This idea of ‘sexting’ is fairly new for me. This website (http://www.netsmartz.org/Sexting) said that “1 in 6 teens (ages 12-17) with a cell phone have received a sexually suggestive image or video of someone they know”. That’s a significant percent of teenagers, which surprised me! This adds a whole new element to internet safety. Participating in sexting can be recognized as distributing child pornography, so this is a serious issue that should be addressed within families and at school. From this website and from watching some of the Frontline documentary (http://www.pbs.org/wgbh/pages/frontline/kidsonline/view/) I’m realizing that youth do not understand privacy. At this time of cognitive and social growth kids don’t realize that digital information can be spread quickly and harmfully, whether it’s sexting, cyberbullying, or identity theft.
How can I leverage the power of the Internet so students can learn, but in a safe way?
Hopefully the school has some kind of filter system in place. This will provide a start to Internet safety in my classroom. It is important that as I am directing students to sites, that I have previewed them and made sure they are appropriate. I will also utilize QuiteTube, so that obnoxious images do not flash up on the screen as I show students videos. I can also teach students how to properly use databases for research projects. We can take a day and go to the library/computer lab where the experts can teach us how to search properly. I may also create a social media class site where students can use their Facebook skills in a learning environment.
Resources I used:
http://www.ncpc.org/topics/internet-safety
(http://www.pbs.org/wgbh/pages/frontline/kidsonline/view/)
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