Jesse Morehouse writes in Students Dig up Dirt To Learn about Internet Safety about his experiences in the classroom teaching students about internet safety. Morehouse takes a very hands-on approach while teaching his students just how much information can be found about any given individual on the internet. When teaching this lesson, however, he has found that "[his students'] teenage sense of invincibility keeps them from truly comprehending the impact of an inappropriate entry on a personal blog, social network, or Twitter account." (Morehouse, page 34) Morehouse has found, though, that after the hands-on approach to teaching internet safety students are shocked at what they have found and wind up changing their security settings on their social networking sites.
As part of his hands-on lesson, Morehouse teaches his students about a method of data collection called Data Mining, which is the process by which "online data can be pieced together to create a fairly complete picture of an individual. This is legal and practiced routinely by companies marketing their products and services." (Morehouse, page 34) Not only does Morehouse teach his students what Data Mining is and how different marketing companies use this process, but he also teaches his students how to data mine, using himself as the 'guinea pig', so to speak.
I found Morehouse's article and teaching methods to be refreshing and very effective. It is not always easy to get through to students, regardless of their age, about internet safety. The anonymity of the internet is both a blessing and a curse. It often allows us to speak our minds a lot more easily than in person, but sometimes we say too much. For example, some people provide far too much information on social networking sites such as Facebook and Twitter. All too often people provide their phone numbers, towns of residence, and sometimes even more revealing information. People usually use their social networking sites to bare it all, which can be a freeing feeling I'm sure, but it is also dangerous. I feel that the hands-on approach taken by Morehouse is far more effective than lecturing students on the issue of internet safety. By becoming Data Miners, the students are realizing how important it is to monitor the information they put online because it really does stick around for a lot longer than most people expect, and is read by people we don't even know. I think learning-by-doing is a very effective way to make a lasting impression on students, and the issue of internet safety is a very important issue to make a lasting impression about.
Works Cited:
Morehouse, Jesse. (2011, September/October) Students dig up dirt to learn about internet safety. Learning & Leading with Technology. September/October 2011. pg 34-35. Retrieved September 19, 2011 from http://www.iste.org/Libraries/Leading_and_Learning_Docs/september-2011-learning-connections.sflb.ashx
Kristen,
ReplyDeleteI think the title of this article is funny. But I think it fits what the article is about. We may not realize that what we post up in social networks and other internet pages is readily available for anyone to see, and use at their own advntage.
I think this was a clever way to show them the dangers that come along with the internet. I agree with you in that this is a better approach of teaching them about internet safety than just lecturing them on it.
This comment has been removed by the author.
ReplyDeleteI like the hands on learning in a class setting rather than lecture and like you said it provides the reality of the dangers to kids. I like that the examples that were used came from something relatable like Facebook or Twitter because it gives kids a better understanding of what can really happen in their everyday use of technology and not just in the classroom setting.
ReplyDelete