This is a response to Amanda’s blog post #2

Amanda, your thoughts on digital identity are insightful! In terms of educational technology and personalized learning, I agree that understanding our digital identity is super important. I love how you mentioned googling yourself to see your digital footprint—I’ve definitely done that myself before, and it’s interesting to see what pops up, it’s not usually what we expect to see. It’s surprising how much you can learn about your own online presence that way, and how easy it is to learn about others. But then again, I have a handful of coworkers who have managed to somehow to stay off every social media/posting website (even on their friends and family’s pages!). This means that when you google them, it’s like a barren wasteland; you can barely find anything about them. Isn’t that bizarre? Some people share their whole lives online, yet others don’t have a single picture of themselves online. And even though everybody around us seems to be glued to their phones these days, there are still tons of people who have chosen to reject the notion of a personal online presence entirely.

Your approach to keeping your social media accounts private and professional is smart. Even though you don’t post much, it’s clear you’re mindful of what goes online. This is crucial because, as you said, once something is on the internet, it’s there forever. You mentioned you enjoy platforms like YouTube and TikTok but prefer to watch rather than post, and I feel like that is the case for many others as well. It’s much easier to watch videos/TikToks rather than actually make them ourselves. So I decided to do a little bit of my own research. With 170 million active users in the U.S. (had to google that one here), it’s clear that a lot of people are watching TikToks. However to my surprise, as of May 2024, 83% of U.S. TikTok users have admitted to posting a video themselves (source can be found here). Even as a viewer, you’re still part of the digital landscape, and your interactions contribute to your digital identity. When it comes to personalized learning, knowing your digital habits can help tailor educational experiences to your needs. But, as you pointed out, privacy is a big concern. Your strategy of keeping personal content private and making sure anything public is professional is a great way to manage your online presence. As new social media platforms come out, it’s smart to keep an eye on them and decide how you want to engage. Staying updated without oversharing is a solid approach. Overall, your thoughts on digital identity and how you manage it are really helpful. I enjoyed reading your blogpost!