Some days I joke with my husband and my friend that I am glad that I grew up in an analog world. Living in a rural area to a generation born in the 80’s, children of the 90’s, and entering adulthood in sync with the digital age. I remember what it was like to go shopping with my family without a cell phone….you could just spend the day enjoying it rather than attached to an electronic leash. That being said, I also enjoyed the freedom that technology brought as I entered college. I met my husband at 19 and most of our early years involved talking for hours via aim or AOL Instant Messenger. Facebook was in its infancy, the ipod played music and the iphone did not exist yet. The concept that someone could be bullied through the computer would have seemed crazy.
Today, that is not a crazy concept, but a problem so prevalent that the coined term “cyber bullying” is a household name. As I watch how my students respond to the pressure of social media, first as a high school teacher and now as a middle school teacher, I am scared to think about how growing up in the shadow of social media will affect them as adults. I was an honor roll student who didn’t get into that much trouble, but I shudder to think that if social media had been around when I was a teen then every bad decision, every mistake, every impulsive action or comment would be forever captured in my digital footprint.
Social issues regarding technology has become more wide-spread since the invention of social media. Even though social media is supposed to be used outside of school, the issues created by social media can very easily translate to a face to face issue in school. Feeling peer pressure, outcasted, or cyber bullied are all linked to social media. Cyber bullying is an example of a social issue that could also involve legal and ethical issues.
As a result, I am left with a few questions to explore. Help me answer them in the comments below.
How can teachers prevent cyber bullying on social media? Can a teacher legally educate students on the dangers of cyber bullying? At what point should students be educated about their digital footprint and how it can affect their future.