A local girl was drived to suicide when she couldn't take anymore bad e-mails and text messages from a made up "Jhon Evans" a neighbor who lived down the street from Megan Meier (the one who committed suicide).  The name of the name of the person who caused Megan to do what she did is

Watch the video to see what Megans parents are saying about this.

Signed,
The Joker

image retrieved from:http://tinyurl.com/3asphz

My heart was a bit broken, then, when our school district decided to block Trailfire completely because of inappropriate content.  “What!” I screamed after getting the email from our school’s tech contact, “How am I supposed to teach kids to use Web 2.0 tools if every good tool ends up blocked.  I haven’t seen any inappropriate content—If it’s there, it must be hidden pretty good.”

Curious, I stopped by Trailfire to do a bit of in-depth exploration.  After about five minutes, I stumbled across some pretty serious pornography.  Turns out that not all Trailfire users are interested in using the tool for good—-or in following the Trailfire terms of service!  I immediately “turned off” our Plug Me In Trailfire account and sent an email to the Trailfire tech contacts asking for their help in making their site safer.  I’m currently waiting for their answer and will keep you posted about what I find out.

 This experience is one that any teacher working with Web 2.0 tools can probably relate to.  You see, any time that you’re forced to rely on free tools, you’re also forced to accept the reality that the Web is a dangerous place—and that inappropriate content can be found around nearly every corner.  Creators of free services are generally well-intentioned—they’d love their tools to be useful for students and schools—but monitoring every piece of content created by users is simply impossible. 

The balance between promoting their tools and limiting their uses is a delicate balancing act to say the least!

Our challenge, then, is to determine what level of tolerance we’re comfortable with as parents and as teachers.  Can we really keep our kids completely safe online—in a perfect bubble where they’ll be shielded from any inappropriate content at all? 

If we try, what do we lose?  Will students be prevented from using highly motivating tools appropriately?  Will they lose the opportunity to learn about what responsible students do when they encounter inappropriate content?

This is a question that has to be answered before Web 2.0 tools can really become common teaching tools  in our schools. 

Signed,

Bam Bam Bigelow

Here’s the activity, in case you’re interested in using it:

Internet Safety Activity

Rock on,

Bam Bam Bigelow

Keep it Private:  When you are chatting to people or posting things online, make sure you keep your own and other people’s personal information private.  If you have created your own online space, profile or website, make sure it is set to private so that you can control who can view your thoughts, ideas, images and videos.  Bear in mind that future academic institutions and employers may search for you online to see if you are the right person for them.   

Keep it Cool:  If you or someone you know is being bullied online or via a mobile phone, you have a right not to have to deal with it on your own.  It is important you save the messages or conversations and show an adult you can trust to help to resolve the situation. 

Keep it Legal:  Be aware of the legal consequences of your online activities.  Illegal activities include downloading copyrighted music or film and harassing other people online.  You are not anonymous online and things can get traced back to you. 

Keep in Mind:  Not everything you see or everyone you meet online is reliable.  People that you’ve only met online are still strangers no matter how friendly they are.  Because meeting up with these people can be dangerous, never do it without your parents present!  Bringing a friend only puts them in danger too.   

Keep in Control:  If you have met someone online and conversations with that person are making you feel uncomfortable, tell an adult you trust!  All such incidents can be dangerous and should be taken very seriously.  

Keep Your Mates Safe:  Think before you post a picture or a video of your friends.  Once you have posted a picture, you have lost control of it and it could easily be copied, changed or used elsewhere online.  Keep your mates safe by never posting pictures of them without their permission.