Hello! My name is Colton Wang and I am a rising sophomore in Butler College. I am planning to major in Molecular Biology, but I also hold other interests including cognitive science, neuroscience, literature, and cultural anthropology. In my free time, I enjoy cooking, playing basketball, and writing.
Over the summer, I worked as a remote intern for the non-profit organisation Children and Screens: Institute of Digital Media and Child Development. The vision of Children and Screens is to “understand and address compelling questions regarding media’s impact on child development through interdisciplinary dialogue, public information, and objective secondary research.” The significance of this mission has been magnified by the pandemic, which has forced children and adolescents to rely on digital technologies for many aspects of their lives, from education to social networking.
As a summer research intern, I was responsible for planning expert convenings and events for various stakeholders in answering questions in this field, preparing notes and other materials on research methodology and results for the general public, as well as highlighting key recent research findings for media interviews and/or newsletters with Children and Screens. I also prepared supplemental informational material for these live events to provide parents and educators with resources and answers to questions they have to raise happy and healthy children in the digital age. Another one of my responsibilities was to assist the Children and Screens policy scholars program through policy advocacy in child health and privacy to promote the public’s understanding of current trends and the effects of digital media on child health and wellbeing. The primary advocacy project of the summer involved preparing materials to support a national consensus study on educational technology (EdTech). Alongside four other interns, my role was to draft a scholarly research report and create a storyboard outline for a PSA highlighting the importance of the consensus study.
The internship also offered many other experiences for my personal growth, namely with regards to my academic interests, presentation skills, and collaboration opportunities. First, the weekly responsibility of reading and summarising scholarly articles related to digital media and child development has fostered my academic interest in new scientific territories like psychology and neuroscience. Secondly, I have also refined my presentation skills in both group and solo settings through formal and informal presentation meetings. Lastly, the collaborative culture that has marked my internship experience this summer has helped me grow greatly as a team player.
Moving forward, I hope to contribute to my communities through civic engagement in meaningful ways that parallel the mission of Children and Screens – helping children lead healthy lives in the digital world!
