Long, C. (2007). I Need My Space!. NEA Today, 25(7), 38-40.

Summary
Even though this article is less 'scholarly' than my other choices, I chose to blog about it because I thought it might be interesting to see how this widely-used piece of technology is discussed in a journal that many teachers read. The first half of the article focused on how students are using this social networking website, as well as some of the problems that have developed because of it. The uses discussed were as expected: keeping in touch with friends, expressing their individuality, cultivating creativity. However, the author did quote a surprising (to me) statistic--that more than half of American kids online use social networking sites. The difficulties that schools have encountered as a result of MySpace include 'impostor pages' posted about teachers and administrators and student postings that instigate or exacerbate issues between students. Students also don't seem to understand the dangers of posting incriminating pictures of themselves--pictures that anyone can see, including potential colleges, employers, or predators. It was the second half of the article that made me think to include it here--the author discussed how one school is addressing the 'MySpace issue' by explicitly teaching students to utilize social networking sites in a safe manner. The teacher uses sample pages and profiles to help initiate discussions in class about students using sites like these without putting themselves at risk. The reader is left with the feeling that these sites can be a positive thing for students, but students need to be taught how to use them.

Response
I thought it was interesting how this article addressed something we talked about in class last week--the assumption we make about students knowing how to use the technology they're using. However, I was thinking about that more in terms of educational technology. This article takes that one step further--teaching students about technology that really has little educational value, but is obvioulsy a huge part of many students' lives outside of school. While I can certainly see the reasoning behind educating students about the dangers of misusing this technology and showing them safer ways to use it, it's interesting to see technology education expanding to include this type of non-educational technology. On a personal level, I always find it interesting to get a better idea of what my students are doing with technology, and reading this gave me a little insight into what kids think about this site. I think I've generally dismissed it as kind of a passing trend, but it seems to be a much larger force in students' lives than I realized.