This week we have been exploring the Internet through classmates' scavenger hunts. They gave us an opportunity to explore some critical issues related to technology in the classroom. Coincidentally, my 10 year old son was simultaneously working on an online research project for a class website. This gave me an easy opening for a frank discussion with him. I was not surprise at his responses, but it was unsettling. We have controlled Internet access for him, but he revealed how surprisingly fragile the controls are.
First, we discussed plagiarism. I learned that he was not taught about this subject. After we discussed the concept through what I had learned on the scavenger hunt, I reviewed what he had written. I noticed a few sentences that did not sound like he would have written them -- sure enough, they were verbatim from the source. He had no idea that that was a problem. The scavenger hunt links helped me to teach him what plagiarism is and how to avoid it.
Next we discussed the Internet safety hunt. He answered the quizzes along with me. First he told me what the correct answer was and next he told me what he would really do. This honesty was refreshing, but disheartening. I learned that we have tighter controls on our computer than any of his friends do. How do I keep him safe at their homes? As he grows, how do I protect him but allow him access to the sites he needs for research. Or the sites he wants for social reasons. I now face the balancing act of teaching him and protecting him and yet doing it gently enough to preserve the open, honest discussion for the future.
As usual, my kids are my guinea pigs for teaching, and I will extend this to the classroom. Maintaining controls in the classroom is easier, but when students have homework projects involving the Internet, we have to share this safety information with parents. We also have to check out websites and links, and be very clear with our students about what is and is not plagiarism. As one of the links on the safety hunt discussed, it is critical that we stay informed as these deictic literacies evolve. We must stay one step ahead of our kids.
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3 comments:
- Hi Laurie. I share your concerns and sentiment regarding plagiarism and internet safety. When I work with my third graders on research, we begin with small projects where the students create two-slide hyper studio biographies. This year I am inspired to spend more time discussing plagiarism, and like you, share what I learned on our classmates’ scavenger hunt. I find it stunning the subject has not come up in your son’s class. I have as a parent, on more than one occasion, ‘assumed’ things are taught which I teach in my own classroom, but of course, this is unrealistic. As teachers, perhaps we are more likely to make these assumptions of what our children are being taught based on our own set of priorities, (as we all have to decide what will be the focus during our limited classroom time). Your blog has lit a fire under my backside to speak to my own nine and eleven year old children, to ensure they understand plagiarism.
- A couple of months ago, I watched my older child take an internet quiz on a Disney site focused on internet safety, and this in part, inspired me to choose that subject for my scavenger hunt. I have since visited the sites my group found with my own children, and intend to use it with my class this Thursday during our weekly computer lab time. They are just starting their hyper studio projects and the timing is perfect.
- I share your internet concerns when my children visit other homes. Like you, we have tight controls, and our children need an adult to log on for them in order to bypass parental controls. Also, as I’ve often heard recommended, we’ve placed our family computer in the middle of a high traffic area in our home. There is, inevitably, always someone over the shoulder of the user. Of course, this does not help when they leave the house! Communication with other parents and the balance you describe of gentle teaching/protecting and maintaining an atmosphere of trust for issues that may arise are essential. Hasn’t this balancing act of teaching-protecting-trust been performed by parents in every generation? The challenges faced by families may vary, but the essence of effective parenting never seems to change.
You and Leslie have opened my eyes from a parent perpsective on how to approach these deictic literacies. I am concerned for my future children's internet safety and certainly for my first grade students. I am often suprised to hear how much our young children know about the internet, media, and entertainment. I just reccommended to my sister, who has 2 girls, to place the computer in a common area in the house as they grow into their schooling years. We need to model appropriate internet use as well as keep a close eye on their use. I am pleased that this course has made me more aware of how to protect and educate our students and children when using the internet.
Excellent point about what happens to them when our kids are not within our sights. I don't have any kids, however I have much younger brothers and sister. We can limit them and monitor them all we went in our own homes, but what happens when they are at a friends and they have access and as we know, curiosity? I love the fact keeping the computer in a very open and general area in the house. I bet that helps to monitor. The only thing that I can say is to be open with our kids, express concerns with other parents, and model appropriate behavior. I guess in a way we have to trust them to make the right choice when we can not be there.
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