An Incredible Wealth of Information but don't let the discussion boards put you off! (thesite.org)

Member Name: malteser1987

Product:	thesite.org
Date:	23/05/09 (54 review reads)
Rating:

Advantages: Information, friendships, open discussion

Disadvantages: Clique members, telling the difference between real life and the internet!!

Thesite.org has a special place in my heart. I remember being about 13 when I took my first run up at joining the community. At that time I was young, naive and had heard about thesite through my school and thought I would sign up. I joined under my current username in January 2004 and have raked up just over 2000 posts in that time. I am currently apart of a separate advisory group also, dealing with a very sensitive issue with an aim to help thesite take the right approach when creating help sheets, information resources and materials to better help those affected.

Thesite came under much scrutiny when it was first opened. People were not comfortable with their children having access to material which they deemed inappropriate for young people, and bourne of this attitude is the increase in teenage pregnancies, drug and alcohol abuse in the young and the uneducated and naive attitude of 'kids these days'.

So why do I sing the praises of a site deemed inappropriate for the people it is aimed at? Well, without the discussion board I would not have found a means of understanding the way I felt and how to respond to the way my world was changing. Having undergone some situations of a sensitive nature which I felt incapable of dealing with or talking about, I found the discussion board community consisted of an incredible group of people who actually cared; some had been through similiar situations and could empathise, others offered advice and support and I in turn have offered my support and continued to offer my advice where possible.

I also firmly believe that the resources and information made so readily available in a readable and understandable format that appeals to young people, are valuable and useful aids to teaching the young about their world and the changes that will occur. The approach of thesite is not to turn a blind eye but to tackle relevant issues head on - and if that means providing information ABOUT drugs, not FOR them, they are helping young people to make informed choices about the paths they take. Without that information in an accessible format, many would be oblivious to the dangers that they were bringing upon themselves.

Thesite also fills the voids left in modern education. My sex education in school was a case of a supply teacher making us read aloud passages from a science book describing the fertilisation of the egg. Due to a stream of supply teachers, I wasn't given a sex education and working in a school has only exposed how further children are being let down in this area. Thesite actually helped me to understand about sex; dealing with peer pressure, contraception, what sex really was and the various intimate parts of the body which had been overlooked in my mainstream education. I have a strong and intelligant head on my shoulders which was nurtured by the open and factual way in which thesite broached those sensitive subjects.

The cons of such an open website - there is a lot of freedom and ideas expressed which cause contraversy and colour thesite in a negative light. The discussion boards allow sex, drug use and sensitive political issues to be openly discussed under strict moderation to ensure that the topic doesn't stray into inappropriate territory. The moderators are friendly and swift when action needs to be taken. The community itself also lacks tolerance in inappopriate behaviour which is a pro and a con; they quickly pick up on 'trolls' (people who sign up just wanting to shake the hive and cause a reaction) but at times can also be insensitive to people who are new to the boards. Being someone who has been there for a while and is recognised by older members I escape scrutiny, but some newer members are given a hard time for asking naive questions and the ethos of thesite being an open and welcoming help site is squashed a little.

A further problem is the older members. Many are valuable members of the community whose only aim is to help and create a harmonious atmosphere. Others take over. Some have relationships in the real world which then becomes exposed on thesite and the break ups become very public and melodramatic - you are on a website with thousands of strangers - get a life. Some members openly dislike one another and having slanging matches which later lead to threads being close and the original poster not seeking the advice and help they came for. I recall one longstanding and active member 'died' to all those who knew him in the real world and online. Every year his death was brought to light and many members who had grown close to him mourned his passing and were shocked. Even more so when he returned years later to tell them he had decided to fake it all because he wasn't in the right state of mind on and off line. This shows how many are drawn into the community and are lead on - how easy it is to be led to believe certain things and even fabricate details for ourselves in a community purely based on the reliability of someone we will most likely never meet. The picture threads for older members become a way of posting your most sexed up but appropriate photo's in order to muster a 'phwoar' response from other members. Again, newer members are overlooked in this strange clique behaviour which makes newcomers stray more often as they feel like there is an 'us' and 'them'.

Aside from that I honestly believe that thesite is a valuable and enriching resource - a mass of easily accessible information with appealing features to attract young people. The discussion boards should be exploited to the max but be careful not to be 'sucked in'. You are a real person with a real life and just because someone says they are one thing, doesn't mean they are telling the truth. Do not get sucked in; get friendly, get involved, but take things with a pinch of salt and be able to laugh to yourself when the 'end-of-the-world' arguments breakout and you know that two teenagers who have never and will never meet are tapping away on their laptops till the early hours waging their little feuds.

Summary: An awesome resource, a great community with a few bad eggs - give it a go!!