Social networking too young?

 Reflection: "How COPPA fails parents, educators, youth" by Boyd & "Social Networking for the 10 and under crowd" by S. Jackson

Subjects: Social Networks, Tweens, Children, COPPA, parental permission requirements

Reading over the articles by Boyd and Jackson got me thinking about the pros and cons of tween social networking.  Tweens are easily able to communicate with family, friends, and institutions such as libraries and schools but become more vulnerable to online predators and cyber-bullying.  If parents keep tweens from accessing social networks, then they run the risk of tweens setting up accounts without adult knowledge or falling behind in developing valuable computer skills.  So what’s a parent to do?  I’m inclined to say that each parent should look at their own child’s development, talk to them about Internet safety, and seek out tween friendly sites.  But I also know that nothing is that simple.

            YALSA (2008) suggests multiple ways that schools and libraries can use social networking to promote tween participation, reading skills, and gather suggestive feedback for services.  They suggest setting up accounts on Myspace, Facebook, or Twitter to blog about library programs, author books, and library resources.  But to use many of those social networking accounts you need to over 13 years of age.  I had assumed this was because of safety issues protecting minors from online predators.  But Boyd’s article argues that the good intention of COPPA was to protect children’s privacy from corporations, not safety from individuals.  COPPA solved this problem by requiring companies to gain parental consent for anyone 13 and under.  Companies responded by requiring users to indicate they were over 13 years of age and therefore not needing parental permission.  From the tweens and teens I know, they responded by lying and clicking the ‘yes, I am over 13’ button, sometimes with parent permission.

            So what are the options?  Jackson suggests that parents try out social networks, such as Togetherville.com, specifically designed for the younger age group.  Sites that require parental permission, screen postings for inappropriateness, and are designed with child safety in mind not just social networking and minimum COPPA compliance.  So do I think an 8 year needs to be online using a social network? I’m still not sure but if they are then I hope it’s through online networks that are focused on a child’s fun and safety as well as parent participation such as AllyKatzz.com, Beaconstreetgirls.com, or Clubpenguin.com.