Online Reflection #3 : Building the Basics – How much is too much?

As future teachers we are often advised to get to know our students- but what happens when they want to tell us too much? Over the past few weeks I have felt completely blindsided by some of the information that students willingly and openly share. Working in the first hour of the day, the senior class I work with appears to have no qualms in talking to the CT and I about their weekend or previous night’s happenings. A few of the students have even come up to ask for advice! Normally, I would be thrilled with this amount of openness between students and teachers- but this idea is based on the fact that students share sensitive information to teachers when there is a basis of trust between them. Is this the case, anymore?

It seems that more and more students (or at least the classroom body that I work with) are openly sharing intimate details that simply should not be shared without caution. For example: there is a student who often asks for advice on her “love situation”. Through some half-hazard talks (to which I always tried to offer a basic service of advice for a general audience, so as not to misguide or misinform the student while also not simply rejecting her sincere questions) I have been told- without even asking- of more than one “significant other” at the same time and questioned on who I, personally, would choose to stay with- or if hiding one from the other is wrong. These are questions that I don’t feel comfortable discussing with acquaintances and yet here is a student openly asking her teacher without batting an eye. At first I wondered if this behavior was solely of one student but I quickly learned that it was not. There are several students who willingly share and proffer such information without even being asked. It begs the question of: what is too much?

Researching online, I discovered that this situation is becoming more and more commonplace. For example, an article written by Stephen Winzenburg, gives the opinion that the online social media may be playing a part. While I do not know whether or not Facebook, Twitter, and the vast array of online websites could cause students- and people in general- to willingly share private information with little care, the article shows that it is not isolated the students in my classroom.

So what is the solution? Is there even a problem, or is this a social change that older generations will inevitably have to recognize- even if they do not agree it should be done? Perhaps I simply did not search the right words- but there seemed to be little online information on this specific topic. I found an abundant resource of information on what people, kids in particular, should or should not share online but not in relation to a classroom or public situation. From there I turned to classroom management. This appears to be the path, at least for the moment, which is most beneficial- especially during transitions. Perhaps by using such guides as Adam Waxler’s “How to Handle Classroom Management During Transitions” – or one of the many other online and in print resources for this topic–the amount of personal sharing may get cut down. A classroom discussion on what is too much to share may provide a benefit to some students, as well. However, as they are all seniors, most already taking on adult responsibilities and liberties, I’m unsure as to how many will take the discussion into serious consideration. Most of the students, when questioned, do not see the problem with sharing as much as they do, after all. Am I simply creating a problem where there isn’t one?