Lori Van Order

Hoaxes & Myths Elective

SLM521

Summer 2003

I have had some of the same experiences as several of you have described throughout this discussion thread. I used to forward chain letters and fall for hoaxes all the time, but I have definitely learned now to check into these emails more carefully. But as careful as I think I am, there are still those few that I fall for, being the gullible, sympathetic person I am. AS I was browsing through the various urban legends and hoaxes sites, I came across one that I just fell for a couple weeks ago. It was the one about hte puppies found in the trash bin...when I had checked the orination of hte email, I thought it looked like it was from the husband of a woman I teach with, so I deemed it valid and passed it on to a few other friends. Now, seeing the same exact story (and pictures!) on one of hte sites I just looked through, I feel bad for falling for it and then even passing it on!

Reading through some of the other Internet hoaxes, I am amazed to see how many I have received and fallen for, or some that I received and didn't fall for. I read through the guidelines given through some of these sites, and feel that they were important to think about to avoid these hoaxes. I see now that each hoax does have some sort of truth to it that makes it seem credible, but I know now to check on these websites to verify their credibility. I work with elementary students, so we don't have many problems other than the pop-up windows others have talked about. But I still feel it is important to discuss the importance of authenticating emails and websites with students. I think students need to be reminded and warned that there really is a lot of misinformation out on the Internet, and especially at the elementary age, students should check with an adult to decide if the site or email is credible.

I'm glad to have had the opportunity to use the sites for Urban Legends, hoax busters, and center for Disease Control, as now I have a place to go to when I want to check on any information before I pass it on to others. I have a second email address as well, which I use for ordering things online, and I think this has helped to cut down on unwanted emails or spam. I would higly recommend this idea to others, as Heath did earlier.