because of my job and the fact that i have a 14 year old son, i need to keep up with technology. specifically, new applications, social networking sites and how to monitor information coming into our home computers. the truth is, i enjoy this. i think i enjoy it because i'm not afraid of new technology and trust it. growing up, i vividly remember my mother not trusting the calculator. she had the ability to solve problems quickly in her head, and needless to say, the calculator always made a mistake. it was technology's fault.
but i digress...the point is, accepting or welcoming change seems to get more difficult as we get older. i'm not a tech whiz by any means - but i'm thoroughly excited by all the new technological possibilities available. i love facebook and linkedin...the jury is still out on twitter. i've come to love blogs and follow several. when francis bacon said, knowledge is power i would have liked the next thought to be: and then fear disappears.
we are living in a world with information available 24/7. with the technology to speak with people face-to-face online at no cost. with the ability to write something in an email or post on facebook that will hurt another person or your future, or just make you look foolish. we are dealing with very powerful tools and as adults we make mistakes. we need to learn as much as we can to try to avoid these mistakes. more importantly, we need to learn about it so we can teach children or at least be able to answer their questions. not allowing children to take advantage of the positives, with the hope that they will then avoid the negatives, is not keeping up.
some helpful tips that you can discuss with your kids:
- when posting a status update on facebook, think: would i say this out loud to the principal at my school?
- when choosing a picture of yourself to put online, think: would my grandparents be proud to show it to their friends?
- when writing an email that is slightly controversial, pick up the phone or speak in person.
wwcd: as a parent it's a choice not to like new music, but it's a waste to withhold the future
A few things come up for me as I read this - one is that for some people power only leads to more fear, fear of losing power being foremost. A second thing is that often times people do not mind thinking of themselves offending someone else in the moment that they are rushing to say or do something offensive. It is really only later that they realize the harm in it - not just to others but to themselves. This is especially true of kids. People can even convince themselves that there is something cutting edge or cool about their rudeness or ugliness, at least for a while.
ReplyDeleteAnd then there is the matter of responsibility, just straight up. We will make mistakes and if we acknowledge that mistakes can come from lack of understanding, we can own up to that. If we make mistakes because we don't want to take the time to be responsible at the time, then it is hard to reconcile later with the mess made.
I am happy as I read that you love the new next thing... all tempered by your interest in investigating its real usefulness.