DIGITAL REPUTATION

• Based on the content provided, what are your greatest concerns with your digital reputation?

My biggest concern with my digital reputation, as evidenced by all of the videos, is that what you post sticks with you forever. Unlike the videos, I don't have any inappropriate pictures or posts out there - but you never know how one picture can get in the wrong hands. Obviously we are all of age and having a drink is completely legal, but what if a picture of me holding a beer was seen by someone who then showed it to someone else and then someone else who was in charge of a hiring committee for a teaching job? When I was a college athlete, we were so aware of our reputation. You had to make sure you were spotless. Anything and everything could be used against you. I will get to that story towards the end of this blog.

• What precautions do you have to take to preserve your digital reputation?

  Like we did on the discussion board this week, I google myself fairly regularly to see what's out there. I also make sure to keep my "digital circle" somewhat small. I just recently went through Facebook and deleted "friends" who I thought shouldn't really have access to my information. Again, you never know if someone knows someone else that can come back and bite you later on down the road. I also make sure that I keep most opinions to myself. So many people are getting lost in posting every little thing that comes to mind on the internet. It has actually ruined the way I look at some people. Having a "digital circle" is very similar to the social circle you have in real life - do you trust them? If not, get rid of them!

• As an educator or company your work for, are you held to the same ‘digital reputation’ standard as others?  Is the standard you are held to fair/unfair? Why?

As an educator, I believe we are held to a higher standard than most other people in terms of digital reputation, and that is 100% fine. I believe that in all areas of life, public servants, especially those that deal with children, should be held to a higher standard. We are in contact with children during the school year more than their parents are on most days. I would be mortified if a student of mine google searched me and came up with something embarrassing. And I think the district would have every right to punish me depending on the situation. On the other hand, I do understand we are under a terrible nitpicky microscope that is ready to burn a teacher at the drop of a hat. Look at Newsday and how they drag teachers through the mud. They don't skip a beat when a teacher has stepped out of line. I don't want to compare it to this movement that's going on with police officers, but it is similar in that we are in positions of power, interacting with the public, and going to be held to the highest standards possible.

• Whose responsibility is it to teach our children/students to understand/preserve his or her digital footprint/reputation? Educators? Parents? Or is the responsibility on them?

                        I think first and foremost the responsibility is with the parents. The only reason why children have anything "digital" is because their parents bought it for them. Therefore, the parents should make sure that their kids have a true understanding of what it means to have a digital footprint. Just look at the commercials of the girl Sarah in the video or the girl whose picture was on the bulletin board. That commercial hits it right on the head. Would any kid actually take a frisky picture and post it on their school bulletin board? Absolutely not. Would they post it on Instagram? Yup. Would they send it to their boyfriend? Yup. It's so odd to think of. Now I really enjoyed the lesson that the teacher in the video did trying to decide between the two people based on the information they found on them. I think in middle school, in maybe a computer class, that lesson needs to be taught. Now of course, once the teachers and parents have made their case, the rest is in the hands of our kids. Can you trust that your kid is doing the right thing on their phone/laptop/iPad all the time? It's scary to think about for sure!

• Have you or someone you know ever been negatively(or positively) affected by something found online?

As I mentioned earlier, I was a college athlete. We were held to a higher standard because we were representing our school. We always made sure that if we were at a party that we weren't in any pictures with alcohol. If we were tagged in any pictures like that, we immediately untagged them so that they weren't connected to our names. Sometimes we would have to go as far as asking the person to take it down, because it doesn't matter that's untagged, it is still published in someone else's album. Well someone on another team was in a very inappropriate picture with alcohol and someone on her team didn't quite like her. She printed out the picture, folded it in half, and put it in the mailbox of the athletic director. Her career wasn't done, but she was in a lot of trouble. For me, I've never had anything bad happen. I've had people make comments like "you sure do go a lot of places" or "you sure do like wine!" Well, I work at a winery! So I might come off as a total wine-o. That's the scary part, you never know how someone is going to interpret what you post.