Scare tactics do not work when promoting Internet safety
According a report from the Online Safety and Technology Working Group (OSTWG) scare tatics do little to influence teenagers behavior regarding social networks and text messaging. The article in eSchool News can be found here. According to the article the OSTWG said:
" ... that proper education about appropriate online behavior and digital media consumption can help children evaluate potential online risks. The group suggested that the government “promote nationwide education in digital citizenship and media literacy as the cornerstone of internet safety.”Recommendations include creating a web-based clearinghouse of online safety education research, avoiding scare tactics, promoting digital citizenship at all grade levels, establishing industry best practices for effective internet safety education programs, and looking to young people as experts in the online and digital media arenas by involving them in risk-prevention education.Awareness efforts should be ongoing, and stakeholders should “promote greater transparency for parents as to what sort of content and information will be accessible and recorded with a given product when their child is online,” recommended a subcommittee on parental controls and child protection technology.
Follow the link above to read the full article.