social media education

Bam calls for social media literacy and decency

Let’s have a sense of decency online! 

Sen. Bam Aquino made this call even as he criticized several netizens for vulgar and explicit social media posts following the Marcos burial issue.

 “Magkakaiba man tayo ng pananaw sa mga isyu, hindi pa rin dapat mawala ang respeto sa isa’t isa at pagiging disente sa social media,” said Sen. Bam.

 “Kung paano tayo sa labas, kasama ng ating mga kaibigan at pamilya, dapat ganoon din ang ating pagkilos at ugali sa social media,” he added.

 Sen. Bam stressed that as a public space that may be accessed anytime by young people, social media must be free from discrimination, hate speech and verbal abuse.

 “Walang lugar sa social media ang anumang masasakit na salita at pambabastos na maaaring mabasa ng mga kabataan,” he said.

 Earlier, Sen. Bam filed Senate Resolution No. 173 to determine how schools are educating and developing students regarding the responsible social media use.

 During a hearing on the resolution, Sen. Bam called on different stakeholders, led by the Department of Education (DepEd), to join forces in combating rampant trolling and spread of misinformation on social media.

Sen. Bam also supports the “Tres Marias Bills” to combat gender-based violence.

 

Bam urges stakeholders to join forces vs trolls, misinformation on social media

Sen. Bam Aquino called on different stakeholders, led by the Department of Education (DepEd), to join forces in combating rampant trolling and spread of misinformation on social media.

 “We need to address the volume and frequency issues with the same volume and frequency,” Sen. Bam pointed out during the Committee on Education hearing on the responsible use of social media in schools.

“Maybe we can work on something that can match that level of speed, exponential growth and energy that we see online,” added Sen. Bam, chairman of the said committee.

Sen. Bam filed Senate Resolution No. 173 to determine how schools are educating and developing students regarding the responsible social media use.

Sen. Bam said DepEd can lead the way by conducting a “media literacy week” or “responsible social media use week” to jumpstart the move.

“This is something we can explore further and I’m confident that everyone will be willing to volunteer,” said Sen. Bam.

Aside from DepEd, Rappler chief executive officer Maria Ressa and Carlo Ople of Internet and Mobile Marketing Association of the Philippines (IMMAP) also attended the event.

Both Ressa and Ople expressed willingness to help the initiative against trolling and misinformation on social media.

“Trolling is a global phenomenon. Real victims are those who believe in misinformation. We need explosive and faster solutions,” said Ople.

Ressa stressed the need to integrate responsible use of social media in schools, reiterate moral obligations and strengthen constructive debates to fight the spread of hate on social media.

 The DepEd, for its part, has established mechanisms that would guide “digital learners’” to make them responsible social media users.

“Right now, the concern is there. Na-recognize na may problema at na-recognize rin na ang solusyon dito hindi lang magagawa ng isang grupo o ahensiya. Kailangan magtulong-tulong ang iba’t ibang sektor para masolusyonan ito,” said Sen. Bam.

Ultimately, Sen. Bam said the move “aims to create a society that is more humane and compassionate towards each other and a Philippines that is more tolerant of different ideas and beliefs”.

 

Bam to lead probe on sex, drugs and trolls education in schools

The Senate Committee on Education will look into how public schools educate students about reproductive health, responsible use of social media and the dangers of illegal drugs.
 
Education committee chairman Sen. Bam Aquino will conduct a hearing together with the Committees on Public Order and Dangerous Drugs and Health and Demography on Tuesday (Oct. 18).
 
Sen. Bam has filed three separate resolutions calling for an investigation into drug prevention and education in schools, reproductive health education and responsible use of social media in schools — Senate Resolution Nos. 168, 169 and 173, respectively.
 
“These three issues are crucial to today’s students as they face the problems of illegal drugs, teenage pregnancies, and cyber-bullying and misinformation in social media,” said Sen. Bam.
 
In Senate Resolution No. 173, Sen. Bam wants to be enlightened on how schools are educating and developing students regarding the responsible social media use.
 
“Our schools can play a critical role in guiding students to become productive digital citizens and to communicate respectfully online,” said Sen. Bam.
 
The move is aimed at guiding and developing students on responsible and proper social media use, considering the prevalence of misinformation and use of abusive language in social media, especially by so-called “paid trolls”.
 
With the alarming rise in number of teen pregnancies in the country, Sen. Bam filed a resolution calling for an inquiry on the status of the implementation of reproductive health education in schools.
 
Senate Resolution No. 169 seeks to clarify the status of the implementation of reproductive health education in schools amid the alarming rise in number of teen pregnancies in the country.
 
Based on 2011 to 2014 data from the Philippine Statistics Authority, teenage pregnancy in the country is on the rise, with one in every ten women of child-bearing age is a teenager and 24 babies are born every hour from teenage mothers.
 
In Senate Resolution No. 168, Sen. Bam aims to determine the status of drug education and prevention programs in schools and alternative learning systems (ALS) to help keep the youth away from the drug menace.

Bam: Educate students on proper, responsible use of social media

Worried by the prevalence of misinformation and use of abusive language in social media, especially by so-called “paid trolls”, a senator wants schools to educate, guide and develop students on responsible and proper social media use.

In Senate Resolution No. 173, Sen. Bam Aquino calls on the Senate to conduct an inquiry on the proper education and development of responsible social media use in schools.

“Our schools can play a critical role in guiding students to become ethical and productive digital citizens and to communicate properly and respectfully online,” said Sen. Bam, chairman of the Committee on Education.

 In addition, learning institutions can teach students on how to determine reliability and credibility of online news and views, practice digital safety and prudence and to create a positive digital footprint.

“Social norms, best practices, and guidelines for social media use are still evolving, which is why our children and the youth need guidance on proper and responsible social media use,” said Sen. Bam.

Sen. Bam pointed out the growing concern across the globe over how social media is increasingly being used and abused to spread fake news and misinformation.

“In the Philippines, this unfortunate phenomenon was observed widely during and following the recent national elections,” Sen. Bam said, mentioning social media platforms such as Facebook, Twitter and YouTube.

As a response, some of these social media companies have initiated moves to combat misinformation and fraudulent news that emerge online.

 Recently, Facebook and Twitter joined over thirty major news and technology organizations in the First Draft Partner Network to collectively address “issues of trust and truth in reporting information that emerges online.”

The Network plans to share best practices and a collaborative platform for verifying news and stories shared in social media, and promote news literacy among social media users;

In January 2015, Facebook updated its News Feed to reduce the distribution of posts that users have reported as hoaxes. Annotations were also made to posts that were frequently reported as false or misleading so as to warn others on the platform.

Twitter, for it part, released new guidelines in December 2015 for the removal and moderation of abusive, hostile and offensive language on its platform.

According to latest data, the Philippines has the second highest social media penetration rate among internet users in Southeast Asia, with 39.7 million people, representing 74 percent of its internet users, regularly visiting a social network in 2015.

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