The Tiananmen Square Massacre which took place in China left a huge impact on people all over the world. When this article was written it would be the 20th anniversary of the Massacre. China has tried to control access to social media in the lead up to and on the anniversary of that day when the Chinese military opened fire on innocent people protesting. The author makes a good point stating that as an educator people should have the right to free and universal access to information. He goes on to say that it is human nature to try and filter or block things that make us uncomfortable. By blocking this from people instead installs a sense that we fear what people will do with the information if they are provided with it and able to communicate with each other. As educators we are placed with the responsibility to keep students safe. But we are not allowing for educating if we are just blocking and filtering everything. By filtering and blocking the students only creates a feeling of distrust among them; this also implies that we are scared of what them might find out. As long as we continue to block and filter information from our students we continue to put our students at a disadvantage.
As a future educator I believe students should be able to explore the internet freely without strict limitations. Students have a natural curiosity therefore by preventing them from the internet by blocking and flittering I feel does a disservice to the students. By telling the students that they are not allowed to access certain information only makes them more curious to find answers, and they are mostly likely going to find out one way or another. If we allow students some freedom we can instill a sense or trust in them and hold them responsible for the information they explore.
There is so much on the internet that students can be exposed to. There needs to be ratings for sites just like there are ratings for movies. You would not let a child see a movie that was not age appropriate, so why would the internet be any different. When parents block or filter what is not age appropriate for their child, they are being responsible parents. When it comes to the internet that same judgement needs to be applied. I do not think blocking or filtering the internet sites that are not age appropriate for children is putting our students at a disadvantages, in fact it is protecting them from harm.
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