Participate 4.1.2 Digital Safety and Security

What is the most important step we can take in terms of ensuring our digital safety?

Educators and parents must work together to teach students that as good digital citizens they must..

"Tread softly leaving digital footprints that won't harm you 10 years from now."


Students may not realize that what they do today as a joke may harm them in the future when it is time to apply for a job or college. Additionally, there are cyber interlopers who aim to manipulate and wreak havoc on a digital community. Protection requires the support of home and school along with the student's participation in his own online safety.

Ikeepsafe.org (www.ikeepsafe.org/videos) offers some great videos for students AND parents. They are varied based on age-appropriateness.

Other good resources are...

www.digizen.org
www.connectsafely.org
www.netsmartz.org/internetsafety
www.parentsguidebooks.com



What strategies can we take to help our students consistently keep digital safety in the forefront of their minds?

As educators, we can help our students to constantly be on the lookout for digital harm, without being paranoid, by keeping an open door policy to their questions about sites without being judgmental. Also, incorporating attention-grabbing videos, cartoons, short readings, et cetera throughout various lessons during the course will keep the topic on the forefront of their minds without lecturing them.