Being educators, we try to instill the best habits and practices to our young students, not only in the real world but also in the virtual one as well. As we become a more global society, we can’t deny the fact that children are online. According to a 2015 study published by the Pew Research Center, over 71% of our students have at least one social media site. This month, let’s talk about some habits that our students (and ourselves) should take when traversing the internet.

1. Remember the Golden Rule

I remember my junior high school Assistant Principal always saying “Treat people the way you want to be treated or have a member of your family treated!” In this digital age, we have to start teaching our children that this applies not only to face-to-face conversations but also to the conversation and interactions that we have online.

2. Keep Private Information Private

In this day and age, it can be hard to keep information private. Be careful on who and how you give way information. Information that is shared not only has effects on the person it’s about but also their family, friends, and yourself.

3. Think About The Future

EVERYTHING IS SAVED ON THE INTERNET! Just because you deleted something off of Facebook and Snapchat doesn’t mean it’s been erased from the internet. Picture it like this: every time you go to a different website, the internet makes a little tattoo of everything you do while on it. And that leads into our next point…

4. Be Mindful of Your “Brand”

When we think about brands, we think about clothing. And sometimes, clothing companies have issues or concerns that they are truly passionate about. But the way they reach their audience is by having a clear, well-delivered message. You too are a brand. Whenever engaging anyone in conversation on the internet, be it a quick chat with your Aunt living in Arizona or having a debate with a fellow classmate, always be mindful of what you say so that it doesn’t hurt your reputation (aka brand). 

5. Be Yourself

At the end of the day, the only thing we can be is ourselves. If you’re into posting funny videos as I am, keep in mind that you do have an audience much bigger than what you thought. Even though we are taught as children not to judge a book by its cover, friends, family and even future employers will look at it because the world wide web isn’t just an open source of information, it also makes your life an open book.

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