Employers using the internet to research potential employees.

Many young people are on the internet a lot and have accounts with social networking sites like myspace and facebook. These online places can be used to publish pictures, video and text very easily.

Increasingly, these online sites, are being used to research a potential employee. They have also been used as the basis for terminating employment.

The key issue is that we all need to be careful about what we say and where we say it. This is not a new idea at all but it so much more important these days when we can say something that the whole world can hear on the internet. Once something is said, it can not be unsaid. Showing respect to others will keep us safe.

Our online profile can be very powerful and it is important that we learn how to harness this to our advantage. It could help us win a job, contract or even a funding grant.

What does this mean for parents and teachers?

What are some of the things we, as parents, might do to help our children harness this for their benefit?

References

• http://www.quagmiresolutions.com/content/press/?id=1156349158
• http://www.tsl.pomona.edu/index.php?article=1401
• http://www.kaleo.org/vnews/display.v/ART/2006/11/09/4552cd772c6fb
• http://www.tmcnet.com/usubmit/2006/11/03/2047904.htm

IT Matters

Principal sues parents and students.

Did that grab your attention as it did mine? This news item is about a couple of students who thought that they would seek revenge on the school's Assistant Principal by creating a myspace account in the Assistant Principal's name. They then proceeded to publish what were described as "obscene comments, pictures and graphics" using this account. The Assistance Principal is suing the students and their parents because the parents are responsible for the actions of their children.

Young people, in particular, can say and publish things on impulse and without due consideration to the consequences. Things that are published online might seem untraceable but in fact they are, and without too much effort if you have the right knowledge and the cooperation of computer network administrators.

The message about protecting children's personal safety online is slowly being understood more broadly. Please join us in helping your children understand that even though they might be savvy about their personal online safety, that they should not publish things that are damaging to others.

What are some things we as parents might do to help our children with this?

IT Matters