Growing Up Online

Growing Up Online was a documentary done on the internet use by teenagers. I was not very shocked by anything that was said, most of the information seemed accurate of my impression of the internet use of teenagers. Although, I do not feel as though I came from the same background as all of these kids. Danah Boyd says in the clip: "It's not somewhere you go, it's a continuation of existence." This may be true for the majority of the teenagers being referenced in this clip, however, I see it differently for myself. Unfortunately, many teenagers do see it as a "continuation of existence." One teenager in the show made the comment that if he were disconnected from the internet, he would be sitting in front of the computer all night not knowing what else to do. Another teenager, Greg, made an interesting analogy: "It's like currency...if you don't use it you'll be at a loss." This actually sums up the majority of teenagers's view of the internet. Growing up, i felt disconnected from my class for a while because my family got internet much later than everyone else. Despite this, i only felt as if I did not have access to something that everyone else did; it was not that I felt completely cut off from my peers.

I think was scares parents the most throughout all of this is the freedom it brings to teenagers. Anne Collier made the point that "what we have here is the new wild west. Nobody is really in charge." This is, for all intents and purposes, true. Teenagers will almost always find a way to use the internet for private or personal use without their parents finding out. Coming from this generation, it is hard to say how this longing for freedom was expressed by our parents. Each generation seems to bring something new and "rebellious" to the table, but this is one (not-so-much) phase used by teenagers and adults both, and may not "go out" like the rest.

C.J. Pascoe, from UC Berkely, said that the internet "was something that belonged to adults, and now it's really the province of teenagers."

It was interesting to hear from a teacher's perspective of student's using internet in the classroom. As one teacher said, "we almost have to be entertainers," and "we have to be more interactive." Many of my education classes deal with interactive learning, which seems necessary in a classroom where it's important for students to interact with one another. In short, if this doesn't work, than classrooms could start disappearing.

It is interesting that students are trying on "different identities," but girls like Jesse, or Autumn Edows, said she liked that she didn't even feel like herself. Many parents are oblivious, but as one mother said, "someone can always find everything." In the case of most of these teenagers, the people who are finding everything are the not ones who should have this access.

Teenagers are always going to try and find a way to express themselves; using the internet can be harmful with problems such as bullying, eating disorders, sexual behavior, and many more issues, but if it's no the internet, it may be something else being used as an outlet.

In some ways I find it sad that some teens are only comfortable online. It seems like it could destroy many identities if used incorrectly or inappropriately. With the freedom to express whomever and whatever one wants, many teenagers could never find their sense of identity. I am not turning my nose up at teenagers who use the internet on regular basis for all of their social interactions, I only hope that they still find their self within pages that represent them, pages that can be deleted/altered/hacked, and pages of internet material. I hope teenagers don't start to look for their sense of value online.