POINT/COUNTERPOINT

Is Facebook as Good as Face-to-Face? Students offer their takes on the Point/Counterpoint topic that educators addressed in our

September/October issue.

Yes Observe the Saturday morning ritual of millions of teens across the world: Wake up, grab the cell to check for texts, plop in front of the computer, and begin scrolling through Facebook. Like all generations of teens, we are driven by our connections to our peers, and digital technology is what makes this possible today. The accessibility and options that Facebook and its other digital counterparts provide make these mediums just as good as face-to-face.

Friendships grow easily when two people can
hold a conversation regardless of their locations,
even when they’re in the same town. One of my
friends and I update each
other on our days as they go
by instead of waiting for later
to hear, “Guess what hap-
pened!” My friend can text
me while she is out shopping
about a sale of my favorite
designer that she has discov-
ered. I may even be able to go
check it out that day, demon-

strating how the digital world Tiffany Cassidy

It is impossible to play a game of
Ultimate Frisbee with a group of close friends on
a warm summer night without getting out of the
house. Shopping online cannot compare to raiding
thrift stores and flying about fitting rooms in outra-
geous outfits. And, while you’re sitting in front of a
computer screen, you are only putting off the first
awkward moments with that dream guy or girl.
Being social involves connection, yet people can-
not truly connect in cyberspace. Sociability—the
ability to connect and relate with others—is mea-
sured in a person’s response when addressed face
to face. A shift to text-based communication and
multimedia social networking sites, such as Face-
book or Twitter, may have a
detrimental effect on social
development, and social
growth can be stagnant or
even reversed unless a child,
teenager, or adult socializes
face to face.