Honestly, I really don't like facebook or myspace, especially for kids. These sites seem to have replaced personal interaction for both kids and adults. I don't think it is detrimental for adults, but kids are still developing their personal identity. I know of kids that have developed online profiles that are totally false, i.e. 12 year olds that say they're 16. I think this is one of those things that should be closely monitored by parents. I guess my background in law enforcement has also prejudiced me against such social networks for young people due to the use of these networks by predators. Although it's probably an unpopular opinion, I don't think I would ever use this in a classroom. Having said all this, I will also admit that I was unaware of all the things available on Facebook besides discussions, i.e. games and event planners.
Vickie Moreland on Facebook.
I agree with you. I don't like the idea of FaceBook or MySpace either for teachers. We even had a speaker from the state dept. of ed. at the beginning of this school year. She was the state attorney that would represent us in the case of litigation. However, she didn't advise its use and mentioned several cases where we would have to seek our own counsel in certain situations....all of these weren't your typical bad situations either. It was an eye opening lecture in more areas than just the internet.
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