I tried to find out several things about MySpace over the past few weeks.  This was something I had tried to avoid doing because it was the “hip” thing to do.  I read about MySpace, created an account, watched family and friends, and even casually interviewed them.  I had to do all of these because I didn’t have enough time to just start an account and gather all the information myself.  I had to seek others with experience.  MySpace is a site that defines itself as a community that lets you meet your friends’ friends.  I never really saw it as that as an outsider.  It just seemed like a waste of time and a place to interact with the abstract instead of the real.  So it’s basic function is to let you network.  Now the reasons for that networking may be different by person.  Maybe to meet someone romantically, maybe to get a better job, or maybe to just have someone to talk to that likes things you like.  I have met many friends of my friends and more often then not I didn’t become friends with them.  What this always did for me is to reexamine why I’m friends with my friends.  I suppose it really depends on the person.  I don’t like having a lot of friends.  If I were to keep my MySpace and add everyone I called “friend”, then I would be lucky to top 30 at best.  I just don’t have time for tons of people to be close to me and thus don’t try.  My wife or teenagers on the other hand might have hundreds of “friends”.  I think it is a shame and confusing to young people to call these people friends.  Then they start talking and suggesting that everyone they’ve met is a “friend”.  It isn’t the worst thing in the world, but I suppose it is a teachable moment about what it means to be a friend.  Strangely, one thing I did like was the ability to search for people with specific things such as nonsmokers and Muslims or whatever.  If I were new to an area of the country this would be helpful.  Someone could search for Muslims that don’t smoke or drink and are between 25-35 to try and make new connections in the area.  I actually have never done this, but it sounded like an excellent way to familiarize yourself with people when you more.  Or better, if you know you will be moving you can start the search ahead of time and have people to meet once you are their.  This brings me to what scares me about Social Networking Sites: Anonymity. 

I have fought with this for some time now.  Online relationships.  I always wondered how in the world you could really know anything about some people if you never meet them face to face.  Of course you could say, How well do I know anyone that I have just met or only see occasionally such as at work or in school?  Seriously, how well do I know most of the people in this class?  Very little.  I mean I’ve had classes with some of them several times now and communicated with many.  Still I know almost nothing of them.  The difference to me is that places like MySpace can make it easy to lie and keep the truth from being know.  If I saw someone face to face, met their family, met their friends and coworkers, then it would be much more difficult to lie to me.  So what can we do.  Well, parents can monitor what their kids can do.  My computer is password locked so I know when they get on, I know their MySpacelog on and password, I occasionally watch what they are doing.  I don’t try to dominate and control, but rather teach the proper way to use the Internet.  Now for adults.  Just use common sense.  Don’t give out too much info to anyone online or in person.  Also, never meet someone alone or in a private place.  Even if you have met them a time or two.  Go on a double date or meet in a public place.  That is just good common sense and eliminates most of the issues.  

The other thing that bothers me about being online is the ability for it to be a game and not real.  It is more like virtual reality where you have no accountability or reason to tell the truth.  You can be a 25 year old 6’3″ Architect online but in real life be a pudgy 5’3″ cashier.  Now there is nothing wrong with being either of them, but the temptation to play a role instead of being yourself may be too high.  Although I have seen just the opposite on MySpace also.  People can be way too open about themselves.  Telling just any little secret.  I don’t want to try and psychoanalyze this, but they are probably just searching for love they don’t get or some form of comfort.  

If they start looking for love, friends, comfort, jobs or whatever, then why do they stay?  Basically they become “addicted” in one loose sense of the word.  They love the interaction they they have never had before with so many people so frequently.  My wife is a phone talking and can be on for hours, but with five kids that becomes hard.  Insert a SN site and in an hour she can communicate with 25 people.  What would have took her a few days to do with the phone.   So my wife gets something out of it.  My teens get the same thing.  The ability to mass communicate with people very fast.  It is like texting but better.  It is easier.  People stay for different reasons, but in general they get something out of it.  In many ways it is like church.  If you go and connect with the people and feel spiritually refreshed then you will return.  But if nothing spiritual is happening and you don’t like the people you will not go.  That is why many churches put an emphasis on connecting with new members so they will stay.  I don’t think it is a bad thing, but rather a great thing.  MySpace does this too.  You search and find what you want or you don’t.  Then you may leave or stay depending on what you find.  

I may or may not stay.  I play a game called Anarock Online.  It is an older style fantasy RPG.  What keeps me coming back isn’t the graphics or game play.  It is the people.  I like the chat room like atmosphere that accompanies it.  But it isn’t just a random chat room but rather focused on people doing the same thing and helping each other.  I have never liked chat rooms either, but integrated into a game seems totally different to me.  I didn’t even realize I was chatting until I had been playing it for weeks.  It just felt like part of the game, but it wasn’t.  It was me connecting with people.

I don’t know hardly anything about the people playing the game.  Age, gender, race, nothing.  But that doesn’t keep me from communicating with them.  It actually has helped me grow some as a Christian.  I don’t look at people as bad/good, worthy/unworthy, sinner/perfect.  Instead there are those saved that need encouraging and those unsaved that need encouraging.  Basically everyone is the same to me.  Sorry, I’ll get off my spiritual soapbox.

Will I stay?  I don’t know.  I can say this.  I don’t have a reason to stay right now, but I think different things could happen that would make me want to stay.

I can say that I learned a great deal and see MySpace very differently then when I began this project.  I see it the same way I have begun to see cell phones.  Yeah maybe everyone doesn’t need it, but why not have it.  As I get closer to the possibility of getting different job or moving, then I get closer to wanting to use some form of Social Networking Site.  Someone else posted something about fearing what we don’t understand.  I think this is true for many of us including myself sometimes.  I pride myself on keeping up with computer technology and knowing what is going on, but in practice I don’t use it.  I do ‘fear’ many new things because we don’t fully understand them.  We didn’t always know cigarettes were bad.  That may have been something worth looking into for a few years before using.

Something to remember is that Social Networking Sites like MySpace are tools.  They are not a replacement for life any more then television or video games.  They are only a tool.  Maybe a very useful tool.  People can use tools for good or bad.  Just because bad can be done doesn’t justify getting rid of it.  Still, like anything, moderation is a good rule when getting into things or using things.

Main statement: “MySpace is an online community that lets you meet your friends’ friends.”  Well, it seems accurate enough although I’m not sure that is what most people initially think of when they think MySpace.  It suggests that this is about meeting friends of friends.  I have mixed feelings about this.  Well, frankly I’ve met some friends of friends and more often then not I don’t become friends with them.  What this always does for me is to reexamine why I’m friends with my friend.  It has been hard and my friends have changed greatly over the years, mostly because they are no longer like me.  I don’t drink, smoke, use profanity, or want my family around those that do.  I’m not judging, but I think most people are that way.  We have certain things we don’t want to be around and avoid them.  Some people may avoid those that talk about their religion, that are gay, that hunt, or whatever.  It is natural.  Back to MySpace.  I suppose the hope is that friends of friends could become your friend because of similar interests.  This is true if 2 things.  One, your “friends” are real friends that you value and not just holdovers from college, high school, or a job.  Two, they choose friends worth being around.

Next statement: “Create a community on MySpace and you can share photos, journals and interests with your growing network of mutual friends!  See who knows who, or how you are connected. Find out if you really are six people away from Kevin Bacon.” Well, it sounds great.  Sharing pictures and stories with friends.  But then there is that strange pull about seeing who knows who.  Like there is some status symbol if you are only 3 people away from 50 cent or Oprah.  It seems very adolescent, and it may well be. 

Then: “MySpace is for everyone: Friends who want to talk Online, Single people who want to meet other Singles, Matchmakers who want to connect their friends with other friends, Families who want to keep in touch, Business people and co-workers interested in networking, Classmates and study partners“  Quite a list of who is welcome.  Lets break it down a bit. FRIENDS, DATING, FAMILY, JOBS, and TEMP FRIENDS.  Well if you are here for dating or jobs/networking, there are better sites for those things.  Temporary friends is a bad reason to do much of anything.  So we are left with family and friends.  Good idea, but only if you keep things tight.  For example.  If  you really want to keep in touch with family then maybe you should have a family MySpace and a friends MySpace.  Obviously your uncle Chuck and grandma Eva don’t want to see all your loose girlfriends and drunk buddies on your space.  It might be advised just to have separate accounts or just use facebook for one and MySpace for another.  Whatever.  Just my thought on the About Us portion of MySpace.

How well do I know anyone that I have just met or only see occasionally such as at work or in school?

Seriously, how well do I know most of the people in this class?  Very little.  I mean I’ve had classes with some of them several times now and communicated with many.  Still I know almost nothing of them. 

The difference to me is that places like MySpace can make it easy to lie and keep the truth from being know.  If I saw someone face to face, met their family, met their friends and coworkers, then it would be much more difficult to lie to me.  But MySpace allows a 13 year old boy to be a 40 year old women.  Difficult to do yes.  But what about a 40 year old man acting like a 14 year old boy to talk to young girls.  I know it is somewhat of an extreme case.  I know that it can be done in chat rooms and many other places.  But still, it is like a game.  People can be someone else online.  I could go start a MySpace and say I was a roadie for Metallica and have been for a decade.  I could gather friends that thought it was cool and meet chicks that like that stuff.  So what if I’m really a high school teacher with a wife and 5 kids.  They don’t need to know that. 

What scares me the most is that people, young and old, treat it like a game.  You make yourself into what you want and hang out with only who you want.

For instance if two friends have a falling out, then there mutual friends have major delimas.  They may feel they have to choose only one to remain a friend on myspace or risk taking heat from both. 

Power is an odd question for me when it comes to a social network site.  What I mean is that essentially no one gets more power then others allow them to have.  It is amazing how much power they will let people have.

The strange thing about myspace is all the people who are watching these power struggles and fighting.  We all know the mentality when people are in groups and think there might be someone to impress.  I worry that things might go to far on SN sites because of the audience.

The two questions I was trying to figure out with myspace.  Again, I get as much from watching my kids and wife on myspace as I ever will from my own interactions.  So why do they stay?  Well the general answer is they like it or get something out of it.  That is vague and doesn’t explain much.  I suppose they stay for many of the reason we use email and cell phones.  They are convenient, efficient, and easy.  People go to myspace for different reasons and stay for different reasons.  But generally they find a community they want to interact with.  Sometimes this community is people they see outside of the Internet and sometimes it isn’t.  Many times it is both. 

I must say that at first this was totally odd to me to want to communicate with people that you don’t really know and cant see face to face.  I suppose I have done this also.  I have and still do play some games online and interact, communicate, and chat with the other players while talking.  I think I like it better when I know them outside of the game, but it is also interesting to see how people interact when you don’t really know each other.  Some are profane and outspoken while others are still shy.

Why they stay and what they get is widely varied depending on the user.  My wife for example gets to keep up with friends she never really sees anymore.  She gets pictures and messages sometimes daily or sometimes just every few weeks.  Either way she enjoys the interactions with past friends.  My children tend to like to chat, gossip, and share pictures.  They cant wait to get on myspace and see if their friend(that they saw in person an hour ago) has posted anything.  Sometimes I like it because they aren’t hogging the phone or being loud. 

Will I stay?  I don’t know.  I can say this.  I don’t have a reason to stay right now, but I think different things could happen that would make me want to stay.

I wanted this post to address the question of “why people go there”.  Well, I wanted it to be about why they stay also, but apparently I haven’t got that totally figured out yet.  It is real strange about why people go there and I suppose also why they don’t go there.  I suppose I never went there 1. Because I’m too darn busy with my life outside the computer that I don’t have time to socialize on the computer and 2.  Because it felt like a Fad.  It just seemed like hey look what everyone is doing…. you have to do it too.  OK.  Whatever.  I tend to reject those things and wonder why people don’t just sign up on the “bandwagon” distribution list to know what to do.  Like an mp3 player.  I don’t have one.  Oh, I’m sure I’ll get on… maybe in a year or two.  But long after the buzz is gone.

Anyway.  On to why people go there.  Sure, some show up just because everyone else is doing it.  Like my 14 and 12 year old girls.  They just were dying to get a myspace.  I asked why and it was because so and so had one.  Yes, maybe inside they want to chat with friends and share pictures, but usually it starts with everyone is doing it.  Now is this the only reason to go to something like Myspace.  Oh No.  Many people go on to share their talents like music or art.  It is a good place to set up your own personal promotion site.  Many (perhaps most) musicians have a myspace that is more popular then a normal website. 

What else, well maybe you have a site to sell things.  Perhaps you go to find old classmates or friends.  That seems to be a popular thing.  The thing that shocked me the most is that many people have a myspace to simply communicate with people they see regularly anyway.  Coworkers, friends, family, romances, and classmates.  They simply use myspace as an additional way to communicate and share themselves with those people beyond mail, email, phones, and other communication.  I found it odd and thought “why not just see them today or call them?”  It didn’t really make sense to me.  But now I see how it can be helpful for people with busy and differing schedules.  It allows communication beyond just words, but includes pictures and songs. 

So people go for really different reasons sometimes…. but why do they stay?  Stay tuned for the next post.

But mostly I was interested in his idea to Abolish the OGT (Ohio graduation test) which is the exam all students take and many must pass to get a diploma.  ( I say many b/c huge groups of the IEP/special education don’t have to pass).  After years of having it in place he wants to eliminate it.  I was wondering what you all think about this???

Personally I have seen the test and administered it many times.  I must say that portions such as the science and social studies are difficult for me b/c I dont teach that.  It certainly tests what you should be learning in high school, but I think it misses the mark.  To me, the idea of the test should be to see if they students have the basic skills needed to enter into society.  To give the diploma some meaning.  I don’t think the test ever did this. 

Your thoughts on this stuff please???

Pros— distance from certain negative influences, freedom of religion, ability to work at own pace and focus on topics you as a parent find important, more individualized learning and attention

Cons— may have fewer technology options(may not), without effort may lack social skills, structure may be lacking, parent may not be qualified to teach all subjects

From the pros and cons what I can say is that Homeschooling if done correctly is the best option without argument.  But that assumes parents can afford some technology, have structure, are qualified in subject matter, and make efforts to get their children social interaction.  All of these things are very possible, but in general are probably not attainable.  Most people can afford to have a structured, intelligent, motivated parent staying at home all day with the children.  If money isn’t the issue, then it still take a great commitment and motivation to create an environment that benefits the children more then a public school setting does.

I just cant imagine from my public experience that homeschooling would be worse then that.

So what did the Internet sites have to say about the purpose of education.

1.  The US DOE stated its mission “is to promote student achievement and preparation for global competitiveness by fostering educational excellence and ensuring equal access.”  This doesn’t exactly address the purpose of education, but we can see what the US federal government is aiming for.  They want achievement and global competition.  Their goal is to make people productive citizens.  I would agree that as a government paying for the education, that the goal seems to be a good one.

2.  At www.albalagh.netan Islamic site it describes education’s purpose is “to provide qualified workforce for its machinery of production and eager consumers for its products. Stated in a more polished form, the purpose of education is to provide for the economic prosperity of a country. Similarly on a personal level today the purpose of education is to be able to earn a respectable living.”  Obviously they are referringto western industrial nations, but the point is a good one.  Education is seen as a means to an end.  It is necessary to supply the workforce.  I think this is an oversimplification.  I mean seriously if all we wanted was to train workers, then why are we having people take art classes in 10th grade.  Shouldn’t they be focused on job skills for whatever they are going to do.  I would suggest that many Asian countries adhere to this idea more so then does America. 

3.  An article on www.buzzle.com stated the True Purpose of Education “is to bring about profoundness to one’s emotions, to broaden one’s perspectives and to lead to a healthier approach of looking at life.”  This seemed a far difference from other things I had read.  I might suggest this is a very positive outlook on what education should be as opposed to what it is.

4.  On http://www.teachersmind.com/education.htm the writer agrees that it is impossible to make a concise meaningful statement about the purpose of education.  Even the idea of what is meant by purpose and education are put into question.  This only makes issues more difficult.

So what did all of this research do for me.  I think there is not one simple answer.  Purpose is always going to be defined by a certain group.  So without saying “who’s purpose” then we cant really define the purpose of anything.  For example the “purpose of sex”.  Well for some it may be a diversion of their miserable life.  For others a way to gain power.  Others may use it to get money to feed their kids.  Some may view it as a sinful act that is perverse.  Even at that, depending on the day, the purpose may change for any individual.  I think we can talk about a general purpose to education in the United States, but beyond that it gets tough and even that may be near impossible.