Professional Documents
Culture Documents
by the Farmington Hills-based Parent Action Network for Healthy Kids. It is called "What
Teens are REALLY Thinking (and Tweeting)!""I think that parents would be surprised to
know how deep and serious it is," she said of online abuse. Franklin said that one of her
friends had a deformity from a health condition. A mean-spirited rap was repeatedly shared
online; the girl tried to overdose on stolen pills. And it's not unusual, Franklin said, for
students to snap pictures of schoolmates and post the photos with rants that make fun of their
hair, their clothes or even how poor they are. Or they set up "expose pages," websites on
which students can post pictures that they think reveal classmates as promiscuous or ugly, for
example. "People get excited about seeing people exposed, knowing their business, being
humiliated. ... It can be a trend for months," she said. The solution? That's a tough one,
because kids need to learn from mistakes, said Franklin. Still, more conversation with adults
at school and more communication between parents and kids would help, she said. And
setting an example is critical. If parents post or share humiliating pictures or messages, their
children are simply following their example, Franklin said. "I see these things at school, and I
just want to ask 'Who's not teaching you that this isn't healthy?'
What's your kid up to?
A study of students' use of social media found that about half admitted to abusing
social media. The study, led by a Wayne State University researcher, drew from the responses
of 1,236 students in sixth and ninth grades at six metro Detroit high schools a mix of
high-, moderate- and low-risk schools when measured by crime statistics and poverty levels.
Other highlights:
About three-fourths of students had a cell phone. Slightly more than half had a smartphone.
84% had a computer in their home; 50% had their own computers.
78% of students texted at least once a day; 56% texted 10 or more times a day.
About 37% had checked up on a partner using technology; 16.3% had shared private or
embarrassing pictures with the intention of hurting someone, and 12.5% had repeatedly sent
out unwanted messages to someone.
5 reminders for your kids
If you're opening that conversation with kids or even offering reminders from
earlier talks about what's appropriate online and what's not, Wayne State University
researcher Poco Kernsmith suggests these five points.
Remember: Nothing is private online.
Remember: Nothing online can be taken back.
Be aware of pressure and coercion.
Consider the reaction and feelings of others.
Remember: Nothing is anonymous.