Digital Citizenship Middle School Welcome to our second parent session on digital citizenship – Internet Safety. Some of you joined us for our first session, in which we introduced the concept of responsible online behavior and explored the topic of digital footprints.  We are glad to have you back and we are also thrilled to see some new faces here today. We appreciate your interest in helping your student become a responsible digital citizen.

Internet Safety Our digital citizenship topic today is Internet Safety.  The term is widely used in society today however it is a very broad term.  Many people assume they know the meaning of the term because they are familiar with it and accustomed to hearing it. Internet Safety encompasses ALL aspects of going online to do a variety of different things. We are going to focus specifically on the safety of our students when they are interacting with others online. 

Tween Social Connections You will be prompted to log in to the poll to display it…Username: foesmedia@gmail.com Password: FCmeti2017 Think back to when we were the age of our students.  Relationships with others, particularly with our peers, were likely very important to most of us…as is it is for our students now.  Let's do a quick online poll!   Text FULTONMEDIA564 to 22333.  You will receive a text back confirming you have joined the poll.  Now consider this question - How did you interact most with your peers when you were your student’s age? (Review the choices…only one choice can be made.) Type A, B, C, D, E, F or G in a text back to respond.  (Once everyone has responded, take a moment to review the results which will most likely show that the majority of the parents mostly interacted with their peers in person or on the phone.) NEXT—let’s clear this survey. (This is very important that you have them clear the survey) Type clear and text it back to the same number.  Now let’s consider how your students primarily interact with their peers…Look at the seven choices and think about which ones your student uses to connect with peers. Chances are good that many of your students have or will eventually use all seven ways.

21st Century Social Connections Students have many more opportunities to connect with their peers thanks to the Internet and its ease of accessibility.   Many of those online interactions may be with friends they have a relationship with offline already.  However, some of the connections might be with people, both in and out of their peer group, who they do not know in person. Our job as parents and educators is to help empower our students to understand how to develop positive relationships both online and offline, as well as how to recognize when contact is inappropriate. Let’s take a moment to watch a brief video that explores this topic. 

Online Interactions After the Video… This video illustrates the myriad of ways that tweens and teens interact with others online. Some of the examples shared by the students were positive. Others were not and would fall into the “inappropriate “ category. The key is empowering our students to recognize the difference between positive and inappropriate online behavior.  One student mentioned an online connection using strong language.  Another student referred to having a feeling that something was "off".  Common Sense Media recommends honing in on this “feeling” using a technique called “Traffic Light” with students.

Traffic Light Technique When we are out driving, traffic lights signal to us when it is safe to go, when we need to slow down, and when we need to stop. We can use this concept with our students to help them assess if a connection they make with someone online is positive or if it is inappropriate.  Let’s consider some hypothetical scenarios and discuss whether we think the student has a red, yellow, or green light.  This is an activity you can also do with your students at home. 

Scenario One Kenny is 11 and enjoys playing an online game. Some of his friends also play and they often log in from their homes to engage in the game together. Because it is massive, multi-player online game, there are also many other people playing that Kenny and his friends don’t know. Most of the time, everyone is friendly to each other. One time, a player started making some rude comments about Kenny making some mistakes in the game. Kenny and his friends ignored the player and the player left the game. (Begin by reading the scenario out loud.) Now, talk to the parents at your table and decide whether Kenny has a red, yellow, or green light, and why. (Give the parents a couple of minutes to discuss, then have them share their responses.) This would be considered a “green light” situation for the time being because Kenny wisely ignored the bully and that player then left. But if the bully persisted it would become a yellow or possibly red situation.

Scenario Two Liz is 14 and plays soccer. During the summer, she goes to a soccer camp. After the camp, she receives a Facebook friend request from one of counselors—a boy who is 16 and plays soccer at the high school where Liz will attend in one year. She knows him a little from the activities he ran at the camp and he seems nice. (Begin by reading the scenario out loud.) Now, talk to the parents at your table and decide whether Liz has a red, yellow, or green light, and why. (Give the parents a couple of minutes to discuss, then have them share their responses.) This would be a Yellow—slow down, be cautious, and be prepared to stop. Liz should talk to her parents about the friend request and get their input. They can see if Liz and the boy have mutual friends. If they decide they are comfortable with Liz being friends with him online, they can set limits on what he can see on her profile on her social media.

Scenario Three Cynthia is 12 and set up a Skype account. Almost immediately, she receives a message from a guy named Josh to connect on Skype. She thinks it is someone she knows from school and accepts. But then “Josh” starts sending flirtatious messages via Skype chat and asking personal questions about where she lives and her age. (Begin by reading the scenario out loud.)  Now, talk to the parents at your table and decide whether Cynthia has a red, yellow, or green light, and why. (Give the parents a couple of minutes to discuss, then have them share their responses.) This is a Red Light-Stop immediately…It is too dangerous to proceed. Cynthia should tell her parents and they should block “Josh” on Cynthia’s Skype account. They should also have a family discussion to set ground rules for who it is appropriate for Cynthia to Skype with…for example, family and existing “offline” friends.  Cynthia's parents should also advise her it is never okay to give out her personal information to strangers online...especially her home address.

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Resources Common Sense Media: Safe Online Talk https://www.commonsensemedia.org/ Stay Safe Online https://staysafeonline.org/stay-safe-online/ That’s Not Cool www.thatsnotcool.com Those were just a few examples of possible scenarios your student could encounter. Again, this is an exercise that is worthwhile to do with your students to help start the conversation with them about having positive online relationships and recognizing inappropriate ones. The key is that your student not only is empowered to safely connect with people online, but also knows that in any scenario they can turn to you for assistance. When in doubt, tell a trusted adult! Thank you for coming to this sessions and please refer to these resources for additional information to help guide your student to be safe online.