Internet Safety

As today’s society progresses there is an increase in the uses of technology both at home and in schools. Although there are definitely benefits with using these different technologies in the classroom, there are indeed issues as well. The main being issues with E-safety, which is highlighted by Palmer (2006), Papadopoulos (2010) and Palfrey and Gasser (2008) who all demonstrate issues with children being exposed to inappropriate content on the internet. Therefore, as teachers it is vital to understand the importance of children’s E-safety and educate them accordingly. This idea is enhanced by Palfrey and Gasser (2008) who claim that the children of today are ‘digital natives’ as they are surrounded by and have access to technology from a young age as well as being confident in the use of these technologies.

The Byron Review (2008) illustrates that children need to be made explicitly aware of the dangers of the internet and ensure they develop the confidence and skills to surf the internet safely. This links to the idea of schools using programmes to restrict the sites children access on the internet.  Although Papadopoulos (2010) conveys the idea of this and demonstrates that it is the role of both teachers and parents to educate children and provide opportunities or children to ask questions about the things the witness and access, it is completely impossible to restrict and control everything children witness online and in the media. Nevertheless, Arthur (2004) argues that children can be exposed to inappropriate content inadvertently. In addition to this, Male and Burden (2013) claim that by restricting things children see at school through the use of different restriction programmes, can restrict learning experiences as well as limiting opportunities for children to ask questions about the content they have witnessed in a safe environment. In my opinion, I feel that schools need to use these restriction programmes, while still providing opportunities for children to ask questions and talk in a safe and supportive environment, as it is suggested by Palfrey and Gasser (2008) who develop this idea by claiming that there is a high risk of psychological harm for children, who are exposed to things they are not ready to witness. Nevertheless, the Byron Review (2008) states that children should be empowered to identify when content is inappropriate and make these decisions for themselves. Therefore it is essential that children are supported and educated in their internet surfing and understand how to be safe online.

There are many different organisations to support children’s understanding of E-safety and how to protect themselves online. The website Childnet International is an excellent website for supporting the teaching of E-safety for both teachers and parents. I found this website very useful as it provided many different resources which could be used within the classroom in many different ways. I particularly like the different scenarios resource, which really gets the children thinking. In addition to this, there is a more formal website known as the online protection centre called the ‘Child Exploitation and Online Protection Centre’ which not only provides information, about grooming, being safety on the internet, inappropriate content etc., for teachers and children about e-safety but also enables teachers and children to report issues with regard to their E-safety. 

In conclusion, it is the role of bot teachers and parents to educate children about being safe on the internet and to understand issues when surfing the net. Children need to be made aware that if they need to ask questions they can and that although they may not intentionally seek inappropriate content it is there. In an ideal world, we would be able to ensure children are only viewing content which is appropriate to them, however, is clear we cannot control and restrict everything children see, which is why teachers need to take the responsibility in educating children about this and the importance of their safety on the internet.

-          Arthur, L. (2004) Popular Culture, New Media and Digital Literacy in Modern Childhood Oxon: Routledge Falmer
-          http://www.childnet.com/resources/kia/ (Accessed: 21/03/2014)
-          DfES (2008) The Byron Review: E- Safety. DfES Publications: London.
-          Male, T. and Burden, K. (2013) ‘Access denied?  Twenty-first-century technology in schools’ Technology, Pedagogy and Education
-          Palfrey, J. and Gasser, U. (2008) Born Digital: understanding the first generation of digital natives. Basics Books. New York
-           Papadopoulos , L. (2010) Sexualisation of Young People Review Home Office (Executive Summary – link on LN)http://webarchive.nationalarchives.gov.uk/20100418065544/http://homeoffice.gov.uk/documents/Sexualisation-young-people2835.pdf?view=Binary -          Palmer, S. (2006) Toxic Childhood: How the Modern World is Damaging Our Children and What We Can Do About It London: Orien