Monday, July 20, 2009

Do the Benefits Outweigh the Dangers?

Here it is, 9:00 PM and I can just start my homework. Before diving back in to this blogging stuff, I wanted to check my Yahoo account, and what did I find on the Yahoo homepage? Something very scary in reference to our New Literacies:  READ THE ARTICLE

We are treading dangerous waters these days and it's vital that we also help students understand the ramifications of these new skills. Not only do they need to be careful what they post about themselves, they need to understand what crosses the line into the privacy of others.

With that said, I just discovered something equally amazing for the good. Having learned how to insert a hyperlink  today in class on a PC, I didn't have the first idea how to do so on my beloved Mac. Since my daughter's boyfriend is a computer whiz (thank goodness!), I went to ichat to see if he was online (thank goodness, again!), and asked if he could help me.

He asked a couple questions and suddenly a little box popped onto my screen and asked if I would allow him to 'screen share' with me. I accepted, and he was talking to me in real time AND moving my mouse around all the way from Athens, Ohio! He showed me on my screen how to make the hyperlink and it all took minutes. Unbelievable.

 I thought I was pretty computer savvy and discovered that I sure have A LOT to learn :-)

1 comment:

  1. I think your comment about privacy issues is a very relevant one. Kids don't understand just how 'big' the cyberworld is and aren't always the best decision makers. Unfortunately, one bad decision haunts you a lot longer in this cyber-climate.

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