Internet Safety

Internet safety is a tremendous responsibility for a teacher. In a classroom of 30 (in my case, sometimes 40) students it is extremely difficult to monitor student Internet activity in the classroom. Moreover, it is obviously difficult to monitor student use at home. We all know students (more like kids in general) think they know what’s best, but in reality they don’t have the full life perspective. Thus, it is vital that teachers tackle the issue of Internet safety in their classroom’s with a great deal of seriousness and teach it with integrity.

I am grateful that my school district blocks content deemed “inappropriate” for student viewing through district administered firewalls. Students complain about sites like Youtube being blocked on campus, but from a teacher’s perspective it is a healthy thing. A site like Youtube has loads of valuable, educational resources but is simultaneously littered with material that wouldn’t be beneficial for students. While our district does a great job of seeking to filter Internet content, students need to be taught the importance of safe searching for their own benefit. For example, students need to learn what it means to search for material in alignment with copyright laws. Too many pull pictures, video, and other content without giving proper source citation. Doing this has serious legal repercussions and can result in explosion at the collegiate level.

Edutopia blogger Heather Wolpert-Gowmen found that nearly all of her students have a computer at home. What she quickly discovered was students had a hard time understanding that the filters applied at school should also be applied at home to protect students. Too many parents failed to monitor their child’s activity at home. Thus, she stresses the importance of Internet safety education. By extending cyber safety education to the home parents will have a better understanding of what they can do to protect their child’s Internet use. Resources such as Common Sense Media might help guide parents in this process.

Moreover, it is vital that students be educated on the proper etiquette for Internet use. In EDTECH 502 we were required to create a Netiquette page listing expectations for student Internet use. I believe this page clearly outlines the expectations I have for my student’s use of the Internet.

Wolpert-Gawron, H. (2012, June 13). Our Kids Are Watching Us Watching Our Phones. Retrieved March 8, 2015, from https://www.commonsensemedia.org/