Our Blog: where do you stand?

Jennifer says:

Wed, June 03, 2009 at 12:05:pm

In my own family, those over 50 tend to use Facebook to keep up with younger family members.  They do not use it to keep up with their peers.  On a related note, Facebook has become a popular tool for 30-something teachers in my children’s school to use to form relationships with parents.  I wonder if there is educational value to this?

Nancy S Larson says:

Wed, June 03, 2009 at 7:46:pm

I believe that communication between parents and teachers is VERY important.  It can be a quick link to learning of any successes or concerns that the teacher may have concerning the student.
It can also be a reminder to the child that the parent is just a click away from hearing from their teacher.
Some children are VERY bad about getting school information home to the family.  I think that facebook could be very helpful if the family is hooked up to the internet.

Sharon says:

Thu, June 04, 2009 at 8:00:pm

I know many baby boomers who enjoy going online but do not see the benefit of social media just yet.  My mom and my aunt are total opposites.  My mom was one of the first adopters of America Online in the early 90s.  But she just doesn’t see much benefit to facebook.  My aunt on the other hand loves facebook and uses it to connect with family and share her genealogy research.

Interesting thoughts about using the internet to connect students and teachers.  I think that’s possible without facebook and that facebook is too much of a gray area.  My husband is a teacher and parents (and students) are not always good with boundaries.  We’re already a click away from hearing from parents.  I personally don’t want him to have to worry about sharing his facebook with parents as his work-life balance is already hard.

Amy Marshall says:

Tue, June 09, 2009 at 10:58:am

I think Facebook and Twitter-type social media promote a certain kind of chatty, casual, and time-sensitive interaction that may not appear as vital or enjoyable to people used to using those old-fashioned communication tools like phones. You don’t tend to have in-depth, lengthy one-on-one conversations via FB like you do on a telephone. And there’s something about airing your doings to a public audience that makes sense in the context of a “brand yourself’ era but that may feel like over-exposure to people from a more private generation with different ideas of what forms an individual identity.