Sunday, November 6, 2016

Digital Etiquette

Are students aware of others when they use technology? Do students realize how their use of technology affects others?

I think it depends on the student and what we mean by “aware”. I think in terms of being aware of others online, I think many are. Cyberbullying is a big issue in today’s world, but the reports of online harassment and cyberbullying are lower than expected. Per the Pew report, about one-third of students report experiencing online harassment. This number is not low, but most students are not reporting it, which implies that most users are aware of others and their feelings. Looking at being aware of others physically around them when they are using technology, I believe that many students are not aware of what is going on around them while they are absorbed by what they are doing online. There is a lot of negative talk about students and technology, but the numbers show that students are much more aware of their technology use and its effects than we are giving them credit for. I also believe that students can be much more aware than they currently are and we should strive to increase awareness.

In my article, a situation is discussed where a Northwest ISD student wrote an online book that details violence and potential murders of several students who go to the same school. Parents are upset that the student who wrote the book could stay at the school. I think that this could have been prevented with education of students about digital etiquette and having a strong policy in place for dealing with issues of cyberbullying like this. The school district should allow the students affected to transfer if they are not going to remove the student who wrote the book from school.

References:

No comments:

Post a Comment