The New York Times today printed this article about blogs- Debtors Search for Discipline via Blogs . It seems that these people are putting their financial information on their blogs in order to find a support group in an effort to pay down their own dept and manage their spending habits. As I read this article I couldn't help but ask myself the obvious question...if adults are doing it and and looking at posting their spending habits online as the norm, then how can our students determine the difference between safe and unsafe blogging...and is this considered unsafe? I could not help but to play Devil's Advocate with myself, as I often do, and ask so what? So what if these people are putting their personal habits on line...so what if they think nothing of tracking their own financial trials and tribulations, even going so far as to post their net worth on line, for complete strangers. Then I began to ask myself what is the difference? Aren't I doing virtually the same thing right now? What is the difference if a student seeks support from his or her peers by blogging on "My Space"?
I am asking a lot of questions and I really don't have the answers. For me though we have to lead by example and finding support on the web is fine, the personal info is not. Our kids think nothing of posting specific facts about themselves and while I don't subscribe to the popular idea that everyone online is a predator...I do think that students will never learn where to draw the line if we do not draw it as well sometimes.
Brad
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Good article - some how most people can relate!! I agree that we need to teach kids about online etiquette but I wonder what is the standard? As I look at YouTube and MySpace, I see a whole bunch of adults who are doing things that I don't think should be posted yet there seems to be little repercussion for these people. Do we have to accept that there is a large portion of the population that enjoys, and finds nothing wrong with the videos and information that is being posted. Or, because of the newness and the desire for "15 minutes of fame" are we seeing all these posts just because it is a novel thing to do and it will ebb as the novelty wears off? Like you, I have more questions than answers in this new cyber world but I won't be doing any fence surfing and posting it in the near future, just in case!
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