Having only been out of school for two and half years which doesn’t feel very long it is interesting to identify how the digital landscape has changed about social media. I never found myself using twitter very much however the use of snapchat Facebook and BBM was incredibly relevant. However, they were almost never from a teaching perspective. Given our current digital age it is almost unavoidable to bring social media to education.
One of the largest issues faced at schools is cyber bullying. This is not a new concept and has been widely spoken about for many years. Out of the multiple social media platforms available twitter is the least authentic given the sign-up experience to require very little information. It also very easy for someone to publicly demonise another person’s profile whilst hiding behind a false façade. This is not limited to students either, figures show more than 1/5th of cyberbullying is directed at teachers. When posting through a false profile there are very few repercussions although many of the false negative comments posted due to being public can be incredibly detrimental to the victims. (Paton. 2014). Given the widespread fear promoted by inauthentic social media profiles it has made many education official/teachers really question whether they should use social media or not. Furthermore it has led to expedited increase in privatising teacher’s social media accounts to prevent the spread misconduct.
(@Sylviaduckworth/teachthought, 2015)
Relating this back to topic 2 regarding multiple online identities, when it comes to ethical dilemma within social networks such as twitter, I believe given the anonymity available many people would start to ignore their moral compass as they believe that they aren’t being abusive but rather an online identity is responsible for their actions. This relates to the privacy issues brought up by Glen Greenwald within his ted talk where he goes on to talk about how there is a misconception that only those with something to hide wish to remain anonymous.
(I have trimmed this video below however for the if you wish to see the whole speech the link has been referenced. (Greenwald. 2014))
Justine Sacco’s tweet has been of relevance for me for the last few blog entries (Ronson, 2015). I have read how Justine’s online persona has become far more relevant than her actual one to the point where it has over taken her life. Tweeting through twitter with a public account provides you with a public platform. Being online does not weaken that public platform but rather intensifies it given the overall reach of twitter.
When looking at this topic I believe I cannot really summarise it in 400 or so words. Ethics is an incredibly complex and versatile issue however from my current understanding through multiple sources is that social networking if used maliciously can remove ethical dilemmas from many people given their anonymity. However if not does effective can not only ruin you online persona but also your public identity.
(467 Words)
References:
(Ascd.2011) – http://www.ascd.org/publications/newsletters/policy-priorities/vol17/num04/Students-Like-Social-Media.aspx
(TeachThought Staff .2015)- http://www.teachthought.com/pedagogy/should-teachers-use-twitter-this-flowchart-says-probably/
(G.Paton. 2014) – http://www.telegraph.co.uk/education/educationnews/10777369/School-pupils-trolling-teachers-with-vile-abuse-on-Facebook-and-Twitter.html
(G.Greenwald. 2014) – http://www.ted.com/talks/glenn_greenwald_why_privacy_matters#t-94891
Living and Working on the Web 
Hey! Thanks for your post! I thought your introduction to your piece was great as you mentioned what types of social media were relevant to you and it made your post seem personal. The “students like social media” graphic you included was very eye-catching but also included many interesting and insightful statistics. I was shocked to find out 1/5 of cyberbullying is aimed at teachers. This was a part of cyberbullying i had not considered in my own blog post. Do you think increasing the use of social media in schools for educational use would increase these problems? and do you think schools are teaching students about the dangerous of the internet? Id love to know your thoughts. I think to improve your posts you could try to create your own graphics as you have included lots of great info and this may make it even more exciting to read.
Kind Regards
Cherie
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Hi Cherie, Thanks so much for taking the time to read my post and I am glad that you enjoyed it. Looking to the first point you made regarding the increased use of social media in schools. I feel that due to the wide spread nature of social media it is unavoidable and the educational system must take note of how the world has changed. By being aware of social media and introducing it into the educational system it far better prepares students for the future. I do however understand that not all students are throughout taught on the dangers and impacts of social media. This is an area that must be addressed due to the impact fullness that social media carries. This must be done in conjunction with using social media. Showing both the benefits and disadvantages whilst ensuring that students understand how to use social media in a safe, effective and mature way.
Many thanks,
Ausaf
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