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Internet Safety
Are your children safe online? |
Internet Safety 101
Cable in the Classroom published an article in the June/July
2006 issue of CIC Magazine outlining three basic tips that
parents should follow to understand their childrens Internet
usage and help keep them safe online. This article was jointly
compiled by executives of three leading Internet-safety
organizations: Internet Keep Safe Coalition, NetSmartz Workshop,
and i-SAFE.
Tip #1 Communicate with Your Kids
Parents should openly communicate with their children about the
dangers of the Internet and what to do if they come across
something that is inappropriate. If the communication lines are
opened at an early stage, kids will be more likely to approach
their parents or guardians if something strange happens to them
while they are online.
Amber Lindsay, Communications Coordinator at NetSmartz Workshop,
says that there are three rules that parents should enforce with
their kids. The first is: I will tell an adult I trust if
anything makes me feel scared, uncomfortable, or confused,
followed by, I will ask my parents or guardian before sharing
my personal information, and I won't meet in person with anyone
I have first met online.
More importantly, parents need to make sure that they understand
and abide by Internet safety rules they set. i-SAFEs National
Assessment Center compiled data from parents and students
nationwide and determined that 85 percent of parents have
established rules for Internet usage; however, more than a third
of students that were questioned said that their parents have
not established such rules. |
Tip #2 Knowledge is the Best Defense
i-SAFE recommends that parents use educational tactics over
filtering devices, since kids aren't always going to be using
your home computer. Even if your computer has a top-of-the-line
filtering device, not all computers your child has access may
have such filters. When kids are knowledgeable and educated
about what's right and wrong in the Internet world, they are
less likely to do wrong when they're not under their parent's
watchful eye.
Also, checking the Internet history on any computer that your
child has access to is imperative. i-SAFE studies have shown
that more than 25 percent of students communicate online during
times when their parents believe them to be asleep. Maintaining
an open line of communication with your children and keeping the
computer in a common area where it can be monitored can also
help keep your kids safe on the Internet.
Tip #3 Start Now
Don't put it off. Make sure that your children know the
importance of Internet safety before they find themselves in a
compromising situation. If your child is old enough to use the
computer, they should be old enough to understand and avoid the
dangers of the Internet.
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online. |
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