Internet Filters at School – a Disadvantage?

As K-12 schools offer increased access to broadband Internet for students, it's important for schools to teach students how to use the Internet properly, according to writer and teacher Abigail Walthausen. In a commentary on The Atlantic site, she writes that schools' current use of Internet filters, however, hinders such lessons by preventing students' access to the full Internet. With the filters limiting what they see, students will not learn how to use the Internet properly when the filters are not in place, she argues. And, of course, as she mentions, students excel at breaking through filters and accessing what they want through proxy servers so the best course should be to take steps to educate students about how to live responsibly and productively on the Internet.

What is your school’s policy on filtering? What is their stance on teaching students about digital citizenship, digital etiquette, and media literacy?

Changing the Image of Women in Stock Photos

Ask your kids to take a look at the images of women in the workplace they see online for an excellent lesson in media literacy. Likely, they will find stock photos – photos bought from image services like Getty Images and Shutterstock – that show women in one of three categories: a woman with glasses who could be a librarian or a secretary, a woman with a baby on her lap trying to work on her computer, or a woman standing atop a shorter stack of money than the man next to her is standing on. None of these images are very encouraging to young women entering the job market.

Recently, the massive stock photography company, Getty Images, announced a partnership with LeanIn.org, the organization started by Facebook COO Sheryl Sandberg to advance women’s issues. Together, they have created a library of 2,500 stock images, called the Lean In Collection, that features new, more empowering portraits of women in addition to drawing on the best (that is, least stereotypical) of Getty’s existing images. Some might say this is a symbolic move, but never underestimate the power of pictures.

Must See Movies for Children

A child psychologist has come up with a list of movies for children that she says not only teach moral themes, but also “essential life-lessons”.  Topped by Toy Story, the list also includes classics from the last seven decades and includes Matilda, one of the all time favorites at my house. The Wizard of Oz, Up, and Home Alone also make the list.

The Gamification of Advertising and Kids

At a recent conference on social media there was discussion about the use of games in advertising and as a way to award status to customers who are loyal to a brand by giving them virtual rewards. There may be something to that, as we reported to you in this blog, that there is some concern about this by parents whose kids spent real dollars playing apps and buying virtual objects in some iPhone apps. (By the way – the FCC has been asked to investigate the issue of kids Apple iPhone/iTouch in-app buying.) At any rate, perhaps this is yet another argument for more media literacy lessons at home and at school.

Meeting Our Kids Where They Are Digitally – A Teacher’s Perspective

Language Arts teacher Jessica Piper says that, more and more,  she finds herself teaching media literacy to her students. While she likes to use Facebook, Twitter and other social media in her teaching, she realizes the problems involved. As she works with her students on reading and writing, she integrates information on the dangers of over-sharing personal information. Piper says that some of the most common problems her students face come from giving out too much information through Four Square, a cell phone program what lets “friends” know where her students are; the posting of far too many photos, some of which are inappropriate; the posting and sending of personal messages, which should never be confused with public messages. Piper believes that over-sharing often leads to cyberbullying because it offers bullies all the information they need to harass.  She says, “As responsible educators, we have to meet our students where they are and teach what they are lacking...in this day, social media literacy is definitely lacking.”

Kids & Technologies: How Student Learn

A fourth grade teacher, knowing of my interest in kids and technologies, advised, “You’ve got to read Rewired by Larry D. Rosen. It explains so much about what those of us in education and parents need to know.” She was right. This book and other resources by Rosen give us a glimpse into the “psychology of technology” so that we will be better able to understand how our kids learn. According to Rosen, the iGeneration, those students born in the 90s, expect “instant access” to information and people.  These are kids who are constantly connected through digital devices and believe that anything is possible. Additional information about Rosen’s books is available on his site and at Amazon and Barnes & Noble.

Pros and Cons of Using Social Media in Your School

THE Journal’s article Keeping It Clean by John K. Waters, provides excellent information about sites like Facebook and MySpace and their use in schools. Could someone put up a fake social media page and make it look like it is your school’s official page? Yes, says an administrator at Blaine High School in Anoka-Hennepin School District in Minnesota, who adds that the person who did it has yet to be identified. The page seemed harmless at first, but then caused problems. Anoka-Hennepin decided that the best thing to do was to establish an official district page with individual pages for each school. The pages target parents, teachers, and administrators and are not pages for students to interact with school personnel or each other. In the Palo Alto Unified School District in California, students use social networking to learn about school events and to access teacher pages. Palo Alto installed LinkExtend, which includes KidSafe and ways to alert users about problem links. Some educators, like Matt Levinson (From Fear to Facebook: One School’s Journey) suggest that Facebook should follow Google’s example and provide a place that “teachers and students could use ... as a teaching and learning tool securely.” That’s what Edmodo does. It’s a free network that doesn’t require students to give private information. Teachers sign up for it and interaction is directed by teachers.

Editing Google Searches

It's a new system within Google, and its called SearchWiki. With it, you will be able to help Google learn which search results work best for you. Apparently the way it works is that when you do a search, before the hits, you'll see buttons that allow you to delete links, add sites, and move sites you like up on the list. Then the next time you search for the same term, you'll get results that are more like what you want. This feature won't change search results for anyone else, just you. It's a way Google is trying to help understand what search results you want to see. There's also a feature that allows you to take notes about the site and share them with others. On the Google BlogSpot, there's a video that explains these new options.

The Media Literacy Toolbox

Are you concerned about the media literacy of your kids? The New Mexico Media Literacy Project has just announced the launch of their new web site medialiteracytoolbox.com -- a new online resource for educators, media activists, media makers, parents and students. You can use the new website to browse, purchase and download individual "media literacy kits" on a variety of topics.  The kits can be used in classrooms, community groups, and other group settings to teach basic media literacy concepts, to "deconstruct" media messages, and to understand current media issues.

Is the Concept of Copyright Changing?

Pat Moser, Sidwell Friends School, asked a group of educators, "What's a librarian to do?" and we could stretch that to add teachers and students as well. The confusion over copyright and Fair Use seems to be growing as more and more content is available digitally. Moser wants to know "if copyright laws are destined for oblivion", "if we should feel free to copy and adapt", how authors will be compensated for their work, and "what DO we tell our students about copyright?" She suggests we check out Joyce Valenza's Fair Use and Transformativeness: It May Shake Your World and Harvard's Opt Out Plan as we think about where we are heading. Renee Hobbs, Temple University says, "Copyright is designed not only to protect the rights of owners, but also to preserve the ability of users to promote creativity and innovation." What does that mean to those in the classroom and what does that mean to those producing writing, film, photographs, and other works that may be copyright protected?