Driftingashore Posted January 7, 2015 Posted January 7, 2015 Hey Guys, I've just been informed that on Monday I'm co-conducting a class on internet safety aimed at teaching parents how to make their home networks and devices child/teen safe. Now, on top of my social anxiety and my general disdain for parental controls, I was given a piece of paper that had four bullet points (and told to come up with more): 1) How do you block websites? 2) How do you view history? 3) Who to call when things go wrong 4) How to put a passcode on a device/computer TBH, I have no idea how to approach this, and 1,3,4 seem like they'd be very device/OS/ISP/software specific, and not knowing what makes up each particular home network makes detailing specifics useless. I'm at a bit of a loss aside from giving a general overview of what parental controls are, that they should be able to get them from their ISP, and to figure them out for themselves.. Advice anybody? Please?
Steve21 Posted January 7, 2015 Posted January 7, 2015 Top Answer - Turn off Router! Safe computer usage In reality though - I'd look at the built in parental controls (Used to be called content advisor?) within Windows/IE etc. Other browsers as you said can't really name them all and suggest ideas. Also would probably mention about being able to lock down things via ISP/router settings, but as you said that's a bit generic Personally I'd try to aim it towards things you're happy using/explaining. Rather than "how to put passcode on" explain why it's good practice to, and the benefits of doing this etc. Same with other bits, Why checking history is a good idea or maybe installing some cheap/free home monitoring software to be able to look at this information. Restricting age related items etc etc. Information rather than instructions imo Steve 2
NikChillin Posted January 7, 2015 Posted January 7, 2015 (edited) Hi Driftingashore, I am doing something similar next week, I have plenty resources from Saferinternet.org which you will find very useful. Mention that although they can see history and block websites etc, children will move onto their mobile devices or use outside wifi if they are that way inclined. Security configuration is ISP specific and os'S, in fact, it would encourage unwanted support from parents, all they really need is to be able to read.. They really need is to do is contact their ISP for help. PM me for any other resources you might need. Edited January 7, 2015 by NikChillin
NikChillin Posted January 7, 2015 Posted January 7, 2015 Also, if you are unhappy doing this yourself, as for a teacher to present it and say you are happy to answer questions.
Little-Miss Posted January 7, 2015 Posted January 7, 2015 (edited) I took part in a few of these. A member of senior management did the talking, i was only there for the technical questions but sometimes had to do a bit of talking and I "helped" him (i did it) make a power point. You'll find the parents will have their own questions and concerns and, this sounds really mean, you'll be surprised how oblivious they are to it all. I agree with @Steve21, definitely advice and information. Even basic things like don't let the kids have a PC in their room and put it somewhere you can keep an eye on them. The last one i did, there was a lot of concern about monitoring devices like tablets and mobiles. With things like router settings and parental controls, all you can really do is point them to their ISP's website. Handouts are good, they like to be able to make notes and take it home with them. Edited January 7, 2015 by Little-Miss
NikChillin Posted January 7, 2015 Posted January 7, 2015 Tablet security, what parents should know Internet matters resources Safety tools on social networks and other online services To mention but a few. 1
elsiegee40 Posted January 7, 2015 Posted January 7, 2015 (edited) Some good "How to" guides: How to set up the Parental Controls offered by your Internet Service Provider | UK Safer Internet Centre Safety tools on social networks and other online services | UK Safer Internet Centre Reporting content on Social networking and messaging sites | ThinkUKnow Digital Parenting ThinkUKnow Parents A great ice breaker to make adults think about their own behaviour. @Driftingashore We have links to all these on our website for parents to get to. I suggest that you do the same before your talk. Edited January 7, 2015 by elsiegee40 2
elsiegee40 Posted January 7, 2015 Posted January 7, 2015 You can order hard copies of "Digital Parenting" magazine (sponsored by Vodafone) from here Vodafone Digital Parenting order form | The Parent Zone | Making life easier for parents NB There is no upper limit on the number of copies you can order now. They are good to hand out to parents at such talks, or send home with the kids on eSafety Day (Feb 10th) 2
jmak Posted January 7, 2015 Posted January 7, 2015 The bullet point I'd add is "Internet connected devices". Most parents seem shocked when I point out that it's not just PCs/tablets that allow internet access and also that internet access doesn't just mean dodgy websites - it's who they might be contacting that should be of concern. My takeaway message is that we mustn't stop them using the internet, rather show them safely - with the analogy to learning to cross the road or swim. As suggested above, handouts with well - especially with contacts details for ISPs if you've got time to prepare. And as for talking to parents, teachers usually seem more scared than me - they are great with kids, not always as comfortable presenting to parents!
elsiegee40 Posted January 9, 2015 Posted January 9, 2015 BTW, I usually get 1% parents show up That's high! It is much better to target parents using an esafety assembly presented by the kids and then you holding them for a bit after the kids have returned to the classroom. Other alternatives are to get the parents at events they are coming to anyway, e.g. Year 7 parents welcome evening, meet your neew teacher evening... etc
esafety_officer Posted January 9, 2015 Posted January 9, 2015 I collated some useful tips and links to sample presentations and resources on our website here if that helps. I would suggest that schools start by surveying parents to see if there is sufficient demand and also to find out what they might like to see covered in the session. It's also a good idea to survey students so you can give parents live and local statistics e.g. 80% of our pupils have a smartphone etc as this has a much higher impact than national information. It would also be a good idea to find out what time of day would ensure the optimum up-take (for example what about parents who work or have child care issues in the evening). I would also suggest that you avoid over using technology terms etc when discussing or advertising any parent focused events and stress that any sessions are about supporting parents in parenting online and that the focus will be on encouraging positive behaviour online rather than the technology itself. Like elsiegee40 says, the most effective parents events are the ones that involve education for or by pupils or as part of other well attended events.
jmak Posted January 9, 2015 Posted January 9, 2015 That's high! It is much better to target parents using an esafety assembly presented by the kids and then you holding them for a bit after the kids have returned to the classroom. Other alternatives are to get the parents at events they are coming to anyway, e.g. Year 7 parents welcome evening, meet your neew teacher evening... etc We include e-safety briefings at the main briefings we run at the beginning of each school year - we usually hit about 25% that way. When we re-launched our VLE a couple of years ago, we insisted that a parent or guardian for each child came to a dedicated e-safety briefing before we released the passwords for use at home and hit over 95% of them. We've since changed our policy on this, as we reckon that most of them will be using the internet anyway and if they spend at least some of that time on the VLE we are reducing risk... We've sent home the Digital Parenting magazines (which are really good) - you never know, someone might read one!
Recommended Posts
Create an account or sign in to comment
You need to be a member in order to leave a comment
Create an account
Sign up for a new account in our community. It's easy!
Register a new accountSign in
Already have an account? Sign in here.
Sign In Now