So, my daily blogging for #NationalReadingMonth in March took a brief hiatus while we taught our final three classes last week at Eastside College Prep in East Palo Alto. The last three sessions of our 18-day course were about investing, but today I’m featuring an article from our Employment Unit.

12 Things Students Should Never Do on Social Media

What is it? Just like it sounds, this article on Mashable features 12 things that teenagers and college students, specifically, should avoid posting on social media. Included are things like illegal activity, discussing teachers/professors, and oversharing your personal identity information.

Why is it cool? As I mentioned, it’s specifically written for our target high school and college population. It’s in our Employment unit, which walks students through every part of obtaining a job (whether temporary part-time or a full-time career). So, you could use this reading if you teach advisory, senior seminar, guidance, career prep, etc.

Questions I Might Ask:

1. For comprehension:
   • Why is setting your posts to “private” or “friends only” not enough?
   • Which of these tips are designed to protect you, personally? Which are designed to protect your future education and career prospects? Which are designed to protect you from arrest or serious trouble with the law?
2. Taking it one step further:
   • In Tip 5, the mom’s response to her daughter posting her personal identity information on facebook was, “Well, all the kids do that!” Why does the aunt say she almost fainted?
   • Why do you think bullying and threats appear so frequently on social media?
   • What do you think needs to be added to this list?
3. To personally connect:
   • Have you or someone you know committed any of these errors on social media before? What, if any, were the consequences? How did you/your friend correct the problem?
   • Do you think adults need their own set of social media guidelines? Why or why not? If so, what would they include?

Where is it located in our NGPF collection? This is resource 4 in our “Professional Profiles” lesson in the Employment unit.

About the Author

Jessica Endlich

When I started working at Next Gen Personal Finance, it's as though my undergraduate degree in finance, followed by ten years as an educator in an NYC public high school, suddenly all made sense.