life goes on - social networking

From Life Goes On:

Do you think Facebook, MySpace, etc., are for kids? Do you use them? Do you find them useful? If you do use them, which do you use? How often? What for?

I meant to answer this over the weekend but during the few minutes of free time that I had, I fed my Facebook addiction. Yup, I use social networking, and for the first time I find it not only useful, but fun. Come write on my wall!

I started using MySpace a few years ago when I first started teaching. My students kept asking if I had a MySpace and I finally set one up so I could know what they were talking about. I discovered that many of my family in Erie also had MySpace pages.

So I started giving out the page address along with my classroom page at the beginning of the year. The kids laughed at me. "What YOU have a MySpace fo'?" I explained about communicating with my family, and some of them added me as friends. Some teachers say they would never do this. But I am of the philosophy that I would rather know than not know, what my students are involved in. I did learn whose pages I really should go look at if I didn't want it to piss me off enough to confront the kid.

I also had a student remove me because of a comment I made in class. She was falling asleep every day, and I had noticed she has bulletin board posts on MySpace at 2 a.m., 3 a.m., etc., and I said, "If you weren't up all night posting on MySpace, you might be able to stay awake in Geometry class." She took me off her friends list. <-;

I've had a Facebook page for a year or so too, but I never did anything with it until I got involved in the Riverwood Poetry Festival this year. Many of the poets from the festival have Facebook pages, and many poets I would like to come to the festival have Facebook pages. It really IS a great networking tool, unlike MySpace, which seems to be more social than networking.

Maybe that's why I like it better. I am finding my network of poets is growing. My daughter and stepdaughter both have Facebook pages, but I can't seem to find any more of my family. I do hope they join up.

And I never have put much stock in others' opinions, especially those of young people telling me I'm not supposed to be doing something. All I can do is laugh, and wonder what it is they're doing that they are not supposed to be doing that they don't want me to see out here in cyberspace. Probably more than I want to know.