Ethics....

I have been teaching my classes all week about ethics and computer use.  I know it seems like a big topic and that they may have a hard time understanding what this topic is....but trust me, they get it.  When I discuss ethics and computer use I talk about bullying online, posting things online that are either not true or just hurtful, about logging  in as someone else and getting into their personal files, stealing music and programs by downloading them from file sharing sites, stealing other people's intellectual property (taking copyrighted material or even just someone's ideas that do not belong to them), and just all around bad behavior that is not acceptable.  It is a hard area to cover at times because of the sensitive nature of some of these topics.  I do it by using real life examples and make them think about how they would feel if "the shoe were on the other foot".  It is easy to drown out boring lecture with the exciting plans you have going on in your head for after school, but if you include them in on the discussion and in the scenarios, they tend to pay more attention and give more thoughtful answers on how they would feel, or how their friend might feel in that situation.

I have had people tell me that they don't teach about things like this because they feel it is the job of the parent to make sure their child behaves ethically.  I would agree with this...to a point.  We need to make sure that they hear over and over about how we should be treating our fellow human beings.  We need to make sure they understand what a huge impact words (spoken or written) can have on a single person's life and view of themselves.  Bullying is a HUGE issue and children need to think about their actions and how they can change a person forever.  

I love technology.  I can do some scary things with a computer.....if I want to.  What keeps me from doing things I shouldn't?  It goes back to my Grandmother teaching me right from wrong, my teachers reminding me of what is right and wrong, and through that,  my own sense of ethics were formed and keep me from treating my fellow humans like garbage online and off.  I remind the children that it is too easy to sit in your house in front of a machine and type horrible things about a person, but would they say those same horrible things to that person if they were face to face with them?  It takes two seconds to stop and think about your actions before you post that nasty message on Facebook for everyone to see.  It also only takes two seconds to completely tear someone's life apart for all to see.  We read about these things in the paper and see these stories on the news.  I know it sounds like fantasy.....but I just wish that people would wake up and look at each other and remember that we are all feeling people with needs and faults.  The power that words have on people just astounds me more and more every day.  

So what does that have to do with education and technology?  I find more and more that we need to include these topics in our curriculum.  I have students who have great potential to do harm if not guided to treat each other with respect, or at the very least, doing nothing.  There are many sites out there that cover how to talk to students about being bullies, about using the computer for harmful things, about stealing and downloading, and how to protect yourself online.  Those things are great, but I still think that you need to use examples that they can relate to.  I know that the post here today is a bit different than what I usually put out, but I just felt the need this week to talk about how important it is that WE ALL make sure that our children learn about how to use technology for good and make sure they understand fully the consequences of going against our teaching.