We take off hats in church, watch our language when Grandma visits,
and open the doors for strangers.These are things we are taught as young
children because we live in a society where kindness and respect are
still (if at least barely) a way of life and living. We have learned
social norms for things that we understand to be respectful (as well as
disrespectful). So now, as we enter into a new digital era, why are we
not developing ways in which we are respectful on that realm?
It
seems a norm to say horrible, cruel things online because we can hide
behind our computers or fake profiles. Because the internet started
wildly, exploding in girth far beyond our initial scope, we are now
stuck with a monster of social disaster. Where are the handshakes and
the tipping of hats? Why does it seem like we are constantly seeing
"trolls" running the comment pages with horrible statements and cyber
bullying a common place thing. Have we taken our school yard tendencies
and brought them now to a place where the consequences are few, even
though our words are written, encoded and documented electronically? Now
instead of words that are called out from across the school yard, they
are plastered over forums and social media sites for not just
classmates to see, but families and strangers and the effects are far
worse and maybe even far more devastating.
It seems, then, that
now is the time to utilize our time as teachers who work extensively
online and incorporate into our classrooms an understanding of
what the web can do for us, as well as against us. Internet manners, so
to speak. Just like bullies in the school yard, there will always be
those who will use anything at their exposure to hurt others, but we can
help teach other the importance of "being nice" and why it matters in
all aspects of our lives.
How often do you feel teachers take
the time to explain the importance and consequences of a student's online
actions? Most time searching and working in the classroom is based
wholly on working on the items at hand. It would seem "common knowledge"
not to say mean things or berate others online, but we know that in the
end, when not monitored or without proper knowledge, a child/person
will easily go about their usual abusive ways. At what point do we start
off by giving "online etiquette" and is there such a thing?
Recently
a slew of extremely talented, very public and involved women in the
digital scene have been victims of harassment, ridicule and even
threatened! I usually would not use an exclamation point when just
stating a fact, but how are we in such an age of wild technological
advances, yet we still live in a barbaric age where intelligent, open women, willing to be vulnerable for the sake of education and openness become victims of such vile acts? How can we possibly call ourselves a
society when we still act like animals? Have we just jumped back to the
middle ages in regards to women's rights and respect? And at what point
did those who were bullying and harassing ever think that what they were
doing was just as horrible as saying to their face. Have we lost our
sense of reality hiding behind keyboards, feeling this false sense of
superiority, willing to send off any comment or wicked word because we
can? I believe in free speech in all sense of the term, but free speech
was not meant for you to break down the beautiful living souls who
devote their entire lives for their freedoms, your education and the
openness of the web. In the end, will these horrific statements and
harassment be what brings down the openness of the free web we so easily
take advantage of?
What happens when the web is no longer open
and free? What would be the ultimate cause of the destruction of what we
have grown to love and enjoy and use to every extent possible? The laws
that we will have to make to prevent those from being devastatingly
cruel? Do we have to go that far that we even have to make those laws?
How can we educate the next generations about the need for "niceness" on
the open web? How do we instill this sense of respect and understanding
that comes with open forums and social media? How do we show them this
when as of late, the horrific crimes are being committed just as much by
adults (if not more so) as the kids who don't think twice when spewing
out hateful words. Is it because the internet grew so fast, so wildly,
and so free that "because we can we will" online and yet when it comes to etiquette, we
don't even see that such a thing would be necessary? Like the open web
is a dark alleyway where dark dealings go down and because there are no
rules in that corner of the city, we can do as we please? Why do we
accept that as a society and let it keep happening? Yet, what can we do
to keep people from being horrible to other people? We have been this
way from the day Adam and Eve crawled out of the ooze of the swamps. It
will always be human nature to be cruel to feel superior.
So
maybe, from much younger ages, we can instill in children the same
respectable mannerisms we were taught when Grandma would visit, or when
we would walk into church. At some point we need to begin a habit of
teaching the respect that everyone, even the faceless names in forums
and blogs, deserve because even though they are just electronic
representations, behind those works and writings are still human beings
who want to cherish the openness and crazy, beautiful, wild world of
amazing possibilities that the web holds. Harassment and threats should
not ever, ever be an acceptable part of the internet.
