Digital+Citizenship+statistics

Learn More About Cybersafety
Presentation given at NYC City Council Cybersafety Summit, August 2007 Melissa Ahart, Librarian, M.S. 88
 * ===Taming the Web: Bringing the Internet Safely into the Classroom===

-- "The Internet is a virtual reference library, a 24/7 guidance counselor, and the most portable locker, backpack, and notebook imaginable." -- Christian Science Monitor (http://www.csmonitor.com/2005/0720/p09s02-coop.html)

Teen Internet Use
93% of teens use the Internet 55% of online teens ages 12-17 have created a profile on a social networking site such as Facebook or MySpace 47% of online teens have uploaded photos where others can see them, though many restrict access to the photos in some way 14% of online teens have posted videos online (Source: Pew Internet & American Life Project http://www.pewinternet.org/PPF/r/230/report_display.asp)

Approach to Cybersafety
The best strategy to keep children safe on the internet is to become present in the virtual world. Educators need to model how to exist in the virtual world Parents can best protect when they exist in the virtual world observing, listening, and participating in their child's life The virtual world is the Main Street of the 21st century where children go to meet each other and socialize Internet filters and protection software cannot be substituted for an active online presence for guardians of children; more and more, children are bringing their own access that eludes monitoring software.

What's So Great About the Web in Education
Real world authentic audience Anytime anywhere learning Read / Write web 21st century skills / workforce readiness Collaboration Media Literacy / Information Literacy Critical Thinking

Our Share of Issues with the Open Classroom
What schools encounter with students on the web: Cyberbullying Video Sharing Social Networking Messaging - text, instant messaging, emails

How schools respond: Acknowledge the issue No legislation or guidelines in place to respond to these 21st century threats Forbidden fruit syndrome is a strategy for failure Internet monitoring / filtering solutions have lost their effectiveness due to the increasing use of mobile & personal access that evades our digital policies

Education is the best defense Online life is as real as physical life -- what you do online has wider implications Reinforce the reality of the virtual world Teach the responsible use of technology Authentic audiences go global

Success Stories / Best Practices
Social Networks: Goodreads Computer Liaison Ning (computerliaisons.blogspot.com)

Blogs: Classroom Blog School Blog (rmhs5.blogspot.com)

Wikis: Student-run wikis (http://summersurvival.wikispaces. com/) Teacher-run wikis (http://ms88ipw.wikispaces.com/)

Teaching Social Networking Etiquette
"Youth who engaged in four or more risky online behaviors were much more likely to report receiving online sexual solicitations. The online risky behaviors included maintaining buddy lists that included strangers, discussing sex online with people they did not know in person and being rude or nasty online." Source: UNH Crimes Against Children Research Center http://www.unh.edu/news/cj_nr/2008/feb/lw18internet.cfm

Private vs. public profiles Creating an appropriate portrait of yourself Maintaining self-respect and self-image online Less is more: sharing identifiable information with the world ||