United Future Leaders: A Case Study on the Use of Technology in Youth Programming and Hidden Curriculum

Youth are prime consumers for advanced communication and social networking technologies. Often youth are more technologically savvy than their parents and other adults which leaves them in need of knowledgeable mentors who can model safe, civil, and appropriate use of the technology platforms. Youth programs serve as a socio-ecological contexts in which youth can learn responsible boundaries for what to (and not to) share. This chapter provides a case study of the intended and unintended experience of the use of technology in a youth leadership program. A description of the program to include its theoretical framework and current use of various technology platforms provide a backdrop to the hidden curriculum implied by the programming staff through their use of the platforms. Examples of emerging patterns of this hidden curriculum, future directions for technology use within the program and advice for youth program practitioners are included.