|
|
I teach in a school where computers were acquired and given out to every student with no instruction other than to not break them and don't go to websites that are inappropriate. Because I am of the typewriter generation I have a healthy fear of technology, unlike my students who are of the mindset that "it will never happen to me!" if they even consider what "it" is! As educators we have a responsibility to teach digital citizen ship as a 21st Century skill, and because, frankly, we have a lot of parents who don't teach manners, respect or other social skills let alone right and wrong on the internet. As a social studies teacher I am keenly aware of the "rights" my constitution affords me but the limitations to those rights is colored with responsibilities that many citizens overlook. The concept that digital technology is a privilege not a right would be challenged by many people today. However, all "rights" are tempered by the "rights of others." That being said, I think I have expectations of both privacy and safety as norms for the internet. We in turn should expect that just as we teach "hunter safety classes", driver education, stranger danger, and social responsibilities, this new cultural phenom will require education as well--not just in HOW to use it, but how to protect ourselves and others in the process. It kind of like learning "defensive driving."
|
Locked
