I have been studying this year. I have tried to keep track of the terrible Internet.
Can anyone give me an answer to this:
Facebook, MySpace,Hi5 etc are seemingly filled with dirty old men whos only wet dream is to abuse innocent teenagers.
Come on - has anyone ever bothered to compare the number of users with the number of abused children?
I am NOT saying that cyber societies are perfect - but : Why do we let media set the standards? After all for every reported abuse - we have several hundred deaths in car accidents. Do we tell car owners not to drive ?
A driver has to prove his\her skills by taking a test.
An Internet user does not have to take a test - a simple poster will do. (Or - so the schools seem to belive.)
Why not design an Internet-skill test that is mandatory ?
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Anne
Posts:
507
Registered:
6/26/06
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(4 of 4)
Re: Are things really that bad???
Jul 19, 2007 7:37 PM
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Way to go, Olav. Thanks for replying and clarifying. Your students and school are lucky! One of the things we feel strongly is that the only really effective filter is the one that's developed between their ears, which is what you're helping them do from grade 1 on. That is so great for them.
We too want to make online-safety ed research-based instead of fear-based. One of the things research now shows us is that aggressive behavior - toward peers in the form of embarrassing them, gossiping about them, or harassing them and toward adults in the form of talking about sex in multiple locations online - is the activity most associated with risk for online youth (see Larry's summary of the study). So working with them on cybercitizenship, critical thinking, and media literacy is not only desireable but protective. Learning ethical behavior reduces risk factors, develops those "filters," or pre-frontal cortexes (the executive part of the brain that understands risk, the part that isn't fully developed till our early 20s!), and makes cyberspace a better place for everyone. Was that a little preachy-sounding, anyone? Hope not!
Thanks for being here, Olav.
Anne
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Anne Collier
BlogSafety co-director |
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olav
Posts:
39
From:
Norway
Registered:
9/30/06
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(3 of 4)
Re: Are things really that bad???
Jul 19, 2007 5:43 PM
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But how can you have a mandatory requirement on the Internet - who enforces, who administers, etc.?
Of course - this is not possible - even in the future. BUT :
(I am teaching firstgraders every year - and I spend a lot of time to squeeze in net safety on the curriculum.)
Year by year - the age when a child starts to use MSN etc is lowered. This year - 70 % of the kids spent a lot of time on their own laptop - sending messages using Skypoe or whatever to talk .
ERGO - a crash-course was needed. Sadly - the principal has decided that netiquette should be a part of the seventh year at school !
Yes - He is an avid newsreader - and yes - Norwegian news are filled with grotesque stories about abused teenagers.
Safe kids are not a luxury. Safe kids are a result of alert adult behaviour.
(Larry has been an inspiration to me since 1997...)
I will continue to teach the kids the "how to's" and the "what not's" .
I will remove safety posters from the computer labs - and instead make the kids know and understand these regulations.
If I am allowed to .........
I will continue to use net societies - maybe I one day will understand the lingo !
And : I am not doing this to SPY !
I am on Facebook etc. because I like it !
Olav
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Anne
Posts:
507
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6/26/06
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(2 of 4)
Re: Are things really that bad???
Jul 19, 2007 3:34 PM
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Olav, I completely agree with you that "stranger danger" has been way over-hyped, at least in the US (it'd be interesting to know if the same has happened in Europe, even to a degree). [See " Predators vs. cyberbullies: Reality check."] But how can you have a mandatory requirement on the Internet - who enforces, who administers, etc.? Maybe I don't understand what you're suggesting?
Anne
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Anne Collier
BlogSafety co-director |
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olav
Posts:
39
From:
Norway
Registered:
9/30/06
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(1 of 4)
Are things really that bad???
Jul 19, 2007 3:09 PM
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I have been studying this year. I have tried to keep track of the terrible Internet.
Can anyone give me an answer to this:
Facebook, MySpace,Hi5 etc are seemingly filled with dirty old men whos only wet dream is to abuse innocent teenagers.
Come on - has anyone ever bothered to compare the number of users with the number of abused children?
I am NOT saying that cyber societies are perfect - but : Why do we let media set the standards? After all for every reported abuse - we have several hundred deaths in car accidents. Do we tell car owners not to drive ?
A driver has to prove his\her skills by taking a test.
An Internet user does not have to take a test - a simple poster will do. (Or - so the schools seem to belive.)
Why not design an Internet-skill test that is mandatory ?
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