Bringing In Teens          Teacher and School Resources from CSM

Welcome to the Teachers Lounge!  This is a place for educators that are interested in one of two things; bringing teens that they work with into the Focus dialogues, and connecting with educational resources related to life online that can be used in classrooms and schools.

Why bring my teens into Focus?

• It's a safe space for these issues.  Most of the time, when discussing issues relating to life online, it's in a face to face context where adults are the authority figure.  Focus is a safe space where teens (and adults) can freely voice their opinions on how they navigate life online without worrying about getting shut down.
• It's a way to develop a voice.  Teens almost always have an opinion about these sorts of issues, but many aren't ready to express themselves in every context.  Focus is a place that's explicitly about voicing their opinion, and one where teens can get better at articulating themselves around things that they care about.
• It's starting a larger dialogue.  Focus is the beginning of what we hope will be a larger conversation between youth and adults around the world about the ways that the online world is shaping lives, and the youth involved now will be critical to shaping the way this dialogue takes shape.
• Teens are navigating these spaces by themselves.  When we ran the first round of Focus, we only had teen participants.  One of things that was expressed overwhelmingly was that they were mostly figuring out how to deal with the online world on their own, without any substantive adult involvement.  Focus is a place where adults and teens can come together to address these issues.

Why bring this larger conversation back to my classroom or school?

• Most teachers and parents aren't talking about the issues. It's rare to have adults that are tuned into how their teens' lives are changing and engaging in a way that isn't based on fear or reactivity. Take what you've learned in these dialogues back to your community to get other parents and teachers engaged in thinking and talking about these important issues. Check out the resources section for tools and guides from Common Sense Media that support you in bringing the conversation to your school.