Breaking News, World News and Taiwan News.

Updated Sunday, October 4, 2009 12:00 am TWN,

Sponsors
▪	Get the best deals for Guangzhou Hotels or choose from more than 10,000 hotels in 499 Chinese cities.
▪	Find great real time deals on China Flights. Book flights to China or China domestic flights 24/7.
▪	Buy china wholesale products from reliable chinese wholesalers on DHgate.com!
▪	Save 75% for all hotels in Shanghai, Beijing and whole China. Lowest rates for Flights in China.

Facebook contact with students

I made a mistake in the beginning by admitting a current student or two into my FB group of “friends.” I do not do that now.

I am happy to relate with former students on FB, but feel the rapid pace of lively chatter, the sharing of pictures and personal life, and the air of closeness on FB would not be helpful in my relationships with current students. I still need a bit of distance to handle objectivity with grades, conduct in class, and letters of recommendation. When I work on scholarship committees, I want no one, myself included, to doubt my sense of fair play. So, I turn down current students who want to FB with me. I explain why, and they seem to understand.

Does FB only offer a short-lived rush of emotions in the first flush of excitement (to quote the words of a buddy) as face-bookers nurture relationships from the past? Is FB only useful for shallow communication? I do not think so. FB is helping me deepen ties with a few chosen loved ones who were finding e-mail cumbersome and regular mail impossible. But words that only skim the surface, oh yes, they happen all too easily on a FB screen, and are, I fear, a waste of time.

FB has been a blessing for my ministry with alumni. Two weeks ago, in the space of 48 hours, three members of a class that graduated 18 years ago exchanged notes and photos with me on FB. These “students” are all happily married. Between them they have six children. Do you think their news put a smile on my face?

Now, a word about posting pictures on FB. Some former students have prepared capacious “albums” in their FB pages, replete with pictures that might, on a second or third thought, be best reserved for the personal enjoyment of, shall we say, an intimate friend alone. If you are in a picture that seems a little wild or exotic, pause and reflect. Always protect your privacy. Hang onto your sense of self-dignity. Those are two treasures you don't want to lose.

Father Daniel J. Bauer SVD is a priest and associate professor in the English Department at Fu Jen Catholic University.

1|2