facebook – Mark Mace in

There’s been a couple folks I know who use facebook and have faced the issue of having their “language” setting changed. There doesn’t seem to be anything they did, which makes think suspicious activity and I’d probably be changing the password used for facebook. However, before you can change the password, you need to be able to read the menus, and unless you just happen to read the language it’s been changed to, you’re between a rock and a hard place.

In an effort to help those, here’s the screenshots and where you should click in order to change your language settings in facebook.

Step one : Click on “Settings”, it’s the highlighted in the following image

Step two : Click on “Language”, it’s the highlighted in the following image

Step three : Click on “Edit”, it’s the highlighted in the following image

Step four : Select your “Language”, from the drop down list. Luckily all the languages are localized, so you should recognize your language’s name.

Step five : Last, but not least, don’t forget to click “Save Changes”, the button on the left.

Yeah, that headline caught your attention didn’t it? I saw this article on Social networking sites can be mine fields for teachers in The Salt Lake Tribune and thought I’d make a comment or two on it.

It’s not a new story by any means. Student and teachers see each other on a daily basis. And, when the age difference between the two can be as little as four years, it only seems normal that hormones could come into play. It’s been in the news, teachers crossing the lines with students. Add to that the prevalence of social networking and the fact that a teacher entering the workforce now has always had Facebook and MySpace, both launched in 2004 and you have a whole new venue for potential trouble.

Does that mean as a teacher you shouldn’t be on MySpace or Facebook? I don’t think so, but I think it is important as an educator that you think about the potential implications of being friends with students on such social networks. Additionally, as an educator, if you were to see students engaging in illegal activities on a social networking site, would you be required, ethically, to say something?

Even now, college students are finding out that employers are looking at social networking sites before hiring an individual. Don’t think it’s true? I can tell you that I personally check facebook when considering student hires. The same would be true for a full time hire. It would be the same thing as checking for published papers to see what an individual’s perspective is on a particular subject. So, just remember, that keg stand you did in college could come back to haunt you in the end. Social networking, while great for keeping in touch with friends, can be a double edged sword.

So what is the answer? Where are the lines drawn? I don’t know. I think the area is just going to get grayer…. just like my hair.