A survey conducted by the
Rochester School of Technology (2007) revealed the following;
most children begin using the internet while they are at kindergarten age or younger. As they age they use more information technology (IT) devices such as laptop computers and cell phones to go onto the internet and for more purposes such as online gaming, to chat to friends, to complete school work, and to conduct research or shop online. Further, the survey reports,
the majority of cyber offences involving children, adolescents and young people are perpetrated by peers of approximately the same age or grade level. Young students remain vulnerable to being abused online by strangers as well as by people they actually know.Advances in computer technology has opened a wealth of information to students providing windows of opportunity far beyond their cultural background and immediate communities. Unfortunately accompanying this relatively new educational tool, there are dangers of exploitation, bullying and harassment together with the potential to unintentionally (and intentionally) ‘steal’ information owned by others. In order to protect our students, the Victorian Department of Education (2008) states, ‘CyberSafety and ethics need to be explicitly taught as part of school curriculum.’
CyberSafety, as defined by Victorian Education (2008), refers to the ways students keep both themselves and their friends safe on the internet. The list of dangers include;
- bullying or harassment (Cyber Bullying). Cyber bullying can be via email, chat rooms, group discussion boards, instant messaging or web pages.
- accessing inappropriate content
- contact with strangers. Netty's World is an interactive way in which younger students can learn about cyber safety.
- posting private information
- using (or stealing) content owned by others eg images, music or videos
- plagiarising: taking ideas or information created/ owned by others without referencing their origin (The Victorian Government, 2008).
Students may be unaware of the criminal offences associated with the internet. For example, inappropriate use of technology and cyber bullying are criminal offences that can be traced back to the perpetrator. My daughter at the age of 13 for a period of six months experienced cyber bullying via MSN by her peers. She was at that very delicate stage of life - puberty, and had just started high school. The torment received via MSN from both girls and boys almost drove her to breaking point. Some of the perpetrators were able to log in under her name and convince others to turn against her. At the time (2001) I sought assistance from the local police station, who informed me there was not much they could do, and her school principal who said,
'all children experience bullying, it will all blow over.' I had not heard the term 'cyber bullying' and felt helpless. The bullying did not
'blow over' so I chose to withdraw my daughter from the school she was attending and insisted she close her MSN account. It scares me to think where this may have ended when I hear of the devastating effects this form of harassment can have. Fortunately, now there are many helpful websites such as
‘stop cyber bullying’ and
‘wired safety’ that have been established as a form of support.
Website References Australian Government, (2007). Childrens Website. Retrieved December 5, 2008 from; http://www.netalert.gov.au/programs/cybersafe_schools/netalert_services/childrens_website.
Commonwealth of Australia, (2007). Netty's World. Retrieved December 5, 2008 from; http://www.nettysworld.com.au/
Inspire Foundation, (2008). Reach Out! Retrieved December 15, 2008 from; http://www.reachout.com.au/default.asp?ti=2879
The Rochester School of Technology, (2007-2008).
Survey of Internet and At-Risk Behaviours. Retrieved December 15, 2008 from;
http://www.rrcsei.org/RIT%20Cyber%20Survey%20Final%20Report.pdf
