Internet Safety for Students

By: Kimberly Bloxson, Elizabeth Dunkling, and Ashley Frost

What does the internet mean to students?

• The internet is an important tool in education, it needs to be balanced and protect students who are utilizing the technology.

General Tips regarding internet safety:

• The computer should be in an open area, not in a child’s room. “You don’t want to spy on your kids or peer over their shoulder,” but “you want them to know you’re in the room.”

• Assure your children that you know you can count on them to use the Internet responsibly. “Kids need to feel they’re trusted.”

• Set clear expectations for your child, based on age and maturity. Does your child have a list of websites she needs to stick with when doing her research? Is she allowed to use a search engine to find appropriate sites? Is your child allowed to visit social networking sites such as Facebook and MySpace? What sites is she allowed to visit just for fun? Write down the rules and place them next to the computer. Your child’s teacher should be able to advise you on which sites are appropriate for schoolwork and educational fun.

Cont..Tips for the internet• Use filtering software designed to help

parents limit the websites children can access. Some programs have monitoring features that can tell you which sites your child visits and can even send you a message letting you know your child is online. (While such programs have come a long way since the early bug-ridden days, they are not a substitute for supervision and communication.)

• Tell your child if you are using software to track her online activity. Remind him that you are not spying; you are keeping him safe. Tell him that protecting him is your job as a parent.

Cont. General Tips:• Stay involved with your child’s school by remaining in close contact

with your child’s teachers and counselors. If trouble is brewing among students online, it probably started at school. Knowing what’s going on at school will increase the chances that you’ll hear about what’s happening online.

• A growing concern with kids and the Internet is online bullying. Ask your child specific questions about whether he is being bullied at school or online. Talk about your own experiences in school with bullying, letting him know you know it goes on. Assure him that you won’t try to fix the problem, if it is happening, without talking to him first.

Cont.. General Tips:• Parents often worry about their child being bullied, but they don’t readily

consider that their child could be a bully. Talk to your child about why it is not OK to bully other children, online or in person. “Teach compassion and kindness,” Ellis says. “From the get-go, they will know that being a bully...doesn’t feel good.”

• Tell your child that people who introduce themselves on the Internet are often not who they say they are. Show your child how easy it is to assume another identity online. Don’t assume your child knows everything about the Internet. Kids are naturally trusting.

• Instruct your child to never give out personal information online, including her full name, gender, age, school, address, or teams. Teach your child to be generic and anonymous on the Internet.

• http://www.schoolfamily.com/school-family-articles/article/807-internet-safety-tips-for-parents by Patti Ghezzi

What teachers can do in the classrooms to keep their students safe

• Monitor computer usage• Set time for student use• Block popular networking sites and

inappropriate websites• Saved websites, games, and research

databases to avoid internet wandering. • Parents consent to use computers in

classrooms.

Blocking Websites at Schools

• Popular websites such as– Facebook– Myspace– Twitter– AIM– Chat Rooms– Bebo

The Children’s Internet Protection Act:

• Due to the explosive growth of the internet, congress mandated the CIPA.

• This requires “any school or library receiving funding from the federal E-Rate program to deploy web filtering technology to prevent users from viewing objective material while they are using the institute’s computers” (Villano).

Cont… CIPA

• This will protect “children from viewing pornographic and other harmful images through cyberspace” (McCarthy).

• There have been many arguments debating the affects of the CIPA.

• It advocated for educating students on internet safety.

What parents can do at home to protect their children on the internet

• Keep the computer in a public place in the house

• Supervise computer time• Set parental control on unwanted websites, so

children can not wander• Knowledge of what their children are

researching at all times.

Blocking websites at home :

• Filter what children are viewing for research by blocking unwanted websites through parental control options on the computers.

• Control inappropiate advertisments and pop-ups, making sure the home computer is safe and secure from viruses.

Example: Newspaper Source, database

• “There’s already much that parents can do on theirs own, of course. Close supervision of young Web surfers, a clear understanding of the online world, and communication about restricted areas can go a long way toward keeping cyberspace safe and enjoyable” (Thurman, skip)

Top Ten Internets Filters:

• Net Nanny Parental Control• Safe Eyes• CYBERsitter• PureSight PC• CyberPatrol• MaxProtect• McAfee Parental controls• FilterPak• ImView • Norton Parental Controls

– http://internet-filter-review.toptenreviews.com/

Positive DO’s about the internet for everyone!

• Keeping in contact with old friends, new friends, employees, and family.

• Internet search for useful research on any subject desired.

• A place where people can use websites to meet others and chat. (safely)

• Updates on the news, weather, sports, etc.• Online educational games for students at home

or in the classrooms.

The DON’TS about the internet for people:

• DON’T give out personal information over the internet, it should be kept private. Just because someone asks doesn't mean you need to tell them. When someone asks for personal information, consider how they might use that information and whether it is necessary for them to have it.

• DON’T answer or respond to unknown users through emails, chat rooms, or other popular websites.

• DON’T release your password to anyone, even if they say they are from your online provider.

• DON’T use your real name in your email address• DON’T put photographs of you or others on the internet• DON’T put your house or other phone numbers on websites

• http://www.wiredkids.org/ktt_universal/games/website_safety/tips.html

The internet is not private

• By sending emails and pictures to others online are not safe in emails, nothing on the internet is private.

• Do not post any other personal information over the internet that you may not want to be shared publicly.

• Anyone can hack into your accounts!

Statistics about Internet Safety• More children were being exposed to unwanted sexual content and cyber

bullying, yet there was a decrease in the number of sexual solicitations. • A total of 34 percent of those children surveyed reported they saw sexual

material online as compared to 25 percent five years prior. • There was an increase of sexual material being presented to children despite

the use of Internet filtering, blocking and other monitoring software being used by their parents at home.

• Online harassment increased 3 percent from the survey conducted in 2000. • Four percent of children received aggressive solicitation from adults who

attempted to meet the children in person, compared to 3 percent in 2000. • Four percent of the children surveyed reported that online solicitors requested

nude photos of them • Acquaintances were major players in unwanted online solicitations, which

included harassment; 14 percent were from off-line friends as compared to 3 percent reported in 2000.

http://safety.lovetoknow.com/2007_Internet_Safety_Statistics_for_Children

These Are The Facts• Approximately one in seven youth online (10 to 17-years-old) received a

sexual solicitation or approach over the Internet.• • Four percent (4%) received an aggressive sexual solicitation – a

solicitor who asked to meet them somewhere; called them on the telephone; or sent them offline mail, money, or gifts.

• • Thirty-four percent (34%) had an unwanted exposure to sexual material — pictures of naked people or people having sex.

• • Twenty-seven percent (27%) of the youth who encountered unwanted sexual material told a parent or guardian. If the encounter was defined as distressing – episodes that made them feel very upset or afraid – forty-two percent (42%) told a parent or guardian.

• • Two out of five missing children, between the ages of 14 and 17, are missing due to internet activity (Still verifying this one)

http://kidsafe.com/127/facts-about-internet-safety/

Cyber Bullying

• The National Crime Prevention Council's definition of cyber-bullying is "when the Internet, cell phones or other devices are used to send or post text or images intended to hurt or embarrass another person.

• http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Cyber-bullying#Cyber-bullying_vs._cyber-stalking

Tips for students: Cyber bullying“Teasing on the internet is a growing problem for kids.”

• Here is what to do if someone is bothering you online: – Tell your parents or another

trusted adult. – Avoid opening messages or

email from unknown users– Never give out passwords to

anyone but yourself– Save inappropiate bully

messages to show to an adult.

Weekly Reader News

Sign of Cyber bullying

• Avoids the computer, cell phone, and other technological devices or appears stressed when receiving an e-mail, instant message, or text

• Withdraws from family and friends, or acts reluctant to attend school and social events

• Avoids conversations about computer use• Exhibits signs of low self-esteem including depression

and/or fear• Grades begin to decline• Lack of eating or sleepinghttp://www.education.com/reference/article/cyberbullying-when-your-child-is-victim/

Signs your child is a Cyber bully• Has been involved in bullying incidents at school or has been the

target of bullies in the past.• Avoids conversations about their computer and cell phone

activities• Quickly switches screens or closes programs when you walk by the

computer• Laughs excessively while using the computer or cell phone• Uses multiple online accounts, or an account that is not their own• Spends an unusual amount of time using the computer or cell

phone• Becomes upset when access to the computer or cell phone is

denied

Facts about Cyber bullying• Nearly 35% of kids have been threatened online and almost one in five have had it happen more than

once.• Among this percentage, being ignored and disrespected were the most common forms of cyber

bullying.• Nine out of ten middle school students have had their feelings hurt online.• About 75% have visited a Web site bashing another student.• Four out of ten middle school students have had their password(s) stolen and changed by a bully who

then locked them out of their own account or sent communications posing as them.• About 21% of kids have received mean or threatening e-mails.• The psychological and emotional outcomes of cyber-bullying are similar to real-life bullying outcomes,

except for the reality that with cyber bullying there is often no escape. School ends at 3 p.m., while the Internet is available all the time.

• The primary cyber-bullying location where victimizing occurs, at 56%, is in chat rooms.• Girls are about twice as likely as boys to be victims and perpetrators of cyber-bullying.• About 58% of kids admit someone has said mean or hurtful things to them online. More than four out

of ten say it has happened more than once.• Cyber-bullying has increased in recent years. In a national survey of 10-17 year olds, twice as many

children indicated they had been victims and perpetrators of online harassment in 2005 compared with 2000.

• Sources: http://www.dosomething.org/tipsandtools/11-facts-about-cyber-bullying

What To Do If You Are A Victim of Cyber bullying

• Tell an adult you trust and know.• Do not reply to messages from cyber bullies

even though you may want to.• Keep the messages for evidence.• Get Help!

• chttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Cyber-bullying#Cyber-bullying_vs._cyber-stalkinge.

How Can Teen Prevent Cyber bullying

• Refuse to pass along cyberbullying messages • Tell friends to stop cyberbullying • Block communication with cyberbullies • Report cyberbullying to a trusted adulthttp://www.ncpc.org/newsroom/current-campaigns/cyberbullying/

Online Predators: Chat rooms •

These child molesters are blackmailing the children into performing sexual acts in the comfort of their own homes, on webcams.

• Yet, 100% of the children molested by Internet sexual predators went willingly to a meeting. They may have thought they were meeting a cute fourteen year old boy or girl, but they knew they didn’t know the person in real life.

• Mom and Dad may know their teens are in their rooms at midnight, but the growing prevalence of online predators means the kids still might not be safe there.

• "The Internet has given predators access to children they previously would not have had," said U.S. Attorney Mary Beth Buchanan of the Western District of Pennsylvania. "Children are often too trusting of adults."

• Online stalking of children is on the rise, according to the National Center for Missing and Exploited Children in Alexandria, Va. The center's Cyber Tip Line last year received 2,605 complaints about online sexual predators, a 23 percent jump from the previous year.

• Thirty-nine percent of children say they trust the people they meet on the Web -- yet one in five children has received an online solicitation for sex, according to iSafe America Inc., a nonprofit Internet safety foundation based in Carlsbad, Calif.

"Many parents are just clueless"

http://www.woodbridge.k12.nj.us/internet_safety/online_predators.htm

Ways Online Predators can affect Students at school and at home

• If children and online molesters decide to meet up, bad outcomes can come from it. Children can experience: – Physical Harm– Emotional harm– Mental harm

What Can Parents Do To Help

• Talk to the school.• Tell your kids not to open or read emails that they suspect

are from cyberbullies or predators.• Tell children to NEVER to agree to meet someone they meet

online.• Supervise your kids’ online time.• Tell your kids to never share their passwords or personal

information with anyone.• Watch out for the warning signs. • Be willing to contact the police.• http://www.cyberbullyalert.com/blog/2008/07/10-ways-parents-can-help-stop-

cyberbullying/

Resources • http://internet-filter-review.toptenreviews.com/ • http://www.911paging.com/internetsafety/dosanddonts.htm • http://www.atg.wa.gov/InternetSafety/Kids.aspx • AVLSites • Current Events, a Weekly Reader publication, Feb 12, 2007 v106 i18 p2(2) • Your space? NEWS DEBATEmaking social networks like MySpace safe for kids • Full Text: COPYRIGHT 2007 Weekly Reader Corp.• Villano, Matt. What Are We Protecting Thme From? T.H.E. Journal, v35 n5 p48-54 May 2008. 7 pp.

(Peer Reviewed Journal). ERIC (EJ797266). http://search.ebscohost.com/login.aspx?direct=true&db=eric&AN=EJ797266&site=ehost-live

• Weekly Reader News- Edition3; 12/12/2008, Vol. 78 Issue 13, p3-3• McCarthy, Martha M. Filtering the Internet: The Children’s Internet Protection Act. Educational

Horizons, v82 n2 p108-113 Win 2004. 5 pp. (Peer Reviewed Journal). ERIC (EJ684636• Thurman, Skip. Steering kids past smut on ‘Net: A parent’s job? Christian Science Monitor, 08827729,

12/3/97, Vol. 9, Issue 6. • http://www.woodbridge.k12.nj.us/internet_safety/online_predators.htm

• http://www.wiredkids.org/ktt_universal/games/website_safety/tips.html