Generation MySpace
June 10th, 2009 | by Jen |Our classrooms are populated by children of the digital age. For them, the internet is neither an amazing innovation nor a mystifying distraction. It is simply part of the fabric of their world. Consequently, there is a growing need for those of us over 25 to get to grips with the developing internet, in order to work with young people on how this huge area of the media and communications influences and affects them.
The dotcom boom of the late 90s saw firms struggling to be successful internet companies. Some - Google, Amazon and eBay, for example - were successful, while others disappeared into the ether. The internet has now come of age and there is talk of a second dotcom boom, with massive amounts now being paid for companies born of the internet era.
Start by finding out which websites are important to the children. View Time’s 50 coolest websites (www.time.com/time/2006/50coolest/index.html). Do they know any of the sites? Hold a poll to determine the class’s 10 coolest websites. Like the Time list, ask them to classify the final list into entertainment, information, communications, etc. Even better, ask students to keep an internet diary for a week recording any sites they have visited, why and for how long. They could also comment on what they like about the sites and how they found out about them. Collate and discuss the results, and what these reveal about how they use the internet.
Ensure that students understand how the internet works. This is simply demonstrated on www.learnthenet.com/English/animate/animate.htm. Alternatively, students can investigate the Webwise pages, which include an online course. Understanding the nature of the net and the unrestricted access it offers is important for appreciating the appeal of some of the popular sites, which often have a quirky, unregulated feel. It seems that many of these smaller affairs are destined to be snapped up by the big boys.