Internet Safety
The topics that were posted under “Internet Safety” were Peers, Porn, and Predators. I know that we are supposed to keep these topics focused on one individual aspect of this but I am going to tell you about what happens to teenage girls. I am going to talk about how all three of these topics can come into 1 BIG MESS. Before we get into that we need to get some facts straight. In 2010, it was reported that boys spend more time on computers than girls (Sahara Byrne, Journal of Computer-Mediated Communication, 2013). That might have been the case in 2010 but that was before the age of the smart phone. Amanda Lenhart in an article called Teens, Social Media & Technology (2015) said that 92% of teens report going online daily. In the same article, nearly three-quarters of teens have access to a smartphone. It can be easy to control what your teenage child does while at home and while you are in the other room but it becomes much more difficult when they have everything they need on their phone.Facebook is now for “old people.” Twitter is fun for information or news. Teenagers are gravitating to Snapchat and Instagram. Instagram is an app on your phone that allows you to post pictures and comments. The goal there is to get likes and comments. Snapchat allows you to post videos that you can either add to your story or send to individuals. Snapchat has become a very popular app amongst at least my students. Snapchat allows you to post a video and after the video is played, it is deleted. If you decided to save the video the original user gets notified of it. That was the case until 3rd party apps like Sneakaboo. Sneakaboo (Lewis Painter, 2017) allows you to get a bunch of coins when you first get the app which are spent on saving photos and videos, and once they’re gone, you have to pay (with real money) for more.
Most used apps for teens
Tom. Uploaded 2015
In the end peers, porn and predators can become the same
person. One of the things I have to
remind girls every year is that any picture of them in various stages of
undress can land their friends in big trouble.
The question I ask you is:
How do you project teenagers from something that you don’t
even know about?
How can you stay up on new technologies when they are
constantly changing?
The questions you pose are really hard ones to address because it is so hard to know what you don't know! I think you hit the nail on the head to address this a bit more as a global issue. I know in my current position as an academic adviser, I have to have conversations with students about making good choices now that won't hurt their future. A police department isn't going to want to hire someone that has pictures of them doing illegal things out on the internet! In my experience, talking about consequences like this one has helped because it has made them take a moment and think about how an action they take - no matter the technology being used, can affect their future.
ReplyDeleteAll that being said, as a former teenage girl, I know it is all easier said than done! There are so many things changing and happening with self esteem and feeling connected, that it may be hard for them to think or want to think about those consequences.
Hi Steve, as a preservice educator, and parent, I often ask myself these questions. As both, I think it is crucial to be open and honest with children and teenagers. The Internet is no longer something that can be avoided. I remember that as a teenager, my parents simply didn't own a computer. With how intertwined our lives are to smartphones, tablets, and computers, this approach is no longer an option. Instead, we must have candid conversations with young people about the negative implications tied to Internet over-sharing. It would also help if adults took on the same responsibility-your online presence is a reflection of yourself. I am careful of what I share, try to be discreet, keep my accounts private, and am selective of whom I allow to follow me. Just some of these simple safeguards can be useful to people of all ages. In addition, educators and parents can ask questions, and maybe even use some of these apps that "youngsters" are using. Young people love to talk, you just have to start the conversation.
ReplyDeleteLacey I think you are doing the absolute right thing when you say that you are telling the students you have conversations with that what they put on the Internet can hurt them. I think that the problem is as you get younger the less you think about the future and the even less you think about the consequences. I really do appreciate your insight as a former teenage girl. I can only think of the mindset of a teenage boy and even though I teach many teenage girls I make sure, they know I do not know EVERYTHING that is going on in their lives when it comes to peer-pressure.
ReplyDeleteRenata, I think I can say that you and Lacey had the same idea. It is all about having conversations with our students. I think more importantly they absolutely need to be candid conversations. I have found that trying to be nice when having a conversation like this usually does not get the information across. Sometimes you just need to be blunt and tell the truth as you see it. Renata, just like you I am careful what I post. I am able to be careful with what I post and who I allow to follow me because I do not need many new friends. Social circles now work by “who do you follow” or “who follows you.” When I asked my students in the beginning of the year how many people do they follow that they personally do not know everyone raised their hand. When I asked them the same question and eliminated celebrities, they all kept their hand up.
I guess when we look at it as educators this is going to be a constant chase to catch up to our students to make sure we can steer them in the right direction. Unlike most subject areas, we are not going to have every answer and know everything about the topic. I know my parents are just happy they use Facebook but we need to make sure we know everything that our students / children can be on and how exactly it works. The tough part is that once we get settled in whatever the new app is the next app will come out that we need to monitor.