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I\u2019m honored to have an article I wrote a couple of years ago, \u201cRethinking MySpace,\u201d republished in the newest book by the Rethinking Schools group, Rethinking Popular Culture and Media<\/a>.<\/p>\n In terms of publications related to teaching practice, Rethinking Schools<\/a> is basically the only<\/em> periodical I consistently read, and I want to encourage any teacher to read and support this work. Rethinking Schools is put together by full time teachers who do this out of a commitment to social justice teaching; as much as I am proud to count myself as a contributor to the magazine, I can say with utmost confidence that I\u2019d still be reading, subscribing, and recommending Rethinking Schools\u2019 materials regardless of if I had written for them.<\/p>\n Now, I realize it is 2011 and I\u2019m now in the position of promoting an article about MySpace. Like Friendster, MySpace has pretty much come and gone. [A good read related to the downfall of MySpace can be found here<\/a>.]<\/p>\n Talking with students recently, several admitted that they still have an account there, but that for the most part they are almost entirely interacting with peers on Facebook. [This is significantly recent shift that I want to explore further in future posts. Less than a year ago, I would talk to students about Facebook and it was still not considered \u201ccool\u201d or accepted by youth. This<\/a> was pretty much still the norm.]<\/p>\n In any case, regardless of which corporate entity students are adopting for their social networking, participatory media has directly changed the way students communicate, socialize, learn. The practices I describe in \u201cRethinking MySpace\u201d are far from obsolete and the challenges we educators face are becoming more complex.<\/p>\n Critically, we need to recognize that many people (not just students) are engaging with new media tools without questioning the structures that are in place: How are companies making money off of my decisions in a space like Facebook? How is this money being used? What capitalist ideologies do I reify each time I \u201clike\u201d a friend\u2019s status update, retweet, or respond to a colleague\u2019s request on a network like academia.edu<\/a>?<\/p>\n The literacy skills we instill in students need to include not only how<\/em> to interact with the new tools that have emerged over the past few years, but also a recognition to understand the implications<\/em> of using these tools.<\/p>\n In upcoming posts, I want to expand on ideas I began with in \u201cRethinking MySpace,\u201d question how social networking practices have transformed my practice, and explore what is happening in larger conversations about privacy and social networking. In the meantime, please support Rethinking Schools (and their sister site Not Waiting For Superman<\/a>).<\/p>\nTell people this is awesome:<\/h3>