Maybe Plato was wrong. Or maybe he just frames the challenge we face in promoting digital citizenship and weakening the disinhibition factor online. A thoughtful opinion piece about online trolling, mean comments, flaming, etc. in the New York Times reports that, "even in the fourth century B.C., Plato touched upon the subject of anonymity and morality in his parable of the ring of Gyges. That … [Read more...] about For our kids’ sake, more than accountability online, pls
Search Results for: digital citizenship
Learning by doing: Safe social media for grade school
Citizenship – both digital and the traditional kind – is a verb. It takes practice. So, as you may have heard us ConnectSafely.org folk say, social media need to be in the classroom so students can practice digital citizenship just as for generations they (hopefully still) have opportunities to practice citizenship at school. So I'm thrilled to tell you about a free package of safe social network … [Read more...] about Learning by doing: Safe social media for grade school
Fixing hate online and offline: Everyone’s needed!
Two national news stories this week – one about anti-gay cruelty that ended in a young man's suicide in New Jersey on September 22 (see the New York Times) and the other about anti-gay hate speech from an assistant attorney general in Michigan (see this CNN blog) – indicate a serious need for family discussions about hate speech and bullying, how they are hurtful and destructive to everyone … [Read more...] about Fixing hate online and offline: Everyone’s needed!
The learning power of a virtual world
It's definitely not a flashy video production, but if you're interested in learning about a virtual world that 6.4 million kids aged 8-15 (68% girls, average age 12.5) like because it challenges them in math and science and expects them to be smart, watch this interview about Whyville.net at Discover magazine. Founder and CEO of Whyville parent Numedeon Inc., Jim Bower – who is also a professor of … [Read more...] about The learning power of a virtual world
Growing number of student cybersecurity experts
Here's a great trend: cybersecurity training and competitions at all levels of education, nationwide. Not only is it creating jobs, it'll increasingly send kids the message that it's cool to beat data thieves, phishers, and scammers at their own games "The federal government, education officials and giant military contractors are collaborating to recruit a new class of tech professional … [Read more...] about Growing number of student cybersecurity experts