I thought this article was really interesting as it took a
very different approach to young people using websites like Facebook and
YouTube. Too often, we are smothered
with the perception that children and teenagers will without out a doubt create
a wild and troubled Internet identity.
As there is truth to this statement, often times these resources serve
as just the opposite to children. The
belief of the many
is that these tools can serve as a lifeline and safety tool to save lives. The Children's Internet Protection Act (CIPA)
originally restricted use based upon the assumptions that offensive material
would corrupt our youth. However,
outlets like Facebook and Twitter are unavoidable. Keith R. Krueger suggests that the way to
truly protect students is not by restricting their social media usage and that
by restricting the use of these medias in schools we may face, “unintended
consequences that can undermine educational goals.”
Instead
of creating rules around the usage of Internet, students need to be taught how
to properly use social media sites. We
are in an age where these websites are free and easily accessed. By denying the right to use them or restricting
them in schools, children will find a way to reach them and use them as an
uneducated user. Jim Bosco says,
"we are responsible to see that young people know how to use the tools of
their culture in a responsible, safe, intelligent way”
The
article uses banning books as an example of an extreme and ineffective way to
“protect” students from the wild world of words. Instead, a high school instituted a rating
system available to parents so they could be aware of level of appropriateness
for their reader. The guidelines allow
readers to choose books that they are comfortable with reading. This type of system could be used as a model
for Internet restrictions in schools.
Students
should not and cannot be left uneducated with the Internet. However, at the same time, students cannot be
eliminated from the digital world. When
we look at cases like Tyler Clementi, the use of Facebook could have been
crucial in saving his life. Within the
same case, his suicide could have been avoided if students like Dharun Ravi
were educated on the proper use of these Internet sources. With the proper use of the Internet, students
are able to find resources like suicide help lines, homework help, and even
friends. It is our responsibility as
educators to teach students how to be mature and knowledgeable users of the
Internet. It has become too large a part
of their lives to deny access. My
cooperating school’s principal has shared his efforts to always keep up to date
on the technology that affects his students lives because it is the most
important way to relate to their interests.
He goes as far to say it is not an issue if his students are texting in
the hallway. Texting, Facebook, YouTube
and others define our student population and it is impossible to take these
pieces away from them.
Katie,
ReplyDeleteYou bring up some really important issues with this blogpost. The article talks about how the issues of technology once integrated can truly change the environment for our students to learn in. We cannot tell students that they should not be accessing sites, because they will only hear that we are keeping them away from something, and in turn go closer toward it. They will wonder why we are keeping them and they will give in to curiosity. I like the ideas of a rating system to be in place as you explained with banned books. I feel that use of this kind of system will ignite discussion and conversation for students' safety while online. How well do you think it would work in a school setting? I think as teachers we will have to promote this safety starting at the classroom level and it can grow if managed correctly.
Katie,
DeleteI agree with Girard in that this article really focuses on an important issue. By simply saying no, we wouldn't be teaching students right from wrong; it will only increase their curiosity. At the school I am observing some teachers have a strict "no cellphone" policy. On the contrary, the teacher I am observing sometimes asks students to look up a definition on their phone. Over the past three months, I have not seen a student abuse the cell phone policy in her classroom. As for networking sites, her two honors classes have created facebook pages for their individual classes. The students use this sight to discuss the homework, research assignments and tests. Implmenting a system with proper checks and balances will hopefully help students learn the difference between right and wrong.
Katie, thanks for the summary. What parts of the article are you going to implement in your classroom?
ReplyDeleteI think the most effective way to educate students on the benefits of using the internet properly. I would model appropriate behaviors such as posts, pictures, and information. Most importantly though, I would want my students to be aware of the dangers of internet usage if they are not careful. By promoting internet usage in assignments, my students will learn how to use the internet as a tool and not only as a means of social media. For example, Greg used a lesson plan that used Twitter as a means to teach form in poetry. I think this type of integration normalizes the use of internet and eliminates the taboo aspect of social media sites.
DeleteKatie, thanks for your thoughtful response.
Delete