Blog Reflection: Module 4

Some people have strong feelings about being in the public domain (meaning their pictures, thoughts, interests... can be potentially accessed by people they don't know). Explain your feelings? How do we address these concerns as teachers and role models? How do we teach this?
There is a general consensus that digital technology is revolutionizing communication in many ways. Both adults and children communicate with friends through email, text-messaging or social networking sites. Of course, there are many positive aspects of online communication, however, unfortunately, there are also negative sides to being in the public domain. People who use online social networks to share personal thoughts, information about themselves, to post a picture, or write a comment, need to know that they are in the public domain; it is best for them to remember that there is a possibility that their personal information will be viewed by both invited and uninvited viewers. It is interesting to note that more and more people are of the opinion that a person has to assume that anyone can see his/her FaceBook account. Keeping this in mind might stop a person from crossing the line, that is, saying something that s/he might regret, later; for example, making public something that should have been kept private (perhaps, during a person’s reckless teenage years) could jeopardize that person’s chance of a positive outcome at a job interview.
Not only students, but also teachers need to see the importance of being sure of what they share and how they share online; they need to understand how people are perceived through what they share online. Already, some teachers have been removed or suspended from school for their MySpace postings containing inappropriate content for educators. Does this indicate that, at the end of the day, the lessons for the development of responsibility and cyber-safety that need to be taught to students also need to be shared with teachers? Perhaps, training in this area should be included in the teachers’ professional development; in this way, teachers will require a higher degree of accountability for online communications, and will become role-models for students.
The challenges posed by the new technologies, for example, issues such as people’s rights, privacy, integrity and security, strongly indicate the need for policymakers and educators to collaborate in finding solutions to protect privacy and online data, to eliminate cybercrime such as cyber-bullying, and to maintain a high level of security.
Of all the mediators that influence children (including teachers, parents, peers, and the mass media), parental interaction is the most important for online safety, therefore, perhaps the most critical lessons should be mastered at home and children should enter schools pre-trained in privacy protection. On their part, teachers should include social networking activities as part of the curriculum, thus maintaining a high level of student integrity and overall online security.
Food for thought …
- Is there a need for re-teaching the meanings of known words such as “privacy”, “security” and “integrity” in the light of the new connotations they are developing in the Digital Age?
- One outcome of dealing with this issue could be the drafting of an internationally-agreed upon policy strongly advising against inappropriate communication through any social networking sites.
- Most parents believe that their children disclose too much personal, and sometimes, false information online through Web sites or chat rooms. Perhaps, children up to a certain age should be required to obtain parental permission before disclosing their personal information online.
All in all, without a doubt, there is a pressing need to develop effective privacy education for all who enter the world of online communication; online communication is an essential tool in twenty-first century education, therefore, rather than blocking or censoring online communication, users of these tools should be trained in the areas of online integrity, accountability, mutual respect, the meaning of privacy and maintaining security.