The following is information posted on my Parent Google Group.
Hi Parents! Our first class on Cyber Bullying was very interesting, and somewhat concerning for me.
Before I begin, let me just say I do not envy your difficult job. I have a 3.5 year old and a 14 month old, and while it is easy to get overwhelmed with tantrums, potty training and teething, I would take those problems any day over having to deal with protecting my kids against cyber-bullying and cyber-predators. So, all the suggestions are simply suggestions. Please do not take anything I write as a judgment on your parenting skills. Know that everything I am offering here is purely out of concern; there is no judgment. I am just passing on what I know, and you can take what you like and leave the rest.
Parry Aftab is a well- known Internet lawyer who has fabulous websites for resources -- www.wiredsafety.org and www.stopcyberbullying.org. She has created this video on the various types of cyber-bullying.
Hi Parents! Our first class on Cyber Bullying was very interesting, and somewhat concerning for me.
Before I begin, let me just say I do not envy your difficult job. I have a 3.5 year old and a 14 month old, and while it is easy to get overwhelmed with tantrums, potty training and teething, I would take those problems any day over having to deal with protecting my kids against cyber-bullying and cyber-predators. So, all the suggestions are simply suggestions. Please do not take anything I write as a judgment on your parenting skills. Know that everything I am offering here is purely out of concern; there is no judgment. I am just passing on what I know, and you can take what you like and leave the rest.
Parry Aftab is a well- known Internet lawyer who has fabulous websites for resources -- www.wiredsafety.org and www.stopcyberbullying.org. She has created this video on the various types of cyber-bullying.
There was one very poignant line: “Most often these kids have to deal with cyber-bullying all alone, and in the dark.”
Last year when I was teaching a computer applications class, 85% of my 8th graders said they had Internet access in their rooms via a computer. This year, between 85 and 100% of my 8th graders said they had Internet access in their rooms, depending on the class. Approximately 75 to 85 percent of 7th graders had unsupervised Internet access. So, that means that the majority of every 7th and 8th grade class has Internet access in their room. And a follow up question revealed that many kids' access was unrestricted by blocks or firewalls.
I told my students I equate this to being allowed to go to an unsupervised party. Continuing the party analogy, I asked, "How many of your parents want to know who are you hanging out with? Or, if you are going over a friend's house, will their parents be there?" (Or my mother’s favorite) “I want to talk to an adult!” How many of your parents want to talk to the parents of your friends?" I was so happy to see that nearly all kids had their hands raised and these protocols are in place with their families.
“The reason why is because your parents want to know who has access to you. Parents are concerned over who is going to influence you, and they are concerned about your safety,” I told my classes. “But when a child has unrestricted Internet access in the privacy of their rooms… parents lose that small modicum of control”.
Many of today’s families do not have a firewalls, or blocks, in place for questionable content. Even if they do, most kids know a work around or a proxy they can use to get where they want to go. To go a step further, most kids now have smart phones and have the ability to Text, IM, email, browse the Web, update a Facebook page, and take picture or video to post on the Web, all from a device they have with them 24/7.
I asked my students, “How many of you go on the computer when your parents think you are doing something else…like sleeping?” Most, if not all students in my classes raised their hands. When asked “how many of you text when your parents think you are in bed?” I got nearly the same results.
Here is a question for parents to think about: When your kids go to a sleepover, are the cell phones and cameras collected? Did you know that some of the most compromising pictures posted on the Internet come from parties or sleepovers, on a dare or unknown to the victim because they are sleeping?
Last year when I was teaching a computer applications class, 85% of my 8th graders said they had Internet access in their rooms via a computer. This year, between 85 and 100% of my 8th graders said they had Internet access in their rooms, depending on the class. Approximately 75 to 85 percent of 7th graders had unsupervised Internet access. So, that means that the majority of every 7th and 8th grade class has Internet access in their room. And a follow up question revealed that many kids' access was unrestricted by blocks or firewalls.
I told my students I equate this to being allowed to go to an unsupervised party. Continuing the party analogy, I asked, "How many of your parents want to know who are you hanging out with? Or, if you are going over a friend's house, will their parents be there?" (Or my mother’s favorite) “I want to talk to an adult!” How many of your parents want to talk to the parents of your friends?" I was so happy to see that nearly all kids had their hands raised and these protocols are in place with their families.
“The reason why is because your parents want to know who has access to you. Parents are concerned over who is going to influence you, and they are concerned about your safety,” I told my classes. “But when a child has unrestricted Internet access in the privacy of their rooms… parents lose that small modicum of control”.
Many of today’s families do not have a firewalls, or blocks, in place for questionable content. Even if they do, most kids know a work around or a proxy they can use to get where they want to go. To go a step further, most kids now have smart phones and have the ability to Text, IM, email, browse the Web, update a Facebook page, and take picture or video to post on the Web, all from a device they have with them 24/7.
I asked my students, “How many of you go on the computer when your parents think you are doing something else…like sleeping?” Most, if not all students in my classes raised their hands. When asked “how many of you text when your parents think you are in bed?” I got nearly the same results.
Here is a question for parents to think about: When your kids go to a sleepover, are the cell phones and cameras collected? Did you know that some of the most compromising pictures posted on the Internet come from parties or sleepovers, on a dare or unknown to the victim because they are sleeping?