If we want schools to be safe for all kids, we cannot ignore the direct connections between bullying, sexual harassment and homophobic name-calling in middle school. That's according to groundbreaking research presented by University of Florida psychology professor Dorothy Espelage in her latest talk. One of the U.S.'s leading bullying researchers, she was speaking in Washington at the American … [Read more...] about Game-changing insights on bullying from a top US researcher
Core concern: ‘Blue Whale’ & the social norms research
June 11, 2017, adding an update in the form of author, journalist and game designer Andrea Angiolino's response to sensationalist tabloid "coverage" in Italy of a new arrest in Russia – see the first sidebar below. My first post on the "Blue Whale challenge" was published March 13 here. Much has happened since then in a number of countries, so an update is in order, but I hope you agree that the … [Read more...] about Core concern: ‘Blue Whale’ & the social norms research
VR as empathy teaching tool: What to love, what to watch out for
Just from watching Engadget's 6 min. video report about it I could tell "The Last Goodbye" – a 16 min. virtual reality experience that debuted at the Tribeca Film Festival that just wrapped in New York – will have a profound impact on anyone who experiences it. The reporter called it "emotionally harrowing." So there are really two central roles in this VR experience: that of Holocaust … [Read more...] about VR as empathy teaching tool: What to love, what to watch out for
Reasons why ’13 Reasons Why’ demands discussion
By now, if you live or work with young people, you've probably heard about "13 Reasons Why," Netflix's dramatic series about a teenager's suicide. Based on a Young Adult book of the same title, the series – now a hot topic at schools in the U.S. and other countries – needs discussing. On one hand, it exposes issues today's high school students often face (among them, depression, bullying, … [Read more...] about Reasons why ’13 Reasons Why’ demands discussion
Finally, kids can have their own Google accounts (with parents’ help)
Google made a bit of history today, opening up its universe of apps and services to users under 13 as their parents design it. Family Link, the name of the new parental control toolset, describes it well: Parents download the tools to their own and the kids' devices, then link them up for a whole family's real-time digital device management. Family Link "marks one of the first attempts by a … [Read more...] about Finally, kids can have their own Google accounts (with parents’ help)