Social networks: How Facebook changed the Internet

It's been a busy few months for Facebook: a government investigation, another in a seemingly endless series of changes to the site's privacy controls, a New Yorker profile of its famously publicity-shy founder and the upcoming release of The Social Network, a thoroughly unauthorized account of its early days. With all of the publicity and controversy around Facebook – not to mention its still-growing popularity – it's almost impossible to remember what online life was like before it. In fact, it's not much of an exaggeration to say that those who began using the Internet after the introduction of Facebook and its competitors do so in a way that is fundamentally different from older users.

Quebec Competencies Chart - Gender and Tobacco

Quebec Competencies Chart - Gender and Tobacco

Quebec Competencies Chart - Taming the Wild Wiki

Quebec Competencies Chart - Taming the Wild Wiki

Quebec Competencies Chart - Sexual health education and authenticating online information

Quebec Competencies Chart - Sexual health education and authenticating online information

Outcome Chart - British Columbia - Literacy Foundations - English Language Arts - Level 2

This outcome chart contains media-related learning outcomes from the British Columbia, Level 2, Literacy Foundations, English Language Arts curriculum, with links to supporting resources on the MediaSmarts site.

Outcome Chart - British Columbia - Literacy Foundations - English Language Arts - Level 3

This outcome chart contains media-related learning outcomes from the British Columbia, Level 3, Literacy Foundations, English Language Arts curriculum, with links to supporting resources on the MediaSmarts site.

Outcome Chart - Alberta - Knowledge and Employability Social Studies Grade 10

This outcome chart contains Media literacy learning expectations from the Alberta social studies curriculum, with links to supporting resources on the MediaSmarts site.

Watching the elections

Joe McGinniss’ book The Selling of the President had a shocking title for 1968, suggesting as it did that in the television age the presidency had become nothing more than another product to be packaged and sold. MediaSmarts’ resource, Watching the Elections (a lesson for Grades 8-12), shines a light on how the different aspects of an election – from the debates to political ads to the candidates themselves – are actually media products.

In the age of Google, is sex ed. necessary?

One of the great achievements of the Internet has been to put all kinds of information at the fingertips of millions of people. From online encyclopaedias to search engines, some of the most successful online services have been ways of providing answers to people's questions. It's not surprising, then, that more and more young people are relying on the Internet to answer their questions about that most uncomfortable of topics: sex. Some people, in fact, have even suggested that the Internet makes those awkward, politically troublesome sex ed. classes irrelevant. In the age of Google, is sex ed. necessary?

How Social Media Helps Teens Cope With Anxiety, Depression, and Self-Harm

By Dr. Sameer Hinduja of the Cyberbullying Research Centre
Content reposted with permission – original article from Cyberbullying.org

It is easy for many adults – whether educators or parents – to focus on the negatives of social media in the lives of teens today. This is understandable, because they are the ones who have to deal with the fallout when adolescents make mistakes online (cyberbullying incidents, sexting cases, electronic dating violence, digital reputation drama, and similar forms of wrongdoing).