Growing up online

The video Growing Up Online was shocking to me and made me more fearful for the safety of youth.  Growing up I participated in facebook and MySpace but not until I was a junior in high school, now kids are online at younger and younger ages.  I didn’t really think about it before but my little brother created his facebook account when he was only twelve and at that age a kid doesn’t necessarily know the dangers and predators that can be out there. The amount of information and sites a person can get into scares me a little because one wrong move could get one into a little trouble.  I just got a new phone and after watching this video it made me think how easy social networking has become. My new phone has buttons to bring one straight to facebook, IMs, MySpace, and Twitter; it is ridiculous how easy it has become.  Technology like this can consume a person, this video made me think about how technology has impacted my skills and communication.  I didn’t have texting until last year and I was perfectly fine without it, now I would be lost without it.  It is scary how dependent a person can be upon technology, because when I don’t have mine I’m lost.  There was some parts in the broadcast that made me want to cry because they were horrible things that America’s youth was doing online. The site where teens learn “healthy” ways to be anorexic, binge, and chatted about it by calling it Anna was horrifying. I can’t believe people can encourage something like that and that children have access to it.   Also, the website that people put in information about them and found out the best way to commit suicide was terrifying.  This makes me think how important it is for young learners to know what is out there and to have what they can access on the internet monitored.  Now it is essential for children to know what to share, to weed out bad sites, and know what is safe.   As a teacher I think that it is important to teach children manners, social behaviors, and safety in everyday life. Since now in order to prepare children for the outside world we need to incorporate technology into their education and everyday lives; this means the same skills they need to be taught for the outside world they need to be taught for the internet.  The internet is a world inside itself because of the plethora of tools, games, information, and networking that can be done in it. In my class room I think it will be very important to teach the children about good online manners. This will be done through the incorporation of internet in the classroom. Even though I want a younger classroom this still can be done by projecting it on a screen for the class and using websites to show information. I may also use social networking tools like a blog to communicate with parents which will be passed down to their children through demonstration. Overall, this video has taught me how essential it is to be aware of what learner are doing online and to teach them internet skills.