Like many of us during the term break, I headed north for some warmer weather and an opportunity to slow down, re energise and, take the opportunity to pause and reflect on the first half of the year. While I spent plenty of time at the swimming pool where I was staying along with strolls along the beachfront, I had the opportunity to engage and observe how others go about their daily lives.

Mobile devices are a technology we all interact with frequently.  It appeared to me that in Malaysia, mobile phone use is on another level. You will all be aware of the phone free initiative implemented using the YONDR pouches which has occurred this year and our emphasis on disconnecting during the school day.   In Malaysia schools also restrict usage, but out in the street, everyone and I mean everyone, seems to be using a mobile phone all the time. I lost count of the number of times people were bumping into each other because they were walking with heads were down and eyes only on screens.  Once upon a time, in the days of film cameras, you thought carefully about what photograph you took and what moment was worth capturing. This isn’t the case anymore. It seems that taking a photo about every 10 seconds is the norm or people are constantly scrolling on their social feeds all day long.

Even at times of relaxation people cannot leave their devices alone. Most days at our hotel late in the afternoon, we enjoyed cocktails and canapes out on the terrace. We were surrounded by tropical plants, palm trees with the sun were beginning to set over the ocean and the soft sound of waves breaking. What else did you need in this idyllic setting apart from nice conversation with family or friends.  To my amazement every afternoon, many people were heads down, unsmiling,  looking at their screens. What was particularly astonishing to me is that many family groups never spoke to one another. I wondered about what all this use of technology is creating for our culture.

I have visited Sth East Asia regularly since the early 1980s and the transformation of cities like Kuala Lumpur and Singapore is something of a miracle. While both cities still have their historic and cultural charms, they are wealthy, modern and bustling with energy.  What really stood out for me as I have commented on, is the way Asia is embracing technology and is at the cutting edge of emerging technologies including AI. Asia is moving forward at a furious pace.

Like many of you, holidays for me are an opportunity to read. Patrick McGee a former journalist at the Financial Times has written a book Apple in China: The Capture of the World’s Greatest Company. This book is a timely and illuminating expose of the Apple’s deep integration with China, while initially beneficial for both, has created a situation where Apple is now vulnerable to the Chinese government’s influence. Apple’s investments in China, particularly in manufacturing and training, have significantly boosted China’s technological and economic power, potentially at the expense of Western dominance. This dependence on China for manufacturing and supply chains has led to concerns about Apple’s ability to resist censorship and other government demands, raising ethical and geopolitical questions. I found this book a wonderful read and it provided me with much to think about. It is the last point McGee writes about with regard to the ethical challenges facing Apple in how it endeavours to being independent and a good corporate citizen, while striving for profits in a savagely competitive industry. Such is the demand by consumers for every increasing sophistication of technology, including the use of AI, that you wonder where this spiral is going.

Coming back to my holidays, I had another interesting moment of observation.  During the cocktail hour at the hotel was a family sitting around a table with a father berating his son about how he is wasting his education and that he had worked so hard to support his son sending him to a top school and that his son was disloyal and not showing respect.  It was quite brutal and very public.  The boy, no more that about 13 or 14 years old, dutifully pulled out his computer and started to do some study. All the while, his father, clearly still angry, monitored his son.  The rest of the family retreated to their phones in silence. The teacher in me wanted to intervene here. But, best to leave well alone I thought. I was curious about the mindset playing out in this situation. While this interaction I observed said something about the value of a good education, here was a family on holidays, in a beautiful tropical beachside resort and rather than enjoying their surroundings and having fun together, there was major conflict. While this anecdote isn’t necessarily related to technology, I couldn’t help but thinking the role technology plays in keeping us apart even though ‘social media’ is meant to be connecting us. I think technology is doing the opposite. Real human connection is through conversation, having a meal together, playing together, laughing together, walking along a beach together and connecting in real time by being near each other.

Not everyone is stuck on their screens. There was another family on the other side of the room. Sitting around a coffee table was Mum, Dad and three teenage children. They were playing scrabble together. This was no boring game done in silence. They were laughing at a nonsense word, interjection about whether a word was real and talking about all manner of things while playing the game. This was family was having a great time. We don’t need screens to enjoy ourselves or to occupy our brains.

It doesn’t seem to matter where you travel, people are the same the world over. Everyone wants the same things. A happy family, safety and security and that feeling of being connected to others and belonging in a community, be it large or small. My recent holiday has reinforced to me the importance of what we value in life. Having strong relationships, being kind and respectful, looking for joy and happiness in the world and being grateful for what we have. I come back to St Catherine’s as we start Term 3, to a community which is connected, where people smile at you and are happy to have a conversation. There is a sense of belonging in our community which is based on relationships and not necessarily based on ‘connections’ via a small digital screen.