In light of the horrendous story of the Massachusetts' girls whose Facebook pictures were plastered all over a child pornography site, I watch as educators and others alike cringe at the mention of 'social media' or 'Facebook.' (Click this Fox News link for background on the story: http://www.foxnews.com/us/2012/02/16/massachusetts-teen-girls-facebook-photos-put-on-porn-site/). However, is it the social media that is horrendous in these cases or is it the user? Do schools teach etiquette on the Web or is it expected that they know it? Are students allowed to access social media in the confines of classroom or are they only allowed to access it in the freedom of their home?
With cases of inappropriate uses of social media covering the news, educators and administrators have been placing more and more restrictions on such sites. However, have the instances actually happened at school? Usually not. Will students continue to access the sites at home? Yes.
So, what can educators, parents, and administrators do? They can teach students how to make it something good, something useful, something life-altering.
Social media is what you make it. It is not innately bad. So, let's use it to create engaging, inspiring lessons that change the future of education.
Check out this article on eSchoolNews on ways students can make social media effective: http://www.eschoolnews.com/2011/10/21/ten-ways-schools-are-using-social-media-effectively/?
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