The incredible revolution caused by the computer and the internet is raising issues of what are appropriate and not appropriate behaviors on-line. For instance, Facebook has recently exploded with users, and those on Facebook are being forced to makes social choices which will determine what acceptable social media behavior will be in the future. This is entirely different than the way societal norms develop in the world of human, face-to-face interactions, which are learned over time from parents, teachers and peers. Of course manners and what are acceptable behavior changes with each new generation, but the evolution is usually slower and more natural. Today adults as well as youth are being on a sharp learning curve and must come to grapple with what to do.
One issue now being worked out is whether students should become Facebook friends with their teachers. There are some interesting issues here that we will explore in part II of this series.