Facebook good or bad? OR
Social Networking: Boon or Bane?

VIEW

On a positive note, social media allows kids to practice life behind a safety curtain, allowing them to share personal information with their friends and not have to deal with their reactions right away. This could be a plus point for shy kids and could help to get them out of their shells.

Many teachers are taking advantage of these sites, and are creating accounts for themselves so that they might hold their students accountable for actions, and also update them on assignments, tests, etc. In fact, one particular open-source networking site, Elgg, allows students and teachers alike to create profiles, blogs, and is entirely intended to enhance the educational experience by giving students a place to go outside of class to contact teachers, keep current on assignments, projects, and quizzes, and to ensure, to the best of their abilities, that they do not shirk responsibility; if anything, the adaptability of networking sites is doing more good for education than anything.

Sarojini Naidu College lecturer Seema Raizada said it is wrong to say that students are harmed by being active on social networking sites. In present time, world is becoming a global village and social networking sites are the platforms which provide a student to learn, to understand, to communicate. Now a day it is seen that students have knowledge and active participation in social, political issues which in earlier times was difficult for a student to achieve.

COUNTER VIEW

A school student, said, “I used to be very active on social networking sites. More than 500 friends and several activities, consumed my most of the time. But after my half yearly examinations result lowered by 20 per cent I felt it was just due to my over social networking. After deactivating my profiles on several websites, now my results have improved.”

Social networking sites are acting as a major distraction for students as they are spending too much time on them, instead of utilising their time on books, newspapers and other educational resources. Parents in particular and schools in general are worried over the future prospects of their children as they spend much of their valuable time on social networking sites.

Both, schoolteachers and parents are also facing problems with this increasing popularity of social networking sites among students. In some of the schools, the authorities have strictly warned students not to be a part of them otherwise they would face the music.

On the other hand, there are schools, where the authorities are least bothered whether the students are members of these sites and the teachers and students are friends to each other on those sites.

While playing games, listening to music or reading books, a student devotes just that much time while he is doing the activity, but on social networking sites, the student even when not browsing only thinks about the next update or comment he or she might post which is more harmful.

It suggested that the parents should have constant, open conversations with their kids about how they are using technology, and not make judgments so they feel comfortable discussing how they behave with other kids online. This could make children more aware that what they say online can hurt others and help them to avoid cyber-bullying.

Difficult Words & Meanings:

Accountable: Responsible for your actions and expected to explain them.
Open-source: Software or projects where the original source code is made freely available and may be redistributed and modified.
Enhance: To improve the quality, value, or extent of something.
Shirk: To avoid or get out of doing work or a duty.
Adaptability: The quality of being able to adjust to new conditions.
Lecturer: A person who gives lectures, especially as a teacher in a university or college.
Global village: The idea that the world is becoming like a single community because of improvements in communication technology.
Platforms: In this context, online systems or services that allow users to do something (e.g., social networking sites).
Consumed: Used up (time, energy, or resources).
Deactivating: Making something (like a social media profile) no longer active or usable.
Utilising (Utilizing): Making practical and effective use of something.
Prospects: Chances or possibilities, especially for success or profit in the future.
Authorities: People or organizations having power or control in a particular area.
Face the music: To accept criticism or punishment for something you have done.
Bothered: Concerned or worried about something.
Browsing: Looking at information on the internet.
Cyber-bullying: The use of electronic communication to bully a person, typically by sending messages of an intimidating or threatening nature.
Boon: A thing that is helpful or beneficial; a blessing.
Bane: A cause of great distress or annoyance; a curse or something that causes ruin.