Primary school e-safety

Importance of e-Safety.

e-Safety has quickly become a very relevant issue for children, parents and pupils. Whilst the Internet can be a great tool for fun, communication and research, it can at times hold dangers which all young users should be aware of. Schools are now taking more responsibility for the subject, with new NQTs being trained in how to educate pupils on keeping safe when using new technology such as the web, social networking and mobile phones.

Teaching e-Safety in the classroom

It’s a mark of how much the topic has entered the public consciousness that there is such a large and well organised set of resources for teachers available. e-Safety should be an area that is taught throughout school and this is reflected by the brilliant teacher’s content on the Think U Know website which includes teachers notes, supporting materials and lesson plans for all year groups from Foundation Stage to Key Stage 2 and beyond. Another site which brings content together from across the web is Know IT All which helpfully separates resources into sections such as Cyberbullying and Gaming. Once again, the wealth of material available is impressive, although it should be noted that it doesn’t have a Foundation Stage section. One of the best features of all the resources available is their child friendly approach, with characters such as the well known Tracy Beaker helping children quickly relate to the subject matter. As well as the downloadable content for use in your planning, there’s also a video of classroom e-safety tips from the sadly closed Teachers TV which can be watched below.

Encouraging children to explore the issue of e-safety

Many children will come to school already knowing how to use the Internet. Even in the Foundation Stage many children are already able to navigate the web and access games and videos. But, this doesn’t mean they are aware of the need for caution when surfing the net. Whilst it’s essential to educate children in prepared lessons you should also give learners the chance to use ICT and the Internet itself to find out about e-safety. Using technology in the right way is a great starting point to ensure pupils see the positive, rather than negative effects of the web. The CBBC website Stay Safe has a brilliant selection of videos and quizzes to help young pupils learn independently about the safety on the Internet. Whilst it’s important to educate children from an early age in the topic you shouldn’t assume that older children will have all the facts they need. There are alternatives to the CBBC website which are more suitable for pupils in Key Stage 2. Kidsmart is an informative site with a user friendly interface that deals with a range of issues, also the children’s section of Think U Know has a great selection of e-safety tips, games and activities to get users applying their knowledge. If your letting pupils explore web safety for the first time then a Virtual Learning Environment like Learnanywhere could prove useful as it’s possible to direct children to only the links you’ve deemed appropriate.

Safe social networking

With the rise of Facebook, social networking has become a big part of everyday life and children throughout primary will almost certainly know about, or maybe even be a part of a social network. With this in mind, teachers have a responsibility to teach children how to use these sites in the right way. Although the lessons and activities mentioned above can be put to good use, it’s always a good idea to get students learning through doing. To this end Webanywhere’s Student Jotter application can be useful. Student Jotter is a great way to get children involved in social networking in a safe controlled environment. The user friendly software functions as an online learning space where children collect their work and demonstrate achievements. It also offers more familiar social networking tools such as the ability to post pictures and video, customise home pages and communicate with friends. Crucially though, teachers and parents can monitor and regulate the content to ensure children only interact with suitable users and avoid any inappropriate content. The chance to safely access all the benefits of social networking, will hopefully help guide children to make the right choices in the future, should they choose to access any of the other networks available across the web.

Tags:

E-Safety

ICT

Secure Social Networking