Are We Identity Thieves?
As a mother and an educator, I have started to think more about the implications of giving our children access to create and publish in the public forum. I have also questioned my own contributions to the digital identities of my children. For example, both my children have their own .com domains where I have been sharing stories and photos since they were born. I also participate in several parenting forums where I have shared everything from photos of mysterious rashes, to results of parent-teacher conferences. Now I wonder if I am guilty of identity theft.
We talk about protecting children from sexual predators and we discuss how to arm them with digital literacy and keep them from posting content that may be objectionable in the future. But, are we seriously considering the types of content and how it can affect not only their future educational and employment opportunities, but their general self esteem and moral development.
We’ve all heard the stories of parents pulling out the naked toddler in the bathtub photos when their children begin dating for the first time. We’ve seen countless videos of embarrassing choir and band performances. Until recently, these artifacts were kept separately and existed in a time line displaced from daily existence. With new media technologies, these artifacts, events, photos, stories and videos exist together and can be accessed simultaneously. It is possible to pull up an entire life of miserable experiences if the items are tagged properly.
When I think back to my early days of higher education, I am grateful this technology did not exist. Currently, you can pull up my college transcripts and see the time line of how I struggled, pulled myself up and excelled. What if you could see blog posts of the struggles along side the success? Would you judge me? Would you be less likely to hire me?
What if we require students to do projects online that don’t reflect their individualism and they are judged by others according to a rubric not of their own design? What if the first graders we have publishing now, resent us in ten years because there is a trail left of their early struggles, attitudes and ignorance? Could we be held liable for affecting the future development of our children? When we share stories of our students’ progress, could they later be used against us when the children are rejected from college, based on early anecdotes?
Do we show bias in our own publishing about these children? Do we focus on one talent in exclusion of others that may be important and valuable to these students down the road? For example, if we exploit their writing and reading skills, will it hurt them later if they chose to follow more in the science and math arena? Are we influencing the development of their personalities? Could parents hold us responsible down the road if their children are pegged as nerds, punks, gangsters, etc. and it leads to depression or behavior problems?
There is no way this content can be completely erased from Internet archives. Think beyond personal safety, beyond college and career prospects. Think to the very heart of what builds our identity and character. Get out your childhood memorabilia and spread it out on the floor without putting anything in linear order. Does it tell a true story of who you are? Now make a line of photos and memorabilia and put the negative things at the end. Does it show you have the ability to overcome obstacles? Pull out all the embarrassing photos and look at it in one large group. Is this how you want to be recognized?
Are we identity thieves?
March 9th, 2008 at 3:25 pm
[...] Read the rest of this great post here [...]
March 9th, 2008 at 3:48 pm
For me this smacks of the thinking that leads to internet filters and keeping kids out of the deep end of the pool rather than teaching them to swim. Nowhere here do you seem to entertain the possibility of a *positive* history of participation, of a richer, fuller existence for being part of a larger social group and recognized for one’s talents, abilities and contributions. At what point does the magic switch suddenly flip over and all the positive things that we talk about suddenly become enabled for a person?
I’d be more likely to hire someone who struggled than someone who never did. I wouldn’t believe the story of someone who claims never to have. If I don’t find a presence for someone out in the larger world I’m unlikely to find them interesting, much less worth hiring. I suspect that the incidents where people miss out on jobs or college entrance are far outweighed by those who get opportunities they never would have– and the advantage of leaving no trace behind is going to be a short-lived blip that we’ll see as quaint in just a few short years.
Bad things can happen, sure. But they can– and have been– happening long before technological mediation reached the point it has. By itself, the technology is meaningless. It’s our job, in my opinion, to support our children as they learn to become part of a new world as it is now, not as it was or as we might wish it were.
March 9th, 2008 at 6:13 pm
Chris, thank you for your rich perspective.
“For me this smacks of the thinking that leads to internet filters and keeping kids out of the deep end of the pool rather than teaching them to swim. Nowhere here do you seem to entertain the possibility of a *positive* history of participation, of a richer, fuller existence for being part of a larger social group and recognized for one’s talents, abilities and contributions.”
I’m sorry you feel my exploration of a thought will lead to internet filters. You don’t see me entertaining the other possibilities, because that’s not what this post is about. This is not an exhaustive look at all the potential outcomes of robust participation in “the pool.” This is simply an exploration of a new perspective. I rarely have time or desire to fully explore any of my thoughts. I prefer to publish them in infancy so great thinkers, such as yourself, have the opportunity to expand upon them, or shoot them down. I probably didn’t clarify enough, but I would really like to see this conversation move beyond employability and into a more social context, including the implications of what we will face in student attitudes a decade from now when they are more able to reflect on their early actions and participation. I’m certainly not advocating filtering content, restricting access or limiting freedom of expression. I am exploring larger, long-term emotional, cultural, social effects of the things we are creating now. I apologize if I didn’t take the time to make myself clear. There was about 15 minutes between the idea hitting me to when I posted it.
March 9th, 2008 at 6:53 pm
Interesting thoughts and questions. We are discussing digital citizenship in EC & I 831. Your questions and thoughts are some of what I feel as I begin to use these new technologies with my students.
March 9th, 2008 at 6:57 pm
Interesting food for thought. I definitely have edited my personal memorabilia! All I can think of is that there is no stopping the flood of information and the change in the definition of personal privacy that is part of who we now are. I try to calm myself when I start thinking these thoughts (although never have I thought of it w/regard to children the way you have presented it here, and it is scary)…anyway, I try to calm myself by just letting go.
I cringe at certain things I once wrote, I mean really cringe. If those things were posted on the Internet, it would be really hard to take, but humbling and a reminder to me that we all have many parts of ourselves. We try (or I do) to present our best selves outwardly to the world, but it doesn’t mean all the other stuff isn’t there, too, isn’t part of how we came to be who we are. So, maybe this online identity “thieving” if it can be called that, will have a positive result in making people more humble and less judgmental. I don’t know. Definitely something to think about. Like…should I hit “post.” or will I later regret what I’ve written here? Once I hit post, that’s it. It’s out there. I can’t hide. but…..the desire to communicate is strong, too. So…..
March 10th, 2008 at 7:15 am
Another great post, Jen.
I understand what you’re talking about here and it is something that parents and educators need to consider. It’s important for us to teach children / students how to be responsible users and creators on the Internet, so that they know what they’re doing and can be responsible if THEY choose to put themselves out there. But should WE force them to be out there. Should we put pictures or video of them online without their permission? I’m not talking about baby pictures, but rather those embarrassing school plays or youth sporting events. My father took a picture of me the night that I broke my nose playing softball. I was 10 and would have been even more furious with him if Flickr existed and that picture had been put online.
March 10th, 2008 at 7:35 am
Great post, Jen. I’ve gone through a similar process, and wound up yanking almost all of the photos of Evan off of Flickr (well, they’re still there, but 99.9% of them are Friends and Family Only). It’s not about hiding mistakes or lapses in that case, it’s about reserving his right to define his own digital identity, and not have one foisted on him by his (well meaning) father.
March 10th, 2008 at 9:02 am
D’Arcy, you’ve summed up exactly what I was trying to say, but didn’t get it across very well!
“It’s not about hiding mistakes or lapses in that case, it’s about reserving his right to define his own digital identity, and not have one foisted on him by his (well meaning) father.”
March 10th, 2008 at 9:07 am
I think we have to be careful about how and what we expose our children, and in most cases you as educators, other people’s children to. Very thought provoking post.
March 10th, 2008 at 11:32 am
I didn’t say that your post and filtering were the same, but that they seem to come from similar sources, in particular the idea of “protection” and what it means as a parent and teacher. I understand what you are saying– and I had this same comment for D’Arcy when he blogged about this issue a long time ago– I just happen to have a different perspective. In the end people will opt for what makes sense to them and have no obligation to agree with me. D’Arcy remains committed to his alternative viewpoint, further proof that I am no great thinker
You asked questions in your post, and I tried to answer them. That I answered them in a way that is perhaps not in agreement with you isn’t shooting you down, it’s providing dialogue. I’m unsure why you took my comment that way given that you asked questions and left comments open.
You are asking about the potential negatives of your child having a socially mediated part of life and I am responding that I am more concerned if they *don’t*. You are asking about ramifications for employment and judgment and I am saying that I think the negative ramification are a temporary issue borne of change and soon will evolve to wondering about people who *don’t* have that trail behind them. What if the first graders of today don’t resent us for putting stuff out there but resent and question why we *didn’t*?
This is where I diverge from D’Arcy– I think part of our *responsibility* as parents and educators is *precisely* about identity, digital and otherwise. I don’t trust the environment by itself to shape my child offline and I don’t do so online. I also don’t see it as a binary issue where only one thing can happen if I am involved and that is “foisting”– I see it as part of the developmental process. Children and students are at a stage where the co-creation of their identity involves parents and teachers. Eventually they move on to be more aware add in control (but never wholly), and it continues to change. It’s not as if they are stuck or blessed with only what came before.
The definition of the “true story of who we are” is subject to change… and is changing because the nature of public and private are changing. I think this change is generally for the better, even if it is a bit uncomfortable at times for everyone.
March 10th, 2008 at 11:54 am
[...] Jen is asking questions in an area that I remember D’Arcy talking about some time ago: handling digital identity for children and students. How do we protect them? Will they resent the stuff we have them putting out into the social web later? It’s an important and ongoing issue. I’m synopsizing/abridging/adding to my latest response and putting it here in hopes of enlisting more thoughts for Jen. In my first comment I advocated for consideration of the opposite approach– perhaps we have an obligation to facilitate these activities. I theorized that the idea of limiting participation comes from the same kind of idea of protection that has lead to school filters (not that they are the same idea or that Jen is advocating filters in that sense). [...]
March 10th, 2008 at 11:58 am
Chris, I love the idea of “co-creation of their identity involves parents and teachers.”
March 10th, 2008 at 7:32 pm
What I struggle with is the concept of informed consent. My son is 5 years old, and even if he gets involved with shaping his digital identity with me, he doesn’t/can’t understand the repercussions of what he chooses at 5 years old. Or 10. Or 15.
I could guide him, but I’m not sure what the best way to do that would be - without being too much in the driver’s seat for it to really be _his_ digital identity.
I’m not removing him from the online world - he’s quite interested in it, and loves seeing photos of himself, friends and family online. What I’m trying to do is to stage his experience and publishing such that he’s at least starting out from a place of safety and protection. We can work on pushing out from there once he’s able to understand what that means.
March 11th, 2008 at 4:48 am
D’Arcy, beautifully stated. That’s exactly what I am trying to explore. I understand you’ve written about it before. Do you have a link? I had another thought. Is this any different than putting our children in excessive extra-curricular activities to help them explore identity? Are we just digital soccer moms and dads?
March 20th, 2008 at 9:44 am
I wrote a post on “deflickring”
http://www.darcynorman.net/2007/02/01/deflickring/