Teen And Social Media ; Technology And Ethics

It is said that adolescence is about one of the most difficult growth stages of the human race, and I am a firm subscriber of that notion.

This is the stage in one’s life when a great deal of latitude avails us. Our parents and guardians are very careful how they interact with us because they have seen the inevitable natural changes that must come to usher us into adulthood. Our bodies have assumed various projections and sometimes we are lured to believe we are there.

For boys we have started seeing beard and moustache, our baritone voices boom, our shoulders are rolled into small mounds that can deliver hefty blows, and our hearts either become excited or confused at the sight of the opposite sex.

For our girls we know we can easily become mothers, we are more careful where we spend time, society dangles so many dangers in our way as though we should be trapped, and for some of us our clothing are chosen carefully to attract.

This is the period when our boys and girls want to be left alone to decide what they want to do with their lives – leave home and return when they like, and yet expect no questions about what it is that they have been up to. It is indeed a dangerous curve that must be negotiated with skill and great care. There is bitter conflict when parents and teens clash as to who should direct affairs.

That age-long conflict has been exacerbated in our era: an era inundated with technology, free mass media and choice. Ordinarily, these are tools that should empower us to improve our lives, not ones to blunt boundaries. I am afraid however, that we cannot convince ourselves that that is the situation.

Today’s youth are growing up in a media-plural and diverse environment and both good and bad outcomes have come along with the variety we have.

Not too long ago, our youthful engagements as long as the media is concerned, were reduced to watching selected television programmes under the watchful eyes of our parents; listen to radio from time to time and if the home could afford it, grab the newspaper to engage in or follow developments in our environments.

Games were either football or chaskele for the boys and ampe for the girls. Other recreational activities were all outdoor activities that sanctioned us to exercise the body.

Today’s story is totally different! Yes, all the games and activities I have spoken about still avail our youth and in even more diverse ways. In addition to them are technologically engineered digital applications and platforms that come to add to the wide array of recreational and educational choices.

Now they can:

• Send text messages
• Watch television
• Listen to music
• Play computer games or video games
• Play internet games or simply
• Go on the Internet and access the world of books
• Find friends
• Shop online
• Make payments
• Search profiles
• Blog
• Find photos
• Or read the latest news or gossip

The possibilities are endless.

And there are virtually no barriers as the cost of data, mobile devices especially smartphones and tablets, as well as games consoles have become more affordable and are set to even become cheaper as technology continues to explode on a daily basis.

How many of us have mobile phones?

How many have smart phones?

How many of us are on social media?

Which platforms are your favourite?

What do you do while you are there?

How much time do you spend there?

How do you fund data spend?

Now our teenagers have acquired a new name. In the digital world of today our teens are called Mobile Teens : and they are on social media on the go and virtually throughout the days of the week – Facebook, Google+, Instagram, Snapchat, Twitter, Whatsapp, Youtube and what have you.

While smartphones are facilitating the shifts in teens’ communication and information landscape, Teenage girls are known to use social media sites and platforms for sharing more than their male counterparts do. The boys prefer to own gaming consoles and play video games.

These are all good, for many acquire useful life skills solving very intriguing digital puzzles. Some are able to study and complete assignments online. The digital tools have come to change not only how teens communicate and interface with the world around them, but also how they gather information about the world and present themselves to others.

It is how we use these tools that often raise concerns, not their mere presence or availability. Like every other tool, social media tools can be employed for good or bad.

We know how useful a knife is in the hands of a mother in the kitchen, but we cannot say the same of the knife in the hands of an angry person. The conversation quickly changes into danger. A gun in the hands of a policeman is tool that inspires and promotes confidence about our security; but in the hands of the armed robber, the gun represents imminent danger.

This is where I bring in the other leg of my topic: TECHNOLOGY AND ETHICS.

Life is a game of rules: Follow them and live free and fruitfully; you cut corners or abuse the rules and while sometimes you may escape, there are sanctions when you are found out.

I am sure some of you know of the scandal that followed News of the World following revelations that a lot of exclusive news publications they did were inspired by phone tapping of key persons. The effect is that that legacy of centuries has had to fold up.

By the way for those of us on social media platforms, did we bother to familiarize ourselves with the terms of use of the various platforms?

Do we know we have to be about 16 years to be on Whatsapp?

What about Facebook? (13). We must learn to play by the rules! There is no other way if we must succeed.

We can experiment with the tools at our disposal but our experimentation should be guided.

For those of us who are too afraid to touch the new tools, we risk being left behind. We should all be too familiar with the parable of the Master and his three servants as recorded in Matthew 25:14-30.

Safety should be first and foremost. Be careful what you post there. Nowadays there is nothing like privacy on social media, not even in your private mail, particularly if you consider that the site you visit or the app you use can be hacked. My caveat is that don’t post anything that may embarrass you should it escape your hands.

For young boys and girls we need to be mindful also that sexual predators are on the prowl and the small, small leads you leave daily can lead them to you. Do not spend all your time on social media. Be mindful of unintended negative results.

The story of Amy Pascal who quit Sony Pictures after email hack. Ms Pascal was one of the highest profile Sony names whose emails were leaked as part of a hack in December 2014.

She reportedly commented on the viewing habits of President Barack Obama in a derogatory manner in an email to producer Scott Rudin.

As young people you may have more web knowledge and skills, but your parents have more life experience and are better positioned to counsel and direct you about what is appropriate and what is not. Submit to them.

For parents get closer to your teens and be interested in what they do on the net or their apps. Provide guidance and counselling because it is still your duty. Seek other’s help if it is too much of a challenge. These are the days our young will come home with homework and tasks way beyond our scope, but we cannot afford to leave them alone to their own ways.

“We’re still in an age where most adult communications focus around email, and talking to a child about email is like teaching her to drive an Edsel,” McIntyre explained.

“There’s a big need for this to become part of the classroom experience and to teach digital ethics,” MTV’s Rzepka suggested. “We’re giving these kids power tools and we’re letting them use these with no training.”

It is said that the technology age of today is helping us nurture youth who are too often so detached from our social norms. “There’s a generational gap, not just technologically but culturally,” Jeff Mcintyre, director of national policy at Children Now

It may be true, for it is a common sight today to see even grownups pull out their smart phones and other devices to video tape a fight between two or more people – A fight that could result in fatalities. What our society expects of us in such instances is for us to intervene and make peace, and not to be by-standers to watch any bloodbath. Our digital space has till room for what is ethical and we must apply ourselves to ethical standards.

[Conclusion] I will leave you all with one very useful website where you may acquaint yourselves with what is good or bad about our new world and its many communication tools. It is www.commonsensemedia.org But you know where to turn to when it comes to credible news: that is www.graphic.com.gh

Thank You.

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