Whoa, so all of the reading about "identity" and who we are and the changing of hats and who we are expected to be just came to a halt when I was checking my e-mail (definitely NOT procrastinating doing my homework, no, no!) and felt for the very first time like I was cyber-bullied! A day care parent must have put on a red hat with horns before she sat down to write me the message and it left me wondering what got into her...do I really even know her - alter ego apparently.
My first response was to think of this parent as I know her through our daily interactions of drop-off and pick-up and our funny antidotes (her daughter proclaiming that her favorite vegetable is a jelly bean) that we exchange and the big achievements (little "insert name" washed her hands without being reminded after using the potty today-hooray) that we share...we communicate openly and work together as a team to provide the best care possible for her child. That is the identity that I relate to this parent, but I saw a very different side when I read her e-mail, which brings me to the role identity plays online and within the issues of "screen mean" people. I think everyone is prone to this syndrome, the whole idea that it is easier to say something rude or cutting when you are typing away, feeling frustrated or angry and then you hit "send" and it's too late - you cannot take it back! This is an example of people not thinking as clearly when they react to a situation since their "identities are hidden behind a computer screen" (Elizabeth Winchester). I am probably especially riled about this too because I have been reading up on the topic and came across the above quoted article in Time for Kids and then an article in Teen Voices, that reminded Internet users to "Be ethical: Maintain the same behavior online as in real life. Sometimes people forget that there's a human being on the other side of the computer, and they think that there is a lower standard of ethics or personal behavior acceptable in cyberspace" (Teen Voices).
I feel like the example of the day care parent turned rude and mean behind the shield of a computer screen could translate into a teen doing the same - either easing the ability to bully peers at a safe yet still invasive distance or also for teens who are identified one way to experiment with and exhibit different personas...anyway, I've gone off on a tangent but most simply said:
I think that modern teens who are struggling with the formation of their identity and consumed by others' perceptions of them are faced with very different challenges than I was as a teen 15+ years ago...although the Internet can act as a forum for positive creative expression (The Digital Girls project cited in Literacy & Identity) and identity exploration, it can also serve as a space to experiment with less desirable or more risky identities which can prove hurtful or damaging in a lot of ways. I know that cyber-bullying is a problem that is definitely on the radar of many schools and parents but unfortunately it is one that is difficult to monitor, so this is an important issue to raise with teens and have accessible information about.
Works Cited:
Winchester, Elizabeth. High-Tech Bullies. Time for Kids, April, 2007.
Jean-Baptise, Christa and Jatara Gray, eds. Caught in the Web: What You Need to Know about Online Safety. Teen Voices, vol. 15,no. 2, 2007.
Williams, Bronwyn T. Literacy & Identity - Girl Power in a digital world: Considering the complexity of gender, literacy, and technology. Journal of Adolescent & Adult Literacy, vol. 50, no. 4, 2006/2007.
1 comment:
A couple of things come to mind as I read this post. First, it's not just teens who behave badly online. Adults do it too.
Also, in some respects, teens have more opportunity to learn how to behave well in online environments. Teachers, librarians, parents, etc. can take it upon themselves to talk with teens about good and bad behavior - can't really do that with your day care parent. The more chances teens have to talk about this the more they'll remember it when the time comes to make a choice about behavior. And, of course it is a choice!
Post a Comment