Beware – random synapse firings with no [obvious] direction…
On Frontline the other night there was an article called “Growing up Online”. http://www.pbs.org/wgbh/pages/frontline/kidsonline/ People spend so much time online, in this alternate universe that their reality is distorted. I think an interesting phenomenon is that we are loosing the ability to communicate face-to-face. The article did not believe that although prevalent, predators are the only issue when confronted with the amount of time youth spend on the Internet. It indicated that for the most part, teens are savvy to predators. Youth not only have to worry about school yard bullies but cyber bullies. I think an interesting point is that the internet has become the place to explore identity. Parents should possibly be more concerned with the freedom the Internet has given youth and adults to express themselves in anyway imaginable.
I am going to deviate from my normal banter for a moment and admit that I was intrigued by what David Lee King had to say last November and after reading his blog about MySpace, I think there is great untapped potential here. I especially liked how some libraries were “friends” with teen authors. What a great way to not only introduce teens to the myriad of current authors, but to involve them in discussion. And I am sure authors would jump at the chance for free advertisement and exposure! With that said I move into more familiar ground and confess it is not for me. I am extremely hesitant to join this world. I value my privacy. I am a comfortable introvert with no desire to publicly express myself (at least in this format). Nor am I interested in acquiring new “friends” (in cyberspace that is…). As for libraries and Myspace – why not... Perhaps we can help youth channel their exploration of self or at least aid the process. I only wonder if teens want this “adult” presence in their space.
Has the City Library considered the virtual world? Perhaps this will be discussed later in the tutorial, but exploring Myspace made me think of an article I read last year on super librarians in a parallel universe, the realm of second life. Check out this article:
http://www.schoollibraryjournal.com/article/CA6403251.html
"And miles to go before I sleep..."
places I want to see (someday)
3 comments:
I'm glad you decided to start doing the Library 2.0 program, the blogs I've read so far are well thought out and engaging. I liked the article you included about second life. I've seen a lot of articles that talk about the possibilities of second life for libraries and some articles (like this one) that talk about libraries being in the process of setting up a second life "presence," but, as yet, I haven't seen any articles that talk about how popular second life libraries actually are. Have you heard anything?
Hey Radical Rex,
I was actually in a class with Peg Sheehy (one of the librarians quoted in the article). I got the impression that at least in North Carolina or wherever she was, teen second life and libraries had a healthy, thriving relationship.
Good comments Robyn - and I love your little bird picture!
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