I was a teenager in the late 2000’s. Facebook was pretty new, there was Tumblr, Myspace and online chat rooms, as well as MSN messenger. Most of the conversation was around ‘stranger danger’ and not to talk to people that we didn’t know. There was a lot of conversations about not meeting people from the internet in real life. Digital citizenship wasn’t much of a thing at that point yet and was never discussed in schools/at home. A lot of friendships and relationships were built and destroyed over MSN messenger, I assume a lot like how Snapchat is used today.
There were a lot of scare tactics in play, but a lot of focus was on how to use the internet appropriately. We did lots of online research, resume-building, typing skills, how to use Excel, etc. I remember making a website for a project in one of my classes and that was really fun!
Because social media was in the early stages, there wasn’t much conversation about digital citizenship. I remember Facebook being a place where all sorts of pictures were posted in albums from parties and people were shown in less flattering or compromising situations. There was a clout factor about being in an album from a party.
Some conversations were starting about how what is posted online will be around forever and could affect our future, but we didn’t pay much mind to it.
I think the focus on the internet’s abilities to help our work was extremely beneficial.
I try to use the internet and technology frequently in my classes. I have used websites like Flipgrid to create online community, which gives the opportunity for students to explore social media in a safe way. I encourage them to comment on each others’ posts and am able to remove inappropriate messages (and then discuss with students how to post appropriately!). I also work hard as an Arts Educator to ground students in real world experience most of the time, with technology as an extra sprinkle.
What I would like to pursue is having students contact people online – such as authors, researchers, etc, and ask questions or create dialogues with experts. Teaching about proper digital citizenship is so important to students right now who have so much access to the internet and not a lot of guidance on how to use it!
Hey Kelsey,
I really like your extension of having students learn about more formal online correspondence! I remember learning to write a business letter, how to email your principal, etc. in high school and thinking it was super boring, but now I write formal emails all the time as part of my old job (journalism) and my current job (teacher). The art of letter (or email writing) isn’t dead, no matter how much communication has shifted to instant messaging, video conference, and LMSs like Edsby.
Hey Kesley,
I like hearing about how different things were even just a few years before I was a teenager, learning about the same things! I am not much of a social media person, but I can relate to the MSN messenger/snapchat ruining or creatin friendships!
I wish I were taught to use excel in school because as a to-do list and organizational junkie, I feel like I could really utilize excel! I’m going to have to keep your idea of utilizing the internet as a means to contact and garner advice from experts in mind, as I think this is a great avenue to explore while teaching digital citizenship.
MSN Messenger brings me back! I like how you made the connection to kids using Snapchat nowadays. It is very true. I hadn’t learned about digital citizenship until this class, and I think it is beneficial to teach students using this method. Children (and adults) need to learn how to use technology in a way that is healthy and safe for everyone.
I don’t think I’ve ever used Flipgrid before, so I will have to check it out! I love finding new resources that I can use in my future classroom.