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["Facing the Facebook"]

Did anyone else read the article on this by  Michael J. Bugeja?

I have to say that I think maybe the technology sensitivity meter is set a little too high here. I've logged onto facebook several times to see what all the hooplah was about, and while most of what is on there is no worse than one would find in a forum, I suppose there are a few "questionable" things.

The whole basis of the article seems to be that facebook.com is responsible for the waste of computer resources at our colleges and universities, but I don't see how tht correlation can be made at all. First of all, the only resources I might see being wasted is the bandwidth that students use when communicating, posting pictures, etc. through the univesity network. Most students have their own computers in their rooms now, so I can't see how they are wasting computing resources there (although I know that some students probably use labs for this sort of thing also). How different is it than checking e-mail repeatedly or worse, posting on these fora frequently (like several times a day for some of us).

His point about administrators using facebook as a way of discovering illegal activities by students is slightly troubling to me as well. The students log onto facebook and set up a forum with the understanding that it is intended to be used as a personal journal for friends to know whast they are doing in their lives. While I'm aware that they are doing so in a somewhat "public" setting, it is still a site that requires registration to log on, so it is not as if they are just putting it into a public blog that will be easily Googled. This whole point seems a little nasty to me, but it may just be me.

Anyway, I'd love to hear your thoughts about this article, and if any of you have been on facebook as well.

[schizo]

I made my name the subject and the subject my name. Oops.

[Fiona]

I looked at Facebook out of curiousity (posted about it a few days ago), and found it a huge time sinkhole and kinda depressing. Saw pics of my students getting drunk and prancing around, and indicating their interests in crass and illiterate prose.

Mostly it just seemed boring and shallow, but it's a long time since I've been a teen.

I think the article's point was also that students spend a huge amount of time on Facebook instead of on interacting with each other. I think that's probably true.

[%sig%]

[schizo]

Fiona, you just proved a point for me about the article though:

If the students are spending all of their time in front of the computer on facebook and not interacting with each other, then where did all of the picture of partying and "prancing around" come from? They are interacting with their peers, an what's more, they are more in contact because of facebook.

Personally, you are right; bad prose, and some very disillusioned kids. I just think the author was off of the mark though with his analysis.

[anon again]

I have heard of a case where RAs looking on facebook found evidence of underage drinking and this was used to bring conduct charges against students who had their photos there.

Whether this was a case of too much free time or a personal vendetta remains to be seen.  The question that has arisen was did the RAs flip through facebook and find something that was happening in their dorm, and they felt obligated to respone or were the RAs looking for evidence to use against someone known to be a problem.

[yedis]

Go look up your students...

It's funny.  

Not that we have time to laugh, of course.

[Sensitive Teacher]

I am now registered at facebook (with no additional info about myself though - just as a lurker) and I got very depressed when looking at a couple of "Wall" comments.

Basically, one of my students from last semester wrote to another student and said that she was happy that this student was in the class because she was more interesting than Ms. Sensitive.

That certainly wasn't ego-boosting but i could deal with it because this particular student was a curmudgeon and shallow and I didn't like her anyway.

But then the respondent (the other woman) wrote back that "yeah, i know you're happy that the class is over because now i /we can talk about how crazy that woman was"

Now, this depressed me because the respondent was someone I went out of my with to write a letter of recommendation. This person did not like our (highly ranked) college, and wanted to transfer to (lesser ranked) college near home where she now lives. She asked for rec to get on dance team and came to my office for alot of feedback etc on papers. I was very very accommodating.
To read that I'm "crazy" is a jolt. I really really want to write to these two students and tell them to be careful about what they write on Facebook, but obviously that is inappropriate.

If this student were to ever get in touch with me for another rec I would certainly refuse.

[yedis]

I think that most undergraduates consider it "crazy" to do any of the following:

[1] Get up before midday

[2] Wear clothes that are in any manner sensible

[3] Take anything seriously at all

Personally I'd take the 'crazy' comment as a compliment.

[Ms Sensitive]

yedis wrote:

> I think that most undergraduates consider it "crazy" to do any
> of the following:
>
> [1] Get up before midday
>
> [2] Wear clothes that are in any manner sensible
>
> [3] Take anything seriously at all
>
> Personally I'd take the 'crazy' comment as a compliment.


HAHAHAH, yedis.
You made me smile.
That's a nice way of looking at it.
Thanks.
My friends have told me that I take it all too seriously anyway.
Ms. Sensitive

[Ms Sensitive]

If I were to be painfully honest about myself, I'd say I am "crazy" compared to these "normal" students in that I wasn't like them even at their age. I was always more bookish, serious and committed. I'm also not married and mid-thirties and bisexual (although they don't know that, although some may think I'm queer or gay). So, some may think I'm crazy, and maybe that's a good thing.  And I always always have my pack of fans.

[TrentSands]

I also don't buy that interaction online is inferior to "real" human interaction.  This looks like a generational/cultural assumption that will be dashed by subsequent generations.

Truth is, different media contain different advantages in regard to human interaction.  In those age old personal letters, writers could convey thoughts that would be impractical to convey in person.  Email can allow something similar with an additional speed not available in letters.  Even discussion boards and instant messaging permits a different sort of human interaction that may be difficult in person.  That isn't to say that one should substitute other media in place of face-to-face communication, but, as the pics of socializing students suggests, kids are not finding a substitute in facebook; rather, it is a supplement.

[NWer]

Schizo wrote "His point about administrators using facebook as a way of discovering illegal activities by students is slightly troubling to me as well. The students log onto facebook and set up a forum with the understanding that it is intended to be used as a personal journal for friends to know whast they are doing in their lives. While I'm aware that they are doing so in a somewhat "public" setting, it is still a site that requires registration to log on, so it is not as if they are just putting it into a public blog that will be easily Googled. This whole point seems a little nasty to me, but it may just be me. "

I see facebook as the elerctronic equivalent of posting photos of yourself getting drunk or whatever on the residence hall wall.  While it's not entirely  public, it's pretty public.  Students who put up incriminating photos deserve to be busted, for stupidity if for no other reason, by their parents,  college administrators, or the police.  Let's get real here.  If something is ANYWHERE on the web, it's not private and anyone who doesn't know that is too naive to be using the web.