No one can deny that social media gives you access to information that you might not have found otherwise. The question is, is this a good thing? Is the ability to read about world events next to your best friend’s drunken Saturday night antics making us smarter, or making us crazy? Anyone who has ever used Twitter or Facebook knows how addictive these tools can become. And, yes, while there is value in knowing what’s going on in Iraq from those who are in the field, and it’s great to get deals from retailers for Black Friday, I’m not sure if the exploits of Adam Lambert are really going to make me healthier, put money in my bank account or anything else on my list of priorities.
But I am an adult. I can filter information, decide what’s best for me, and make my own decisions. What about children? While there are parental controls to ensure that kids aren’t accessing inappropriate sites on the Web, as we all know they can still find ways to access the Internet (remember what you did as a kid that your parents never knew about!?). And while social media pundits have tried to link social media with bad behavior in children – much like they link video games with teen violence – it seems that there’s a new spin going viral in cyberspace. Instead of concerns that social media is taking up too much time when young people could be doing more productive things, some leading edge companies are making sure that social media is used for good – not evil. Envision this scenario…
Eight year old Juan sits in front of the computer in the Internet café near his home in Bogotá, Columbia. He concentrates deeply as he records his first song in English. The sound must be perfect and the pronunciation correct, because he invited his cyber friends to his concert later. On the other side of the world in Luxor in Egypt, six year old Mustafa logs into the Internet from his dad’s computer in the corner of the living room. Excited, he prepares for the concert he'll attend with his friend Juan, knowing afterwards they will chill out, talk and have fun – and learn English at the same time.
This scenario is reality at Mingoville, a social media company catering to children, teachers and parents. Instead of mindless interaction, this company is enabling children across the country to learn English in a fun atmosphere, in their own time. Pretty cool.
And Mingoville isn’t the only one. According to Edutopia, which tracks how social media and kids go together, there are a number of social media companies helping kids learn in safe, productive environments.
So let’s get back to being an adult. Are their great sites out there where adults can learn from each other, share intelligent information and share their expertise – without all the noise of traditional social networks? My vote is for Kutano. Although it’s been live less than a year, there are over a million comments – from product reviews to world event commentary to Apple fans. The amazing thing is the vast majority of these comments are curious, well informed and passionate – not the usual “snarky” behavior seen in so many other social sites. Call me biased, but Kutano seems to be emerging as the “thinking person’s” choice in social media.
What do you think? Tell us why you use Kutano here.
-Tina
But I am an adult. I can filter information, decide what’s best for me, and make my own decisions. What about children? While there are parental controls to ensure that kids aren’t accessing inappropriate sites on the Web, as we all know they can still find ways to access the Internet (remember what you did as a kid that your parents never knew about!?). And while social media pundits have tried to link social media with bad behavior in children – much like they link video games with teen violence – it seems that there’s a new spin going viral in cyberspace. Instead of concerns that social media is taking up too much time when young people could be doing more productive things, some leading edge companies are making sure that social media is used for good – not evil. Envision this scenario…
Eight year old Juan sits in front of the computer in the Internet café near his home in Bogotá, Columbia. He concentrates deeply as he records his first song in English. The sound must be perfect and the pronunciation correct, because he invited his cyber friends to his concert later. On the other side of the world in Luxor in Egypt, six year old Mustafa logs into the Internet from his dad’s computer in the corner of the living room. Excited, he prepares for the concert he'll attend with his friend Juan, knowing afterwards they will chill out, talk and have fun – and learn English at the same time.
This scenario is reality at Mingoville, a social media company catering to children, teachers and parents. Instead of mindless interaction, this company is enabling children across the country to learn English in a fun atmosphere, in their own time. Pretty cool.
And Mingoville isn’t the only one. According to Edutopia, which tracks how social media and kids go together, there are a number of social media companies helping kids learn in safe, productive environments.
So let’s get back to being an adult. Are their great sites out there where adults can learn from each other, share intelligent information and share their expertise – without all the noise of traditional social networks? My vote is for Kutano. Although it’s been live less than a year, there are over a million comments – from product reviews to world event commentary to Apple fans. The amazing thing is the vast majority of these comments are curious, well informed and passionate – not the usual “snarky” behavior seen in so many other social sites. Call me biased, but Kutano seems to be emerging as the “thinking person’s” choice in social media.
What do you think? Tell us why you use Kutano here.
-Tina
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