Views & Opinion How schools can help pupils
stay safe online at home Comment by Tom Welch, founder and director of IT support provider Turn IT On!
Ensuring children get a broad and balanced e- safety education is vital in preparing them to navigate the online world safely and positively. But whereas at school children are protected from inappropriate content by firewalls and filters, it can be a very different story at home where many parents are unaware of some of the dangers.
When students come into school exhausted from staying up all night beating their high score on an online game, or endlessly browsing the internet, helping parents restrict internet access at home becomes a school issue too.
What are the main e-safety issues facing students?
A parent I spoke to recently had bought her child a Nintendo DS without knowing it had internet capability. She thought it was purely a games device and was shocked to discover that her child had set up an account and was communicating with other gamers on it.
This is not an uncommon scenario – many parents who label themselves ‘technophobes’ are simply not aware of how many devices used every day can access the internet. Many children have access to a multitude of devices, which makes it difficult for parents to monitor how the internet is being used, and to set up security software to keep their children safe.
Parents may also be unaware of how far and how quickly information can spread online –
whether this is an image shared on social media that then goes viral, or an email address entered on a website which is then used for marketing spam or for targeted advertising.
Inappropriate content is often easy to access and many sites will ask for confirmation of age only by asking the user to tick a box.
How can schools help parents to help their children?
A good way for schools to try and help parents combat these issues at home is to create an e- safety leaflet containing information and tips.
Good points to include are: • Make time to sit down and explore new internet devices you buy before handing them to your child. Put yourself in their shoes and think ‘what would I press if I was curious?’
• Enable parental controls. These are a feature of most internet devices sold by leading manufacturers, and filter websites so only age appropriate content can be viewed. Many devices such as tablets and laptops will allow parents to decide when and for how long the internet can be accessed – preventing children from being able to spend too long online.
• Try to understand the issues yourself so you can help, advise and have honest conversations with your child about e-safety.
• Ask your child questions like “why do you think it is important to not give out your details
online?” This will help them think about how they use the internet and encourage them to consider why online safety is so important.
What can be done in school to encourage online safety at home?
Understanding is key and there a couple of techniques teachers can use in schools to ensure that pupils have full knowledge of the potential of the internet: • Draw a diagram of the internet as the whole world and discuss where a site is based. Tell pupils to imagine they’ve just gone to America and talk about the cultural differences there. This makes it clear that the internet is not just a picture on a screen – it’s a huge entity where consequences and rules are just the same as the ‘real world’.
• Go further and create a physical representation of the internet. Use shoeboxes as servers and map out the internet with string. Alternatively, take over the PE hall and get the students to act as data, carrying information around.
• Ask pupils “what do you think could happen if…”, the purpose being to get them thinking. Asking questions also helps them to realise that they know the answers and they know how to keep themselves safe.
• Importantly, don’t scaremonger. The internet is a wonderful thing and is a great tool for learning - it just has to be understood in order to be used in the right way to get the best out of it.
What are kids actually reading?
And why does it matter? Comment by James Bell, Director of Professional Services at Renaissance Learning
The importance of encouraging children to read from a young age cannot be underestimated. Reading unlocks a whole new world, and it is important that we introduce our children to this at the earliest possible age. Through encouraging reading for pleasure we can inspire not only literacy development, but a collection of imaginative minds and career aspirations. An understanding of the books that children really like to read can help educators steer them towards more they may enjoy. What Kids Are Reading is an annual report published by Renaissance Learning, which looks at the books that children have read most during the academic year. Almost 600,000 pupils of all ages across the UK – at both primary and secondary level – are also asked to rate each book they have read out of four stars, and the results are compiled into definitive rankings for most read and most popular books of the year. The significance of the What Kids Are
March 2015
Reading report is not only limited to celebrating individual titles. By highlighting popular books, authors and genres, it can help teachers, librarians and parents make recommendations for children. For example, the latest annual report suggests that children most enjoy epic dystopian fantasies like Suzanne Collins’ Hunger Games, and anti-hero comedies like David Walliams’ Mr. Stink.
The report also shows an interesting contrast between what children are reading the most and what they enjoy the most. Rankings from the latest report show that the household names in children’s literature such as Roald Dahl and Jeff Kinney are still dominating the most read category, even though the data suggests that children are enjoying titles from David Walliams and John Green more. Another remarkable aspect of this year’s report is the emission of J.R.R. Tolkein from the top 20 most popular books, as well as J.K.
Rowling’s fall down the pecking order. This reflects the changes in children’s tastes, and the introduction of authors like Walliams and Green have certainly shaken up the competition and choice of what children have to read.
The biggest surprise from the report is arguably Liz Pichon – a complete newcomer - who reached second place in the most popular category with Everything’s Amazing (Sort of). Furthermore, another newcomer Cassandra Clare has two titles inside the top seven (City of Ashes and City of Bones).
In order to give future generations a head start in life, it is imperative to recognise how to make reading as fun as possible. Listening to what they are telling us in their evaluations of a book is an excellent way to ensure that they are maximising their potential and making the most of their school experience.
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