June 21, 2006
Social Networking 101
"Facebook is a cool tool," writes Tracy Mitrano, director of information-technology policy at Cornell University, in an online message to Cornell students. But the popular site, she says, "creates as many obligations as it does opportunities for expression."
In describing those obligations, Ms. Mitrano has drafted an unusually detailed statement—one that could serve as a model for other institutions looking to warn students about the perils of online social networks.
The message includes standard warnings that material posted on Facebook may end up in the hands of campus administrators or potential employers. But Ms. Mitrano also notes a fact that is perhaps less apparent: that posts left on Facebook for no more than a day or two may linger online far longer, in the easily viewable caches kept by search engines like Google.
Cornell officials do not monitor Facebook for content, nor do they give students specific guidelines on what not to post, according to the statement. But since the college is trying to stay out of the way, students must learn to think critically about their online personas, says Ms. Mitrano:
Take a moment to think about how you want to "brand" yourself on the Internet. Almost everyone is more complex of a person than a single label can explain, but for most people it takes time and effort, if not real friendship, to get to know people’s complexities. Don’t give people an excuse to think of you in a single dimensional way.Posted on Wednesday June 21, 2006 | Permalink |
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Interesting development!
— Rach Jun 21, 04:22 PM #
I think this is a great idea. More and more of our students have profiles on sites such as Facebook and MySpace. This is something universities should address during orientation for all of our new students. It is shocking to see what some of our students are posting on these sites.
— J.A. Morrow, Ph.D. Jun 22, 10:50 AM #
During a recent conference on e-Portfolios we hosted, we had employers tell us that they routinely do a Google search of all their potential employees, and students have not been hired because of information posted on the Web.
One of the issues is to determine how we get students to spend as much time on interactions which are education-related as they do on their social networking. Many students have informed us that they spend several hours per day on MySpace and/or Facebook, but little time on their course-related activities.
Despite all of the money we have spent on technology in education, it seems we still have little proof that we have substantially improved student learning. Yes, everything is more accessible, which is a positive benefit, but it seems we really need to focus much more on the pedagogical issues rather than the technology. As wireless devices become ubiquitous, and everyone has a cell phone with unlimited data capabilities, how do we utilize the evolving technology to further our educational goals?
— Craig Lending Jun 22, 12:15 PM #
The lament that students spend more time socializing than they do on schoolwork is centuries old. Technology is the newest medium for goofing off, but if it wasn’t Facebook or MySpace, it’d be those blasted video games or comic books or dime-novels. Or sex, or alcohol, or drugs. At least the new mode of goofing off can be a more effective springboard into the study of rhetoric, literacy, ethics, technology, psychology, and so forth. We can build classroom practices around Facebook, and ask students to study it through a variety of lenses.
— Val Perry Jun 22, 12:52 PM #
I think Facebook is a great medium for students to keep in touch with old friends and network with people from other schools. I do feel administrators should warn students about posting their contact information (addresses, residence hall addresses, phone numbers, etc.). I think posting this type of information can be dangerous in the long run. Similarly, I feel the new addition of high schools on facebook is also dangerous territory. It’s great because I can monitor my nephew’s page and alert his father of anything inappropriate, but having random high schoolers trying to be my friend (I’m a grad student) is more than a little unsettling.
— T. Stewart Jun 26, 08:54 AM #