REPORTING INAPPROPRIATE CONTENT TO PROTECT KIDS

In an attempt to increase the protection of children and other vulnerable audiences, YouTube employs a Trusted Flagger Program. The Trusted Flagger Program is described as voluntary policing online, similar to the Watch programme. The charity has argued that internet and social media users of all ages must acknowledge the part they play in their own safety and well-being on the internet. By flagging or reporting inappropriate content, users make it easier for websites such as YouTube to police its terms of use. YouTube invites users who frequently flag or report content to become ‘trusted flaggers’. This does not enable them to remove content but does provide the user with more sophisticated flagging tools. YouTube was recently rumoured to have introduced ‘super flaggers’, consisting of 200 people and organisations world-wide, including a British police unit.

The educational film organisation Into Film , in partnership with Childnet, provides materials for British schools to engage creatively with online safety. Film clubs in primary and secondary schools have created their own films where they discuss what online safety means and how pupils can make sure they remain safe on the internet. The film ‘The Ten Points About Online Safety’ made by students at Bessacarr primary school in Doncaster can be viewed here.

Families Spend Less Time Together

The annual conference of the Association of Teachers and Lecturers (ATL) took place in Manchester this week. A survey of 1,300 members about character essay analysis carried out by the ATL found that teachers were concerned about increasing pressure on family life and the impact this has on the experience of childhood. More than half of teachers thought families spent a lot less time together now than they did 20 years ago. Parents working longer hours and technology was blamed for this by over 9 out of 10 teachers. Dr Mary Boustad, general secretary of the ATL, has said that it is important for children to have time to play with friends outside school and spend time with their families.

Online Content Evaluation

Learning how to distinguish between reliable and unreliable sources online has been identified as a key aspect of mobile learning. According to Julie Cairo, Associate Professor at the University of Rhode Island, the ability to read and evaluate levels of accuracy, reliability and bias are essential skills when carrying out independent research on the internet. In her study, carried out with nearly 800 adolescents, Cairo found that the majority of students were concerned with content relevance, rather than credibility. She also discovered that the majority of students rarely assessed author or publication type in order to determine reliability or bias and that students had difficulties critically justifying their assessment of credibility. Based on these findings, Cairo presents four recommendations for educators teaching their students how to evaluate online content.