Editor's Note: Mom is tired and she is going on a much-needed vacation. While she's at the spa, Moms Talk is going on hiatus too.
Moms Talk is a Patch forum in which we ask members of Patch communities across the Lehigh Valley to weigh in on an issue that affects parents, children of all ages, and, quite frankly, people in general. You don’t have to be a Mom, or even a parent, to have an opinion on our Moms Talk topic of the week. And, we, in fact, encourage people of all genders, ages and life situations to share their thoughts on our weekly Moms Talk question in the comments section below so that our “discussion” can become as broad and, hopefully, as useful as possible.
In this week’s Moms Talk, we’re exploring kids and Facebook:
You don't have to be a rocket scientist to know that today's world is a dangerous place for children. But, is today's online world making it even more dangerous? In particular, the question of whether kids should be allowed on Facebook has gotten a good deal of media attention, as the social media giant contemplated doing away with its under 13 age restriction last year. Those who research such things say that there's actually less bullying going on among kids on social media than in the physical world. Many attribute the evil online world we're led to believe is out there to software companies who want to sell "protection" methods to parents.
Now we want to know your thoughts:
Should kids be allowed on Facebook? And, what's the right age for getting a Facebook page?
And, remember, you don’t have to be a parent to have an opinion.
Rodriguez for Commissioner 2013
8:47 pm on Sunday, March 3, 2013
facebook started out as only for people with school email addresses, should have stayed that way, now any pedophile or rapist can get a facebook page
Ana
10:50 pm on Sunday, March 3, 2013
No they should not be allow because they get bully and the parents have no idea
Mean Mom
7:05 am on Monday, March 4, 2013
If you monitor your kids, know their passwords, and have open communication with them, then YES they should be allowed to have a fb page. The teens that are "not allowed" to do anything are the ones that are "doing it all" .....
Missy Moyer-Schneck
8:31 am on Tuesday, March 5, 2013
Mine both have a page that I monitor daily, I also monitor their instagram, their kik pages...it's called being a parent, know what's going on in your kids lives and don't be the parent that stands at the door when the police arrive with your kid and say "I had no idea"
Robyn from MamaBear App
7:48 am on Monday, March 4, 2013
Social media isn't going away. I'm not going to shelter my kids from it, but following the rules - which at the moment is not getting an account until 13 - is also an important lesson. Parents MUST monitor social media - just like the comment above - know their passwords. And if it saves you time, use software or tools to give you the information you need about behavior in their social spaces. Our kids have even riskier consequences from making a bad decision in social media which means we have more parental responsibilities. We can't ignore it and shouldn't turn our check to it.
Broughaha
11:10 am on Monday, March 4, 2013
I agree--for better or worse, social media will be a huge part of kid's lives. Parent's can't be ignorant by turning a blind eye, being uninformed, or prohibiting social media. Instead, they need to educate their children as soon as possible about the dangers and benefits of Facebook, twitter, etc. With that said, I see no reason for kids under 13 to have a Facebook. They don't need it to organize events or stay in contact with friends away at college. Go play outside.
kirsten Bischoff
11:00 pm on Sunday, March 10, 2013
You are so right. I only wish that with the emergence of social media, the tech geniuses had managed to give us moms an additional hour or two in the day to manage all of this oversight of our kids online!. lol.
kirsten Bischoff
10:59 pm on Sunday, March 10, 2013
I think that social media isn't going away. Its a skill that kids should learn. Its why, as a mom I co-founded a site that is a social network meant for families and close friends. We built it around sharing calendars/to do lists, etc. When you sign up you can designate your kid an "individual" (so they can connect with people outside your immediate family account) or as a "kid" and then they can only interact with your family account (and are not even searchable). This way, parents have a safe, private social network to introduce social media to their kids, oversee their accounts, and have the ability to streamline family coordinating letting everyone know what is going on. Sort of like having your refrigerator door go mobile (lol).
I'd love for you to check us out and tell us what you think. Hatchedit.com
Thanks!
Rosemary B
7:53 am on Monday, March 11, 2013
If monitored by the parents, Facebook and twitter can be great parenting tools. You do have to make the rule that you must have access to their accounts, E-mail, facebook, twitter, ect. But you can find out a lot about your child's friends and acquaintances by monitoring your child's accounts. I always can tell what child does not have a parent watching over them by what they post on their pages and it can open up discussion between myself and my kids about posting appropriate and inappropriate pictures and what is appropriated and inappropriate behavior on line. As a result of this I have even seen my daughter try and stop bullying from happening on twitter and she even took it a step further and notified the school who stepped in and talked to, and in some cases, disciplined some very jealous kids who were spreading nasty and untrue rumors about a very talented girl. It has been a plus for us.
Anonymous Poster
10:32 pm on Monday, March 18, 2013
That all depends on the kids. Parents should use their own judgment as to whether they think that their kids have the common sense necessary to turn their nose up at online bullies, not meet strange guys in trenchcoats in empty parking lots, and not tell the entire world every detail about their lives.
Some kids may not have that common sense, but I think that you'll find that many do. It's all about communication—parents need to be open and honest with their kids about the things that they are concerned about on the internet, and educate both their kids and themselves about how to avoid and manage such things.