For students growing up nowadays, the Internet is a basic part of life–some may even say a necessity. But although younger generations are more tech-savvy than any generation before, they are still children and may not be aware of the possible dangers lurking on Web sites and in chat rooms. That’s why the police department and the school district are teaming up to put on the March 23 workshop, “Student Safety in Cyberspace” to inform parents about what their children might find on the Internet and how to make sure they stay safe.
“If you look at today and five years ago, there is more crime involving children and the Internet today because of the access issues,” said Sergeant Craig Eicher. That’s why the workshop is focusing on teaching parents how to monitor their children’s time on the Internet through one-on-one observation.
“The most important thing when children are accessing the Internet is that parents know what they’re doing and monitoring their activity,” Eicher said, adding, “We don’t recommend parents let children have unmonitored Internet access in their bedrooms.”
Detective Daly Harnish is leading the workshop along with Gary Hicklin, technology director for the school district. Hicklin said student safety on the Internet has not been a huge concern for the district because it has not had major problems, but it does want to make sure students and parents are aware of the precautions they should take when interacting with others on-line.
“The way people communicate and the tools they use have changed,” Hicklin said. “With that new communication there are risks that have to be identified to make sure this is a safe way to communicate. It’s a real issue that we need to address and look at.”
Concerns over the popular Web site MySpace.com sparked the idea to hold this workshop, Eicher said. Users of MySpace have their own personal page and they can post anything they want on that page. A parent contacted the police department when she found a user had posted homemade pornography on his page, meaning anyone registered on the site–including minors–could view the material. Teachers had also reported finding inappropriate postings by their students, including one teacher who found derogatory comments had been posted about her on MySpace by a student who had been disciplined, Eicher said.
“A lot of these issues that come up can be prevented if parents know what is going on,” Eicher added.
Computers at the school sites are filtered by Websense, a program that keeps students from accessing Web sites that fall into 30 different categories, most notably:
* pornography
* gambling
* hate
* bomb making
* distasteful.
Administrators can add Web sites they want blocked to the program, and likewise, if a site is blocked but deemed necessary for educational purposes, administrators can un-block it. MySpace is blocked on school computers and was blocked before recent incidents such as the disappearance and death of a Livermore teen girl who had a MySpace listing, Hicklin said, but the main reason was not because school administrators thought it was a danger, so much as it was seen as a “nuisance” that distracts students from their work.
“I think (filters) are really good because they add a level of protection for students,” Hicklin said. “A lot of these Web sites want to trick you to land on them, and the filters keep people from accidentally falling on places they shouldn’t be.”
Part of the workshop will include information on what filters are out there and how parents can set them up on their home computers. Hicklin added that filters are not fool-proof and the most effective filter is parent observation.
“(Parents) really need to monitor what their students are doing, especially with younger kids or middle school students,” he said. “Keep the computer in a room where you can see what they’re doing and can see how much time they’re on. Monitoring is big.”
Attend the workshop
What: Student Safety in Cyberspace: What Parents Need to Know to Keep Their Student Safe on the Internet
When: 7-8:30 p.m., Thursday, March 23
Where: Hart Middle School Multipurpose Room
Cost: Free
Registration: Call Amador Adult School, 426-4280
Contact Jenise Falk, vice principal at Hart, at 426-3102 for more information.
