Cataloguing a variety of topics, ProCon is a site which looks into both sides of the argument and configures various factors into the situation. In this case, the topic of social networking is the area of interest, with the subtopic of whether the influences of social networking in the classroom is either beneficial or hazardous.
The “yes” side on this topic see great value in social networking due to its social capabilities of wider outreach. Now, we’re not necessarily talking about advertisements and sly marketing tactics, but rather the simple-minded idea where great counts of people would be able to connect digitally. We could think of this like an enormous classroom. You’re over there, I’m right here, and everyone else is scattered wherever they may be in the world. What a neat concept, and we may even go further. This “yes” side also identifies benefits such as a much wider academic information sharing network, since we are already within the social network. Which by all means is excellent since more exclusive knowledge and mediums of information may be more widely shared with people who may have never had the opportunity to use this information in the first place.
On the downside, or the “no” side, since social networking encourages the sharing of information and other mediums, what is shared with others may not always be ideal for a group as a whole. While keep the mindset on academic relevant practices, one of the main opposing ideas presented is an evolved form of dishonest practices involving cheating. It is clearly evident when users of social networks share their content, other readers may also use this information in ways other than originally intended for. For example, answer keys to previously completed texts and exams could easily make their way to being digitally publicised for others to seek out prior to these students themselves actually taking the text/exam. Therefore, the fear of leaked information does very well pose an area of concern within the academic realm, however, I would not say on the level of significance like the classified-rich information website known as the WikiLeaks.
Sources of this information comes from a variety of publications. On the side for social networking, contributors include an article entitled "Get Noticed. Disseminate Your Research Better” published on Bigger Brains, accompanied by a 2011 Guardian UK publication of “Going Viral: Using Social Media to Publicise Academic Research” by Kyle Christie. The Guardian, including its UK domain, is a fine source for news today. I would say in part it’s a lesser version of CNN, however, still flooded with a variety of articles covering all sorts of topics. The website provided for the Bigger Brains article seems out of place, whereas the proper home for this article has migrated to a different location. At this point in time, I am unable to read Japanese, which is the language of publication for the website provided in the citation. This is not to say the article was not a translation used for ProCon, however, there is something about the website which seems to say the article is elsewhere.
The side against social networking features article contributions from CNET, the LA Times, PolicyMic, and Retuers. Similar to the situation above, the citation including the reference for PolicyMic seems to have found a new location to host the article, leaving the original citation out of date. While offering a collection of fun articles and informative videos, CNET to me is more of a digital medium for light news and entertaining reviews than anything too serious. The LA Times and Reuters are more respectable for their information due to being a regional and international publication respectably.
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