The Role of Technology in the Life of Tweens

Technologies play a large role in the lives of tweens today.  They have changed the way they interact with their environment and also how they are obtaining and learning information.  Although as Goodstein mentions tweens are doing many of the same things today as they were in the past but the advent of new technologies has greatly changed the ways things are done.

Cell phones are now tweens main source of communication.  They are able to stay in constant communication with their friends through texts or phone calls.  Parents are also able to reach them at almost all times which can be a good and bad thing.  On one hand tweens can feel smothered by constant phone calls from their parents but on the other hand they can also easily lie about their whereabouts due to the portability of phones.  This makes it much easier for them to go places without their parent’s knowledge.  I believe that cell phones have made tweens more independent because they give their parents a false sense of security.

Computers are another technology that plays a central role in tweens lives.  They use them for school work, games, chatting and meeting with friends, and shopping.  If they have a question and need information the computer/internet is usually their first source.  With the vast amount of information available over the internet it is important for tweens to learn information literacy skills so they can be able to sort through the information and be able to determine credible sites.    Many individuals in this age group also spend a significant amount of time online either posting information to their blog or on social networking sites.  They all know how to navigate and use these web 2.0 tools very well but many lack the knowledge to know the dangers and wide ranging effects of the information they post.  I think it’s great that they are able to have access to the web because it gives them many skills that are advantageous to their learning but they need to be made aware of the possible dangers and consequences as well.

Goodstein, A. (2007). Totally Wired: What Teens and Tweens are Really Doing Online. New York: St Martin’s Griffin.

Boys and Reading

After our discussion about boys and reading I decided to do some further research.  I agree that tween boys aren't reading as much as girls and I think that there are many things that go into that.  For one, they aren't as interested.  They would rather be doing other things and many times at that age reading isn't considered "cool".  Another reason is that not as many books are aimed at boys and since boys aren't going to the library as much many displays are aimed at girls.  Boys also are limiting in the genres they will read so that further restriction their choices. 

The article I found presented an interesting way to increase reading in boys and is definitely something I will keep in mind once I start my career as a librarian.  In the article, the librarian (Chris Gustafson) had a yearlong project in which she would create a reading list.  Once students read the book, they were required to answer a few short questions and then their name could be entered into a drawing for a prize.  After looking at the state reading scores Chris decided to look at the results of her project by gender and found that surprisingly only 28% of the entries were from boys.  After reviewing some possible solutions she decided to instill the spirit of competition and pinned the girls against the boys.  In the new reading competition if more boys than girls read and entered their names in the coffee can then six names were drawn for the monthly prizes and vice versa.  The change she made to her project has greatly increased the number of boys participating each year.  By adding an additional element that appealed to boys she was able to get a greater amount to start reading.  As librarians we have to look for creative ways to engage boys in reading otherwise they will continue to lag behind girls.

Gustafson, C. (2008). Reading Motivation Through Competition: Boys as Readers. Library Media Connection, 26(5), 16-17. Retrieved from Library, Information Science & Technology Abstracts with Full Text database.

Bullying in Tweens

I recently read a portion of Totally Wired which dealt with bullying and cyber bullying which I found very interesting.  According to the Education Resources Information Center, “Bullying occurs when a person willfully and repeatedly exercises power over another with hostile or malicious intent” (Goodstein, 2007, p.77).  Tweens are especially prone to bullying due to the extreme changes they are going through.  Many have low self esteem and are going through changes that make them feel vulnerable.  In order to combat this some resort to bullying which gives them a sense of control and power. 

In girls, bullying is usually done by individuals with low self-esteem or by those that are jealous or insecure (Goodstein, 2007, p.79).  It makes them feel better to put others down and they put on a façade of being cool with an abundance of confidence.  Bullies usually have a group of followers that laugh at their jokes which in turn elevates their popularity status, gives them greater confidence, and makes them more prone to do it again.  The social culture today actually promotes bickering and backstabbing which makes teens and tweens think it is ok.  The advent of increased technology has made bullying or cyber bullying as it is now called more prevalent and is more anonymous.  Now bullies can send cruel IM’s or emails without being able to see how much it hurts the other person.  This creates a disconnect where the bully isn’t given a chance to emphasize with how their victim feels and therefore will continue with the bullying and sometimes even increase the level.  It is definitely easier to say mean things through email or to spread pictures or jokes through text messages so the humiliation felt by the victims is more widespread.

After the large number of school shootings in the 1990’s the government decided to do some research studies in order to determine why bullying is done and who bullies are (Goodstein, 2007, p.77).  Since that time they have set aside a considerable amount of money for anti-bullying programs, and twenty-one states have adopted anti-bullying laws (Goodstein, 2007, p.78).  I think the government and individual states are trying hard to get control of this widespread problem because of the far-reaching consequences it has.  Bullies may not know the profound effect they have had on their victims but many carry the pain with them for a long time.  Until a stronger stand is taken on this problem it will continue to grow and grow.

Goodstein, A. (2007). Totally Wired: What Teens and Tweens are Really Doing Online. New York: St. Martin’s Griffin.