We see this a lot with educational spaces. They are free (so teachers are apt to try them to save money that they don't have in their classroom budget) but then forget what they are trading: the eyes of their students, and advertising dollars.
we need to be able to see the damage we are causing as a first step toward solving it. Words, like the ones you are reading now, often are not enough.
But I also like to think that, as a teacher, direct lessons around privacy and digital lives can make a difference, if not immediate, then long-term. I remain hopeful of that.
First, our collective move away from open standards and decentralisation means that choosing to use a different service involves significant social impact. Second, even if an alternative does rear its head, the ending is all-too-familiar: it is acquired and swallowed by one of the huge incumbents
Each subsidiary company is branded differently, so we often forget where all the data streams are ultimately heading.
Again, another teaching moment that often gets lost. What about teaching how to read "terms of service" agreements? Eh?
For the next generation, will they know the difference between the Internet and Google or Facebook? Will they, to put it bluntly, know the difference between a public good and a private company?
Kidblog is designed for elementary and middle school teachers who want to provide each student with an individual blog. Kidblog's simple, yet powerful tools allow students to publish posts and participate in discussions within a secure classroom blogging community. Teachers maintain complete control over student blogs.