
many activities
and still being expected to sleep eight
hours every night
no wonder our students are so sleep
deprived
we joke about this as if it’s normal
as if every 16 year old has to deal
with this kind of stress but at the core
of it
we see the real problem competition
now don’t get me wrong competition is
not all that bad
it can help you reach your potential and
go above and beyond
it can push you out of your boundaries
to try new things
but we also have to realize when things
go too far
and cross a line an immense amount of
competition can lead to students
feeling unbalanced in their lives they
feel pressured to succeed in academic
competitions
as well as gain more knowledge thus
pushing away
any other hobbies or interests they may
have
they put everything on hold in order to
focus on their academic pursuit
thus fostering an unhealthy obsession
with
perfection take cupertino
high school for example they have about
12 tech based clubs and over 20
stem clubs each club has about
five to ten officer positions which is
reasonable
but they also have over 30 students
applying for these office positions
that’s over 400 students
applying because they think that these
positions
will help them get ahead of the crowd
we’ll compete with one another for
officer positions
for internships summer programs
who can volunteer at the most events who
can join the most clubs
who can take the most ap classes
essentially
who can do the most without breaking
now you may ask us why exactly are we so
competitive
why is the nature of silicon valley
pushing our students
to extreme lengths in order to prove
themselves
maybe it’s because our colleges has such
small acceptance rates
and you want to be that one person in
your high school that gets in
or maybe we need to compete in order to
stay here because
our housing costs are so high in the
area
or maybe it’s because everyone around us
is just
as competitive
silicon valley is known to be talent
rich
from people coming from across the
nation in order to get jobs
at the companies located here and
entrepreneurs moving to begin
their startups due to the circle of
wealth we have gained from these
companies appearing in the silicon
valley
we’ve also gained their driven mentality
it is in our nature to be competitive
but sometimes we forget that the people
around us aren’t always
our opponents they aren’t always someone
to compete with
and compare ourselves to
and this lack of knowledge coupled with
our competitive spirit
can backfire on us without us even
knowing
this type of competition can lead to
several disorders
from a severe fear of failure to panic
attacks
to anxiety disorders and even depression
with these side effects we question
whether or not this rise of technology
present
in silicon valley was ever truly
beneficial
so how do we solve this problem where
technology is able to benefit us
by increasing our economic growth and
improving our education systems
but also harm us by introducing a
harmful competitive spirit
in our schools we have to realize that
it is not the technology
nor these corporations that are the
problem here
but rather it is with our education
systems themselves
we want to correlate the tech industry
and its effects
on our education systems without
realizing that it is our education
systems
that provide for our students and their
opportunities
the tech industry has such a big impact
on silicon valley
because it is the one that is providing
and educating our students
thus impacting it the most
technology is not the main reason for
the success or the drawbacks
of silicon valley but rather a visceral
display of the power of a well-funded
education the issue here
is that the only reason why our public
system
public schools are so well funded is
because
of these tech corporations which isn’t
the way
it should be we need to ignite the
passion for education within ourselves
and our government
as it is the moral responsibility of the
government
to provide our students with the
education
they deserve with the opportunities
they deserve and with the life
that they deserve
thank you
you