Under Age Children and Social Networking

     This article was very eye opening for me both as a pre-service teacher, and as a parent. According to the the study,  children are joining social networks as early as the age of nine. I think that social networking services are totally inappropriate for any minors under the age of 13. I do not feel that children this young are capable of understanding the risks associated with this type of online activity. They are not fully aware of online predators and other nefarious individuals who may try to target them for identity theft, etc. I also think that social networking at such a young age could set the stage for online bullying amongst an even younger set of kids. Children at this young age cannot possibly comprehend the idea of an online footprint. You can try to explain it to them, but they may be unable to fully grasp the idea that anything they write or do online will follow them for the rest of their lives.
     I am not trying to say that technology or the web is inappropriate for children. As we have learned in our class, there are many tools that can help deepen children's learning and provide meaningful outcomes. Facebook is not one of them.
     I also agree that teachers need to work with children (especially young teenagers) about how to guard your privacy on the Internet and to help them understand the repercussions of  inappropriate online activity. Parents also need to become aware of their children's use of the Internet. They should monitor children's activity closely while the children are using the Internet. Allowing your children to browse the web with no parental guidance/monitoring is neglectful and inviting trouble.