Children’s Online Privacy
Protection Act (COPPA) and Children’s Internet Protection Act (CIPA) are both
in place in order to address and promote internet safety for children. Both of
these acts ensure children’s protection and sponsor safe usage on the internet.
In 2013, the US Census reported that about 24 percent of children ages 0-17
were using the internet.
CIPA has specific requirements and
rules for schools or libraries that receive their internet through the E-rate
program (which makes internet access more affordable for schools and libraries).
The E-rate system provides discounts on telecommunication, internet access and
internet connections which range from 20-90 percent. These discounts are
determined by the number of students that qualify for the national school lunch
program or their area label (urban/rural). The 2014 Universal Service
Administrative Company reported in their 2014 annual report that “over 96,000
schools/school districts and nearly 12,000 libraries applied”. In order to receive
this program, schools and libraries have to have a safety policy in place with
protection measures. This includes filtering pictures making it free of
obscenity, child pornography, or images that may be harmful. Under CIPA,
schools also have to monitor minors’ activities and educate students about appropriate
online behavior. The Federal Communications Commission enforces and answers
questions about CIPA.
COPPA addresses the collection of
children under 13’s personal information from and about children on the internet.
It requires websites to state how the child’s personal information will be
used, if it will be shared and what exactly is collected. At any time, the
child’s parents may review, delete and revoke their consent even if it was
previously given. More things are being covered under COPPA (images, video,
audio, location information, voice recognition, etc.) and it’s expected to
expand again with the growing use of technology. The Federal Trade Commission
enforces COPPA and relies on parent reports from websites and internet
monitoring. If sites are found in violation, they can be forced to pay hefty
fines of up to $16,000 per violation.
This website provides teachers of all grade levels quality, ready-made lesson plans. They
come with videos, handouts, assessments and engaging activities. It also
provides parent resources and tips. This website has great potential to be
extremely beneficial for educators who realize the importance of teaching and educating
on internet safely at all ages.
Megan, do you think that these laws will be hard to enforce in higher grades. I remember teachers never telling us why certain things were blocked, just that they were. In middle school we would use Google Australia and Google China to get pictures besides clip art. I think that introducing these laws to students when teaching internet safety would be a good idea. That way they have a why attached and they don't feel like they are being handled with kid gloves. What do you think?
ReplyDeleteThat website looks awesome and definitely a great resource for us to use. I like that it also has opportunities for Professional Development.
I definitely think that this would be harder to enforce in upper grades. I'm currently in a high school and the students are allowed to have their phones everywhere. I think it's great that the school trusts the students, but I think that the students generally don't think much about safety on the internet. I do feel it would be good to introduce students to these laws, but at the same time I'm not sure they would understand, pay attention, or apply these aspects to their usage. It would be better probably to show students examples that are applicable to their lives and that create more meaningful representations. It's definitely something to think more about and be aware of. Thanks for the comment!
ReplyDeleteIn the end, explaining proper behavior, having the appropriate filters in place, and having clear consequences is all schools can do. There's always a workaround, and no filter is impenetrable. But, the above can limit the problems and keep schools out of trouble when the expectations and punishments are clear.
ReplyDelete[Without going to far down a rabbit hole, the default punishment is removal of computer privileges. Does that help? Does it make it harder for the student or the teacher?]