Trends, Networks, and Critical

Thinking in the 21st Century

Senior High School Grade 11
Unit 1
DEFINITION OF A TREND

1.1 The process of identifying a trend

1.2 Differentiating a trend from a fad
1.3 Elements of a trend
1.4 The characteristics of a trend
Social trends have been a part of life since the
beginning of time. Society reacts to certain
stimuli, whether it is a type of music, fashion
or activity. These trends are not always
created by the majority, but the majority of
society does typically follow.
Trends
- is a behavior or new way of doing things and
it has a big impact on our society. It is a
sequential pattern of change in a condition,
output, or process, or an average or general
tendency of a series of data points to move in
a certain direction over time, represented by
a line or curve on a graph.
The process of identifying a trend:
 Trend analysis - is the widespread practice
of collecting information and attempting to
spot a pattern, or trend, in the information.
 Trend spotting - is the identification of new
trends or attempting to see the future.
 Trend spotter - is a person who notices and
reports on new fashions, ideas, or activities
that are becoming popular.
• Someone or something starts or causes a trend.
A person who starts a trend is called
TRENDSETTER.
10 of the Top Current Trends on the Internet
1. The Selfie Movement
The front-facing cameras on our smartphones
changed the way we take pictures, and social
apps changed the way we share them.
Convenient to share selfies that help countless
photo editing apps available, making it a
breeze to enhance your snaps before you
share them.
2. News Breaks on Social Media First
Traditional Media Is Now Too Slow. If you want
access to the latest news as fast as possible,
Facebook and Twitter are your best options.
Social media has changed the way we consume
news and stay updated on what's happening in
real-time. Of course, the problem with such
quick breaking news is the issue about fake
news.
3. A Newfound Love for GIFs
The animated GIF is a magnificent cross
between an image and a short video—
without the sound, of course.

The Graphics Interchange Format (GIF; /dʒɪf/ JIF

or /ɡɪf/ GHIF) is a bitmap image format
4. Hashtags (#)
Although Twitter was the original social network
to bring the hashtag to life, others quickly picked
up on the trend.
Hashtags can now be used on Instagram, Tumblr,
Facebook, and in all sorts of other corners of the
web. It's quickly grown to become the solution
for effectively categorizing content based on
specific themes or keywords to make search and
discovery a whole lot easier.
5. Memes, Memes, and More Memes
The internet is obsessed with sharing memes.
The viral power of ridiculous memes is
undeniable. We can't get enough of them, and
there are tons of meme generator tools you
can use to create your own and contribute to
whatever's most popular at the moment.
6. Regular People Turned Internet Famous
It's obvious social media has opened new doors for
people to showcase their talents and attract online
fan bases.
For many now famous celebrities, starting out by
putting their stuff online was really the only option.
Today, all kinds of mainstream actors, musicians,
bands, comedians, and more owe their success to
the openness of the web, including major
entertainment-based social networks like Tiktok and
YouTube.
7. Cloud Streaming of Entertainment Media
CDs and DVDs is now obsolete because of unlimited
access to all our entertainment needs through
services like Youtube, Spotify and Netflix. There's no
need to have a hard copy or digitally downloaded
copy of everything when you can stream what you
want from the cloud for one small monthly
subscription fee.
Cloud streaming sure does solve the problem of
limited local storage, and it's one of the fastest
growing trends in media consumption today.
8. Oversharing on Social Media
Most of us recognize how bloated the social
networking experience has become, with so
many sites and apps out there promoting
huge friend or follower numbers, constant
engagement, and never ending streams of
content sharing. Oversharing has become a
big turn off for many internet users, which is
why apps like ​Tiktok and Instagram have
popped up to bring a more intimate and
minimalist experience.
9. Crypto-Currencies: More Modern Way to Create
and Exchange Value

Bitcoin—the decentralized digital currency that

started turning a lot of heads in 2013 as more
people got involved with mining, trading, and
spending it.
Bitcoin has its fair share of problems, given that it
isn't overseen by any central authority, but that
hasn't stopped its growing popularity. As a result,
countless other crypto-currencies have popped up
all over the web, some which seem almost too
ridiculous to be real.
10. WiFi-Enabled Home Gadgets and
Appliances
As the Internet of Things becomes more
mainstream, we're starting to see a lot more
gadgets and household objects come with
WiFi-enabled features. Someday, our entire
homes and cities could thrive on a connected
network where every device, machine, and
thing can communicate with one another to
perform and automate tasks.
Fad
- something that people are highly interested in
for a relatively short period of time.

- an intense and widely shared enthusiasm for

something, especially one that is short-lived and
without basis in the object's qualities; a craze.
Fad
- is a product that has little or no use but is
characterized by a quick rise in sales and
popularity followed by a quick decline in sales
and popularity. This quick up and down in sales
is because fad products usually do not satisfy a
strong consumer need. Nevertheless, fads
seldom completely die out, with some hardcore
followers remaining loyal.
Difference between Fad and Trends
Trends have a much longer lifespan than
fads. In fact, they can continue to be
fashionable for years and even decades.
The primary difference between a trend
and a fad is that trends have the potential
to be long-term influences on the market.
1) Fads
The easiest way to categorize a fad is one word:
short-lived. Typically, fads last for a total of one
season, but they can also last less than a month.
Fads are novelty driven fashion choices. A fad is
often referred to as “catching on” with the
larger population, but will often fade as quickly
as it appeared. The easiest way to remember a
fad is through a simple alliteration: fads fade.
Although engaging in fads can be fun, they are
often not worth investing a large amount of
money or time.
2) Trends
Trends have a much longer lifespan than fads. In
fact, they can continue to be fashionable for
years and even decades. The primary difference
between a trend and a fad is that trends have
the potential to be long-term influencers on the
market. In addition, trends often involve altered
classics.
1.

ALDUB
2.

CELLULAR PHONES
3.

LOOM BANDS
4.

JEJEMON
5.

AIR JORDAN SHOES

6. KPOP
 Lesson 2:
Understanding the Elements and
Characteristics of a Trend
What makes a trend a trend?
 Elements of a Trend
1. Number of participants
• pertains to people who follow a certain trend
which is started by an individual or a group of
people
2. Pattern of behavior
refers to a trend that is formed from repetitive
actions of people.
3. Long period of time
is one of the crucial elements of a trend which
means that a trend has to have a long-time frame,
sometime running for decades. A trend may
experience some ups and downs in popularity,
may fade away, and may recur.
4. Cause
• refers to the starting point of a trend which can
be an idea, a technology, an event or a person.
All trends have beginnings and someone or
somebody definitely started it.
5. Consequence
• refers to the considerable impact or influence
of a trend. Social networking has become an
encompassing trend that tends to influence
behaviors of online users. With the popularity
of smartphones, users began subscribing to
various social networking portals which enable
them to post activity statuses and photos, and
even connect with celebrities.
Lesson 3

Identifying Parts of a Whole

and Emerging Patterns in
Trends
• Trends as they grow and evolve tend to
influence or give birth to other trends and
become interconnected and interrelated.
• trends are formed from the combination of
things. Thus, a trend has constituent parts
of portions that are interrelated.
 Identifying Emerging Patterns
1. Documentation - means being able to
record your observations which you
consider related to any trend. The primary
tools for documentation, however simple,
are notebook and pen. Some opt to use
note-taking features or apps on a
smartphone or tablet. The camera has also
become necessary in providing visuals.
2. Archive or Memory
is used to easily retrieve any documentation you
have kept. Notes can be scanned or converted to
a portable document format (PDF) while digital
pictures can be easily saved.
3. Analysis
is the stage where examination and combination
happen. Looking for patterns on prospective trends.
data is important and which can be discarded. Here,
you can confirm emerging patterns like events
becoming more frequent and things following a
cycle
4. Presentation
is representing your findings for easy
understanding as a way of analysis. You can
represent your findings through, among others, a
mood board and a storyboard. A mood board is a
collage of images, text, and object samples.
• the sample diagram presented above is an
example of this consisting of the linkages of the
influences of the root trend to the development
of new trends within the link plus the
explanatory analysis
A cause refers to an agent that brings about a
result or a consequence. A consequence is
always traceable to a cause which can be a
person, thing, principle, motive, act, or event.
There is no cause without a consequence and
vice versa. (Urgel, 2017)