A new study of online risks to youth in 23 European countries found that "the Internet is now central to children’s lives across Europe, and they use it for a range of things which are often beneficial including schoolwork, playing games, watching video and instant messaging," reported lead author Sonia Livingstone at the London School of Economics and Political Science. The EU Kids Online … [Read more...] about Europe’s update of the youth online risk picture
Risk & Safety
Parents, you’re not just focusing on FB, right?
It's great that parents are getting the message that they can monitor their kids on Facebook by joining it, but they also need to remember that Facebook isn't the all of teen online socializing (even though it's in the news a lot!). It's just the big social utility that aggregates basically "everybody" in teens' real-world school and social lives. But there's plenty more social activity happening … [Read more...] about Parents, you’re not just focusing on FB, right?
From real emails to fake profiles on Facebook
This is a heads-up for parents and kids wanting to avoid a cyberbullying trick. First, if kids have multiple email accounts (and many do), they do not want other kids to know any email addresses besides the one they used to sign up for Facebook. Michael Arrington at TechCrunch created an account at Facebook impersonating Eric Schmidt, the CEO of Google. He said he was sorry in the first sentence … [Read more...] about From real emails to fake profiles on Facebook
Cyberbullying and … second chances?
I was pleased and relieved to see some thoughtful and thought-provoking coverage of bullying, cyberbullying, and teen suicides since I posted on Friday. For example, Newsweek asks an important question: "Bullied to death is the crime of the moment, the blanket explanation slapped on suicide cases from Texas to California... But ... is the notion of being bullied to death valid?" Bullying is … [Read more...] about Cyberbullying and … second chances?
Cyberbullying: Can schools intervene?
A heart-wrenching student's suicide thoughtfully reported in the Cleveland Plain Dealer illustrates schools' and families' struggles over bullying and cyberbullying. It's not clear how causative the bullying – of a beautiful Croatian student – was in her suicide two years ago, or how much the cruelty continued online, but the article and the accompanying video interview of the student's family … [Read more...] about Cyberbullying: Can schools intervene?