Re: [LM_NET] Website that lets kids access myspace, etc

[Paula Yohe <paula_yohe@YAHOO.COM>]

I agree 100% David

The kids don't know much about privacy and really have
not clue about alot of dangers on the Internet.

This is one of the main reasons I allow kids to ask to
have websites unblocked

When they ask about Facebook, Myspace, etc.
I tell them why the site is blocked during the school
day. And some of the reasons are: the State pays for
Internet use and it is for instruction. I also tell
them they should talk to their parents, teacher,
guidance counselor or media specialist about using
these sites on the Internet.
I send some links to articles on problems real
students have had with these websites and finally I
send them to the links on my website for kids about
Internet safety.

I also use bulk email to send short tidbits on using
the Internet, email, etc.

I am in the process of setting up Moodle and am going
to use for Wiki, blogs, and then move to try and let
students do their own thing -- with oversight -- and
safety
I hope
I am in the process of putting together procedures for
these things --
and if most recall I asked for others procedures
I had alot of responses but they were for me to post a
hit.

So I guess that means I will be writing one - and will
post when finished


--- "Wee, David" <dwee@HW.COM> wrote:

> Hello,
>  
> I've been trying to avoid weighing in on all of
> these discussions, but I can't resist joining this
> one.
>  
> Paula's point about lack of educational use for My
> Space or Facebook is well taken as I have not yet,
> personally, seen or heard of any examples of
> educational uses of either.  I had some teachers
> interested in trying to use social networking to do
> a project, but we could not find a social networking
> platform that met our Administration's comfort level
> for privacy, etc.  so the project went in another
> direction.  
> 
> That being said, however, I also cannot agree with
> some educators' knee jerk responses to the
> MySpace/Facebook issue that effectively amount to
> pretending that social networking doesn't exist.
> Banishing social networking from the kingdom doesn't
> mean that students aren't accessing and using them
> and unless we ask we won't ever know what kids are
> ACTUALLY doing with them.  It is very much an
> emerging technology.  In the book Wikinomics, Don
> Tapscott gives numerous examples of ways that
> corporations from Boeing to BMW to Geek Squad, are
> BEGINNING to use collaborative computing and
> communication platforms to change the way that they
> do what their work.  As educators we need to
> understand that our students are doing the same
> kinds of things. Believe me, I AM NOT one of those
> people who immediately wants to go set up my
> library's Facebook profile, but I AM saying that we
> need to make a serious effort to understand HOW kids
> are using technology so we know what policies will
> be right for our institutions. 
> 
> I know, for example, that even though we provide
> school e-mail accounts, that students in our school
> are, indeed, organizing themselves into study groups
> for courses that they set up themselves in Facebook.
>  I don't know numbers or percentages, but students
> I've asked confirm that, that is indeed happening. 
> For many (but by no means all) Facebook is their
> online communication medium of choice. 
> 
> In the interest of full disclosure, we banned access
> to Facebook and MySpace in our library very early on
> a few years ago as kids DID spend unreasonable
> amounts of time surfing profiles so there might be
> very legitimate reasons to block access to Facebook
> and My Space.  I just don't want to see us chuck the
> baby out with the bathwater and just because
> blocking access was right two years ago, doesn't
> mean that blocking them now is still the right thing
> to do.  Indeed, if we revisit our policy and decide
> that blocking is still right, that won't mean that
> blocking will be right two years from now.  The
> technology is emergent and changing so I think that
> it only makes sense that our policies are the same. 
> 
> 
> Personally, I also worry that students are woefully
> informed about privacy. I have found that some of my
> middle schoolers have some very wrong perceptions
> about Facebook networks which makes them very ill
> prepared to make good privacy choices.  Perhaps
> there is NOTHING wrong with Facebook Beacon, but I
> have serious reservations that a majority of my kids
> know enough to make that determination for
> themselves well.  If I choose to ignore the
> existence of social networks, I see very few other
> people on campus who are well equipped to educate
> them.  If anything, I'd like every other adult on
> campus to be able to talk to kids about this issue
> and the way that I see it, FINDING a way to use
> social networking in school might be the best way to
> make that dialog happen.
> 
> Just my 150 cents.
> 
>  
> Dave Wee, Librarian
> Harvard-Westlake Middle School
> 700 North Faring Road
> Los Angeles, CA 90077
> dwee@hw dot com
> 
> "The fact that she had a nut for a head made it hard
> for her mind to grasp new ideas."
> ~~ Miss Hickory, Carolyn Sherwin Bailey, 1946 ~~
> 
> ________________________________
> 
> From: School Library Media & Network Communications
> on behalf of Paula Yohe
> Sent: Fri 11/30/2007 4:12 PM
> To: LM_NET@LISTSERV.SYR.EDU
> Subject: Re: [LM_NET] Website that lets kids access
> myspace, etc
> 
> 
> 
> LOL Nancy I can't wait for someone to tell you
> myspace
> is an educational activity.
> And then I can't wait for the next posting where
> someone is bound to say -- I have academic freedom.
> 
> And I want those folks who seem to think that
> anything
> goes -- need to start looking at the bandwidth
> 
> My next biggest complaint is the Internet is so
> slow.
> Well when have the place is trying to watch American
> Idol -- download music - etc. it takes up bandwidth
> and heaven forbid when you try to block it or limit
> the bandwidth.
> I actually have adults complaining to me about how
> slow some of the things they are trying to do are
> and by gosh -- I just didn't know that watching TV
> shows in an office was work related -- but hey -
> let's
> remeber free and unfettered Internet access.
> 
> I would love to - but with 4000 users and a 10mg
> circuit -- hey you just can't do everything --
> It;s kind of like getting your paycheck -- you have
> so
> much money and you have to prioritze what is more
> important...
> Is that a radical concept? --
> 
> SInce I am a librarian I block as little as possible
> and have a different filters for different age
> groups/
> 
> I have traffic monitoring software in place -- and
> when the traffic starts hitting 50% or more - I look
> to see what sites are taking up bandwidth
> 
> And for just once - I would like to see it be
> instructional -- instead - I find -- radio stations,
> TV shows, on-line college classes that teachers are
> taking, etc.
> 
> I also allow teachers and students to request to
> have
> websites unblocked and they are normally unblocked
> in
> a matter of a few minutes unless there is an
> emergency
> and everyone in my office is away from their desks.
> 
> SOmetimes legitimate sites have been blocked - but
> inthe majority of cases -- the website was spelled
> wrong -- or they tried to guess at what the website
> should be --
> and I go and find the correct website and copy and
> paste the URL into the email.
> 
> Legitimate sites that I have found blocked -- have
> been very few.
> 
> Now I know that is not the case in alot of places --
> it takes alot of time and effort to provide this
> much
> flexibilty...
> And I think because I am a librarian -- I take the
> time to do it --
> but alot of folks aren't librarians and one size
> fits
> all for them.
> 
> I disagree but before you start crtiticizing the IT
> staff - you need to find out how many staff members
> they have - how many computers are in the district,
> what type of access to the Internet does your
> district
> have, how many servers, how many software
> applpications --
> SOmetimes you have to choose --
> If you have a very small staff --and alot of servers
> and software applications -- you are going to spend
> your time there -- the most people you can keep
> functioning.
> 
> Try to remember those things when you start
> criticizing yout IT dept.
> 
> --- Nancy Willard <nwillard@CSRIU.ORG> wrote:
> 
> > The reason students should not be accessing
> MySpace
> > and the like from
> > schools is that is not an educational activity.
> > Internet use in school
> > should be for educational purposes. Further there
> > are some liability risks -
> 
=== message truncated ===


Paula Yohe
Director Of Technology/Library Media Center
Dillon School District Two
405 West Washington Street
Dillon, SC 29536
Phone: 843-841-3604 Fax:843-774-1214
paula_yohe@yahoo.com


      
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