Name: Tess
Home: St. Louis
Connected
I joined Facebook this morning, and, after looking at a lot of profiles of undergraduates, I'm feeling like an old lady. I had vowed not to join any more networking sites because I waste too much time on the Internet already... but then someone from my political science class sent me an invitation to a discussion tonight, and a friend from Oxford invited me to join her friends list, and I gave in. After all, if a cover story in Newsweek says grown-ups are joining, it must be okay!
I like the site much better than, say, MySpace, which has always scared me. (Too many flashing pictures! Too much music! In my day, we focused on one thing at a time.) Facebook makes me a little uneasy, possibly because although I know people from many different places now, I tend to keep them separate. Once you start contemplating all your possible audiences (much like with this blog) it becomes harder to decide how you want to present yourself.
Of course, in the past decade or so it has become much more difficult to control the flow of information; type in the right search terms and, preserved for posterity, you can find my college pontification about feminism, gay marriage, Hillary Clinton, as well as a description of an interpretive dance I did one night while pretending to be bubbling slime. (Don't ask--but if any future employers are reading this, please know that I wasn't drunk or on drugs of any kind.)
Kids these days, though, have been building up their online profiles for years by the time they get to college, which can lead to blind spots about what is or isn't appropriate. Tom came home one day asking rhetorically, "Don't students know that their professors can see their Facebook pages? If they never do the assigned reading, maybe it's not the best idea for them to admit to it." He had been participating in a discussion about the freshman summer reading program, and he was surprised to see how many students began their college careers by proclaiming online that they hadn't done the assignment.
I have no idea whether Facebook will ultimately prove useful to me, or whether I'll just hold steady with a grand total of 3 confirmed friends. And I wonder--what technological landscape will Ben face in a decade or so?
I like the site much better than, say, MySpace, which has always scared me. (Too many flashing pictures! Too much music! In my day, we focused on one thing at a time.) Facebook makes me a little uneasy, possibly because although I know people from many different places now, I tend to keep them separate. Once you start contemplating all your possible audiences (much like with this blog) it becomes harder to decide how you want to present yourself.
Of course, in the past decade or so it has become much more difficult to control the flow of information; type in the right search terms and, preserved for posterity, you can find my college pontification about feminism, gay marriage, Hillary Clinton, as well as a description of an interpretive dance I did one night while pretending to be bubbling slime. (Don't ask--but if any future employers are reading this, please know that I wasn't drunk or on drugs of any kind.)
Kids these days, though, have been building up their online profiles for years by the time they get to college, which can lead to blind spots about what is or isn't appropriate. Tom came home one day asking rhetorically, "Don't students know that their professors can see their Facebook pages? If they never do the assigned reading, maybe it's not the best idea for them to admit to it." He had been participating in a discussion about the freshman summer reading program, and he was surprised to see how many students began their college careers by proclaiming online that they hadn't done the assignment.
I have no idea whether Facebook will ultimately prove useful to me, or whether I'll just hold steady with a grand total of 3 confirmed friends. And I wonder--what technological landscape will Ben face in a decade or so?
posted by Tess | 8:56 AM
31 Comments:
If the only indication that the student didn't do the reading was a Facebook comment, how important could it have been?
It wasn't a reading for his class.... It was summer reading that all incoming freshmen were supposed to do, but at least one student made a comment on Facebook about how they didn't read it because they never do assigned reading. That sort of thing may not have a direct impact on grades in a particular class, but it's not the best way to make a good first impression on people who may be grading you and eventually writing letters of recommendation.
I can't imagine a student that never does assigned reading making very good second or third impressions on professors either.
But the point you're making is that this student shared something in public, but thought they were doing it in private. I think these kids *know* they're doing it in public, but don't think it matters. And I think, in the long run, the students are probably correct.
That student surely isn't gunning to graduate with honors, and get glowing recommendations for a professor-mentor. They're looking to get a diploma because that's what they're expected to do, for good or bad.
The kids that *do* care do the assigned reading, plus everything else -- and write about it on facebook.
mikewebkist---Even if the unfinished reading isn't a big deal, it's an example of the kind of information students aren't self-censoring very well. What if it's a rant against a teacher? Or a threat against a classmate? These public spaces can blur the line of common sense. Some people might not be affected by it, and some people might take advantage of that blur. But it's an important thing for people to consider.
I gotta say, Tess, better you than me with this Facebook thing. Maybe I'm just antisocial. :)
I think students know Facebook is public to some extent, but I'm not sure they all realize just how broad "public" can be. I was talking to one the other day who didn't seem to realize Facebook is now open to the general public.
And I'm certainly not suggesting such issues are confined to students. I've seen multiple people on Babycenter get in trouble because things they thought were more or less anonymous on internet message boards were found by friends or family who recognized the posters.
The interconnectedness of the internet may not be providing information that couldn't be gleaned elsewhere with a little detective work, but I would argue that the sheer amount of electronic information easily available about some people makes it more likely that someone will find something that, in the past, would have been perfectly appropriate when confined to a narrow audience ("Hey! Look at these pictures of us drinking last weekend!" or "My sister is driving me crazy!") but ends up being inappropriate for a broader one.
Precie--Love the new picture! It looks both artsy and intellectual.
I agree that the interconnectedness of the internet does make it very easy to leave permanent tracks -- some of which would be much better washed away. (Every so often I stumble across my own posts in old Usenet discussions: cringeworthy.)
And sure, some people don't know the extent of their online visibility, but surely when they realize it, they will think about it for a second and go right back to IMing their friends and posting cameraphone videos to youtube.
I guess the point I'm trying to make is that, from our perspective these online footprints are tremendously revealing, but for people 10 or 15 years younger than us, they've never known a world without them. We're troubled because it's different and unfamiliar, but for kids who have grown up with it, it's second nature. And to them, the benefits of this new social order far outweigh the negatives.
I agree with you, Mike... but at the same time, their professors and employers will be on my side of the generation gap, so I think it behooves kids these days to tread wisely.
The old Collegian columns I wrote--heck, anything about me in the Collegian--makes me a bit uneasy because the digital archives were created AFTER I wrote stuff or was quoted. You're right that students today have at least some awareness that an online trail will follow them around, but when I was in college I had no idea the extent to which my words would still be easily accessible (as opposed to, say, on microfiche in the basement of the library) a decade later. Would it have changed what I wrote? Maybe not. After all, if you're writing for a newspaper you should be well aware that your words are public. But it's still odd the degree to which cringeworthy past thoughts can be found with a few keystrokes.
Tess--Thanks. I felt like I needed to put up some kind of image, but I didn't want to put up a head shot. This seemed like a fair trade-off. I'm pleased that you think it's looks kinda artsy and intellectual...it was just my version of online shyness. :)
I shudder to think about what our kids will be posting on the internet when they're in college...or high school...or elementary. ACK!
But then maybe they won't need therapy because they'll have spewed all their angst and baggage online. Oy.
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