Is teaching children the basics of social media privacy right in schools?
Education and social media
A New York City middle school has introduced a programme for students that teaches them the basics of privacy and social media. It is a contemporary idea by the school and relevant to everyday life, but will it hinder other vital skills in a child’s development?.jpg "education and social media")
Fordham’s National Privacy Education Programme is an hour-long course for children that cover topics such as passwords, privacy, behavioural ads, social media, Wi-Fi, facial recognition, mobile devices and managing a digital reputation.
The programme could go national with many Universities jumping on board, and educators are hopeful that the course will teach the students to think about privacy when on the internet.
It is great that the education system in the USA is acknowledging the growing influence of social media, but surely to place this course in the curriculum would be a step too far?
Many children are already struggling with the basic skills such as literacy and numeracy due to the growing virtual influence that many companies have delivered, so exposing them further to it in the designated time of school would only hinder their progression in other subjects.
It is great that the education system in the USA is acknowledging the growing influence of social media, but surely to place this course in the curriculum would be a step too far?
Many children are already struggling with the basic skills such as literacy and numeracy due to the growing virtual influence that many companies have delivered, so exposing them further to it in the designated time of school would only hinder their progression in other subjects.
.jpg "education and social media")
These courses would be great as an after-school club, and there is no denying that children do need to learn the basics due to the unsavoury characters that lure online, but surely school is not the right institution to teach it?
There is a feeling that this course will be a massive success and it is easy to see why. The children will love it because of the social media element, and parents will welcome such a course as it provides their children with the means of protecting themselves online.
There are extremes on both sides of the coin when looking at social media in a child’s life, and both reflect why it is good and bad to implement this course across the USA and here in the UK.
There is a feeling that this course will be a massive success and it is easy to see why. The children will love it because of the social media element, and parents will welcome such a course as it provides their children with the means of protecting themselves online.
There are extremes on both sides of the coin when looking at social media in a child’s life, and both reflect why it is good and bad to implement this course across the USA and here in the UK.
.jpg "education and social media")
The good is obvious as we all know that social media is growing by the day, and is currently shaping the way the world communicates, so of course anything that has this big an influence should be treated with respect and therefore being implemented into education is appropriate. It keeps the parents of children happy in knowing that there are people trying to secure the privacy of millions of children who use social networking.
The negatives come from a core educational point of view, and if the course is made mainstream education then it will be in place for something else. A great deal of children already suffer with basic skills in school and this is arguably because of the growing influence of computers and video games, so to encourage more children to use social media may create a culture who have never read a book. Granted we are not at that stage yet, but already there is evidence of face-to-face communication becoming less prominent and any physical dialogue that people have tends to be less comfortable due to the lack of protection from the trusty keyboard.
It can be seen here that there are two sides to the arguments, and although there are negative ways to look at this course, ultimately there must be an acceptance that this type of education is now warranted as the children of the world are wired in a way that requires them to build their reputation online as opposed to the real world (whatever that is).
The negatives come from a core educational point of view, and if the course is made mainstream education then it will be in place for something else. A great deal of children already suffer with basic skills in school and this is arguably because of the growing influence of computers and video games, so to encourage more children to use social media may create a culture who have never read a book. Granted we are not at that stage yet, but already there is evidence of face-to-face communication becoming less prominent and any physical dialogue that people have tends to be less comfortable due to the lack of protection from the trusty keyboard.
It can be seen here that there are two sides to the arguments, and although there are negative ways to look at this course, ultimately there must be an acceptance that this type of education is now warranted as the children of the world are wired in a way that requires them to build their reputation online as opposed to the real world (whatever that is).
Alex Smith
Alex is an English Literature and Sociology undergraduate whose love for written word has led him to write about some obscure topics in his time. Currently an intern at Social Media Frontiers, be sure to follow him @AlexSatSMF
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Is teaching children the basics of social media privacy right in schools?
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Friday, April 04, 2014
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Reviewed by Unknown
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Friday, April 04, 2014
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