Facebook at Pres: Yes or No?
May 17, 2010
Emily Wallace, asst. opinions editor Monica Csikesz, managing editor
Filed under Opinions
Yes
The open access to Facebook gives Pres girls a sense of freedom and respect as mature women. When a girl reaches her mid-teens, she should have the ability to make conscious decisions for herself. Girls, including myself, are quite aware time in the computer lab during class is valuable. It decreases homework and stress and gets us into a different environment. How a person decides to use this time is entirely up to her, however. It’s a simple equation: you plus computer lab plus Facebook equals more work later that night. Inevitably, all students know this, and choose Facebook anyways. The access to the social site shows that each girl is responsible for her own actions.
Despite the waste of time websites such as this bring about, they also help to reduce stress. Keeping our minds off of school for a while is never a bad thing, especially close to finals where our brains are on overload. True, using Facebook for an entire period may lead to consequences later, but a quick visit to your account is not a big deal. Rather than stressing out over a research project, many girls may choose to use Facebook. Seeing what all your friends are up to is a nice treat during a hard day. So I would encourage taking those brief breaks, just try not to get stay logged on too long.
Believe it or not, Facebook can also have some valuable information. Let’s say you are planning a Mission Drive fundraiser and want to advertise the event. Facebook allows its members to make groups and invite friends to join it. Promoting a school event will bring spirit and excitement to students, causing more people to attend. Such connections will help keep your event known.
Even if Facebook were to be blocked again, true fans will surely find a way around the block. For as long as I’ve been at Pres, girls have been logging onto Facebook at school with a simple, unspoken trick. Predictably, this would happen again with any block administrators put on the website. Teachers are smart, but Facebook fans are smarter!
Lastly, I am Pro Facebook at school because I understand it’s what girls like to do. Boys like to play video games and shoot hoops with their friends. Girls like to huddle around a computer and lurk their friend’s pictures. That’s just the way our generation is. Why fight it? Let girls be girls and admire the computer screen freely.
No
Recently, Facebook has been unblocked on Presentation’s school server. That means students are free to check their updates in between classes or during free periods. The amount of social interaction available to students during the school day, however, may have negative effects for students’ motivation and productivity at school.
This popular site can be very tantalizing to those looking to expand their social horizons whenever and wherever possible. With automatic status updates, fun pictures to browse through, and people to chat with, an entire world of social interaction exists on Facebook. However at school, students should focus on business before pleasure.
Students may use Facebook as an outlet to unwind, but this is unacceptable during the school day because it is difficult to concentrate on homework when a familiar popping noise signals an initiated chat conversation, or a little red box notifies a friend’s comment. “As much as I like Facebook, it shouldn’t be allowed at school because people could go on it during class and it’s a pretty big distraction, especially when we’re supposed to be doing homework,” said an anonymous senior.
Dr. Denise Pope, Senior Lecturer at Stanford University, agrees that unplugging from the media is a valuable resource in efficient work habits. Facebook is a big distraction for students working on homework, especially because the screen is always conveniently located right in front of them.
Technical blocking barriers on Facebook usage at school may have only deterred a small percentage of student users. Where there’s a will, there’s a way. Pres authorities should look into a more permanent solution to blocking Facebook. Social networking sites are currently banned by the technology agreement in the handbook, even though Pres’ technical department has no longer blocked Facebook. “The thinking behind our lack of forced traffic mitigation is that students should exercise personal responsibility rather than be artificially policed,” said Mr. Cozort. However, when such a liberal privilege is offered, it is likely to be abused when it is unchecked.
Presentation is a private institution; therefore, Pres isn’t legally bound to block Facebook. However, students are contractually bound by the rules in the handbook against the usage of social networking sites for a reason. Facebook certainly detracts from the productive academic environment.
In addition to being harmful to the academic environment, Facebook could also negatively affect the social environment at a school. Facebook has recently been linked to some cases of cyberbullying, especially in connection to programs such as Formspring. Although Pres cannot be held legally liable if cyberbullying is done by a student on campus, the Pres administration can take any necessary disciplinary action against any misuse of the computers on campus. Therefore, Facebook is not only detrimental to the student population; it could also harm the school’s well-being.
It’s true that Facebook can be beneficial by offering creative resources to teachers and faculty. For instance, if pictures are needed for school projects, Facebook photos are sometimes goldmines of excellent candid shots. Still, Facebook is highly distracting to students, and it is difficult to be productive for a long period of time while using this site.
With all its allure for potential procrastinators, Facebook is detrimental to the student population’s productivity on campus. Especially as the weather outside begins to feel more like summer, the student population really needs to log off their Facebook accounts during school hours in order to foster an environment of productivity. It’s the home stretch until summer, and Facebook should not be home base.
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