Online Safety - More about the Key Concepts (2)

Take a look at my previous posts on this topic. If you are a teacher, are these ideas known to you? What model do you use?

Evaluating websites for "classroom" use: What classroom is that?

Student Learning in Digital World - Online Safety

Students registering to use web2.0 tools at school

Google makes YouTube Safer

When evaluating websites, first recognise that websites today are not just static content.

Websites that involve media creation and sharing require thorough review. A checklist will require these basic requirements and risks to be assessed.

• child protection - personal information security
• age-eligibility requirements that may be hidden in lengthy documents
• privacy relevant to age
• duty of care - online bullying opportunities
• data security - security of the enterprise's intellectual property
• network security - security of access
• location information - geo. services showing where people are
• ungrouped objectionable content that cannot be effectively blocked

Browsers may not be aware that websites expose them to threats including: phishing, malware, spyware, viruses, botnets and many new techniques developed by criminals each day

So you want your students to play subject-related learning games ...
A games website often has lots of games, many not useful for student learning. In fact, the website may be more designed to raise advertising revenue. Games on a website may redirect to different websites and this is often not obvious.

It is a professional responsibility of all teachers to be aware of these factors and keep up to date with the dynamic, unpredictable nature of an evolving internet