Listening to Alec Couros during EDU 568 today helped me realize that life for youth today drastically differs from my own experiences as a teenager. Everything that a child does or says online today creates a permanent record of their proverbial trespasses. Regardless of how kind or just a child is, there is a tendency, during this age range, to make a variety of mistakes. Having these mistakes digitally recorded forever creates a complex set of issues for the future. How should we view these mistakes in terms of obtaining a post secondary education? What are the implications towards future employment?

Alec Couros went on to say that embedded in a 1945 childhood bill of rights there was a sentence that read ‘Let childhood be forgotten.’ In 2019 when childhood cannot be forgotten – will it haunt our children ad infinitum? British Columbia seeks to help protect our children with strong Freedom of Information and Protection of Privacy laws. These laws are useful in preventing others from posting inappropriate information about students, but often do not help protect teenagers from their biggest threat: themselves.

I feel that moving forward the best way to help guide our students through this tenuous age in a safe manner is to begin educating them on the principals and best practices of utilizing technology early. This includes educating them about social media and its appropriate and inappropriate uses as early as primary school. As technology envelopes our lives in every possible way, it is best to embrace the change and work together to use it in a meaningful manner.