I have always considered myself to be a proponent of using the Internet in education. In the not too distant past the reason for that may have been that I considered using the Internet to be a lot easier than trying to find the information in a book or, heaven forbid, actually ask a teacher. But now my reasons for being in favor of using the Internet in education are a little different (don't get me wrong I still really enjoy the convenience.) One reason is the vast amount of information from all over the world that exists online. I don't think any library on earth could compare to that amount. Also, we are living in a technology- dependant world, and as educators it is our responsibility to teach students how to use that technology in an academic setting. While the Internet can be extremely useful in doing research and learning, it is important to really evaluate the source. It is the teachers responsibility to evaluate sites their students will be using to assure students do not come across anything false, crude, or dangerous.
This activity has urged me to ask myself certain questions about the sites I am getting my information from. A good place to start is looking at the author of the site or material. Is the author listed? What are their credentials? Is their contact information listed? As for the content itself I will have to ask myself questions such as; Does it seem highly opinionated or subjective? Does it contain information I know to be wrong? Is the information cited (with more than links to other websites? These are just a few of the many questions that can be helpful when evaluating a website.
In addition to evaluating the site and running it through a series of questions, it is important to assure that students are kept safe while surfing the Internet. One way to do this is by supervising students while they are surfing in class/at school. This will assure they are where they should be. Another way to assure safer surfing is to use scholastic databases and search engines. That way students wont be lead to websites that contain bad or salacious material. It is also important to include the parents and make them aware of how the Internet is used in class and the sites that will be used. Finally, teaching kids about Internet safety and the questions they should ask themselves will help them in making decisions online. By taking these measures we create a safer more reliable environment online for our students.
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For a fun way to teach internet and social networking safety, here’s a unit that includes an instructional video and a quiz. It’s aimed at middle school and up.
ReplyDeletehttp://www.auntlee.com/safety/
The video is a selection of silly clips supposedly posted to the MySpace pages of the famous auntlee.com puppy and some of her friends. The clips demonstrate mistakes kids can make – the clips and the quiz serve as a jumpstart to further discussions.
Kids can take the interactive Flash version online, or you can download a .pdf document and print it as a handout. The 10 question quiz covers the topics of cyber-bullying, privacy, safety, dangers of spyware and malware, etc.
The quiz doesn’t really focus on stranger-danger type concerns but rather gently and humorously reminds the reader that it’s possible to hurt people’s feelings, to mislead people who don’t realize you’re joking, to remember that online postings can be seen by anybody and that postings are often impossible to remove once posted.