Kim's Journal # 9

JOURNAL # 9
My Space or Yours
By Joanne Barrett

This article was very informative. I knew that social networking was big deal, but I had no idea that about 90 million people are My Space users. Joanne Barrett does an excellent job of highlighting the appeal of social networking sites, but she balances that appeal with some common problems of use. The author maintains that with any form of technology there will be some positives and some negatives. She also gives some history or an overview of some of the most popular sites including My Space, Facebook, LinkedIn, and Friendster.
Social networking sites were created for various reasons. Some were created to keep in touch with friends and others were designed to meet new friends. One was created to share music, and another was meant just for the college crowd. The growing popularity with social networking ultimately transcended to high school students. With that transition came a number of concerns. Safety was the number one issue.



QUESTION # 1

What can teachers due to help keep students safe when using social networking sites?

Teachers can first educate themselves on what the students are using. Then, they can teach them ways of using that technology appropriately. Teachers could introduce the students to Netiquette and present an Internet Safety Course that would make the students aware of the dangers of the Internet and ways to keep them safe.


QUESTION # 2

Is your personal information protected when using social networking sites?

Some sites take as much precaution as possible, but the truth is, once your information is out there, there is a possibility that it will be compromised.