Monday, December 12, 2011

Internet Safety: Doing

Oh Man. Of course this would happen. I knew I would somehow complete the final, post on everyone's blog and then forget to submit the rest of the assignment that was due this day. It's 12:10. I really hope this assignment gets some points.

I talked to my little brother about Internet Safety this evening. He's 16 but will be 17 in January. He is a Junior right now. I asked him what he thought of when he heard internet safety. He talked about pornography, and predators. That was a good start. I asked him about cyberbullying. He wasn't quite as familiar with that subject so I decided to focus on that. I think that is mostly because girls get in emotional problems more than boys. I talked about virtual realities and how things you say on the internet really do have an effect on people. I talked about how people feel safe saying mean things to others because all they are looking at is a screen and not a real face. But then I linked that to virtual realities and Elder Bednar's talk. I challenged him to read that. We looked at the pictures of computer rendering of room in the temple. It was amazing to talk about some of the stories Elder Bednar shared. My brother told me about online gaming and how that has to do with video games. He explained that xbox 360 can connect you with other players and you can play games with them. I think xbox 360 is technically online as well. He also shared with me that he and his friends got really into it for a couple months and he says he was probably addicted. He knows it was bad to be spending that much time doing it. I talked to him about the dangers of addiction and how it's the same reaction in your brain no matter if it's games, drugs or alcohol. I asked him how he felt about the talk and how he would have liked a teacher to address internet safety. He commented that the way I brought things up and talked about them in a matter of fact way was good and he thought people his age would really understand. I wasn't lecturing, I was just trying to connect with him on his level and see what he was dealing with. It went great. I think it was beneficial for him and I learned a lot too. Hopefully I can take that experience and build on it for the future.

Final Blog Findings

Here are the links to my comments I left on my groups projects. It was fun to see what other people had done and things they had learned.


Codi
video

project 1

project 2


Amberly
project 1

Project 2

I couldn't find the video for Amberly. I asked if she could let me know where it was posted but I couldn't find it anywhere on her blog or her website. Hopefully I'll hear back soon and then update this!
Jarelle
movie


Project 1

Project 2

Project 3


Nicole
video

Project 1

Project 2

Internet Safety Reading/Video Thoughts

-What were the most important things I learned from the readings?
I loved the talk about finding and sharing online. I love how involved the church is in regards to the internet. They encourage us as Latter-Day Saints, to post our feelings about the gospel. I loved that it warned people from posting private information, pictures and other things. It also reminded me to be respectful to other people's blogs and work they post online.
-How will what I have read influence my actions as a parent and/or teacher of children and youth?
I have heard that it is a great idea to put the computer in high traffic areas, and I really believe that is true. Hopefully, I will have a open relationship with my children so they feel safe coming to me when they encounter things on the internet that are pornographic or otherwise inappropriate. It is so important to always teach your children internet safety and to not make them feel bad if they have made a mistake or something. Having them feel emotionally safe is the key.
I will also set limits on time spent on the internet. Moderation in all things! There is a line that must not be crossed however. That includes letting your child learn and grow with guidelines, and not being overbearing or annoying interested in everything you do. You don't have to monitor every little thing and hopefully you have a relationship where your children can come to you with any questions or concerns.
-How can I use what I have learned from the reading to have a positive influence on family and friends?
I think that when I have a family I need to stand up and talk a lot about the internet. Having so much technology in the world puts responsibilities on the parents. We must take action and educate ourselves on what is out there and then do everything we can to protect and educate our own children.
I have a personal blog and sometimes I get worried about saying things about the church, mostly because I don't want people to think it's cliché or not understand things I'm saying. I shouldn't! I should be bold in word and deed and stand up for what I say. I love a blog called nieniedialogues. “Nie” does a fantastic job at combining her testimony with everyday things. She often references Mormon.org or lds.org, talks and other church related things. I have heard that over 1,000 baptisms have been linked to her blog and her started out members on their conversion journey.
-Am I aware of the benefits and dangers children face when online with cyber bullying and online predators? Do I know how to prevent cyberbullying?
I don't know that there are any benefits with online cyber bullying. I know that there runs a risk of emotional problems and those effects can be long lasting. Just like bullying in real life, the abuse is real and harmful. It's important to limit time on the internet, sites your children can and can not visit. It is also good to set limits involving pictures they can post, privacy with chat rooms as well as personal information.
-Where can I go for information and resources that can be used to teach internet safety?
I think it's a great idea to surf the net, look at talks and other things. I think it would also be good to look at the library for resources. Asking a librarian may also be helpful! I'm saving some of the documents I have read on my Diigo because I know I will need them later in life. It would be great to get in touch with school counselors as well.
-What internet safety issues am I likely to face as a teacher and how will I address them?
I love the quote from the article, Understanding Cyberbullying from the inside out. Boyd says, “we need [education and] interventions that focus on building empathy, identifying escalation [of drama or bad feeling, whether malicious or mistaken, pranks or retaliation, I'd add], and techniques for stopping the cycles of abuse. We need to create environments [home and school] where young people don’t get validated for negative attention and where they don’t see relationship drama as part of normal adult life. The issues here are systemic”. Truly we have to teach our students in a way that is inclusive of everyday life and internet activities. Those two things are inseparable at this point.
Just like we talked about in the voicethread, we may encounter situations involving addictive behavior to internet sites, pornography problems and cyberbullying. Classroom safety is not enough. We have to educate students. I think it would be great to have students read an article at the beginning of the term and have them write a response. I would love to hold a conversation involving the class, just so everyone could see that their peers feel similarly about the internet, cyberbullying and social networking.
-How can I leverage the power of the Internet so students can learn, but in a safe way?
I can teach students the correct way to use search engines, such as using “, and, or, but etc. I would also help students learn to identify a reliable source and internet sites that may be harmful.

Monday, December 5, 2011

Multimedia Project



Here's my final project! It was a lot of fun learning how to use imovie. I have always wanted to. Although I'm not a professional, I think I can maneuver around a bit. The filming was also fun. I wish I had taken more time to faithfully follow my script and make sure the shots were really great-BUT I can't be filmed and be the filmer at the same time! For my teaching area, making instructional videos will definitely come in handy. Like in the video I made, demonstrations are much easier on camera than in front of the classroom. It gives you the liberty to edit things, add back tips that you forgot and make sure things go exactly as planned. Also, if I wanted to demonstrate something that took a while to put together, it would be easy to make a demo video such as this one. This would also serve as a great project for my students. I actually made another video and posted it on my website as a mock demo-the assignment was for the students to create their own demo's at home. It would be great practice to talking while cooking and really understanding the processes of cooking. It was a great project-and now who knows-maybe someone will actually benefit from it being on youtube!