MoCo Fire & Rescue Tips for Parents

Tips for Parents

• Tell your child to Never reveal personal information online.
• Encourage your child to let you know of any suspicious Activity. If you are made aware of any crime or suspicious activity, notify authorities immediately.
• Inform your child the risks of using suggestive names and be firm about not using them.

Children are at a higher risk to be victims of Internet crimes than most parents realize.  Don't be uninformed.  Understand the scope of the problem, facts and figures to identify the benefits of childhood Internet activity and where your child may be in danger online.

http://www.montgomerycountymd.gov/mcfrs-info/tips/citizens/internet.html

Up until this school year, MCPS blocked Facebook,

...Maria Salmeron, a junior at Bethesda-Chevy Chase High School just outside Washington, D.C., uses Facebook in student organizing as a leader in the Minority Scholars Program, a youth-led group working to increase the academic success of students of color in Maryland’s Montgomery County Public Schools. Up until this school year, the district blocked Facebook, effectively cutting Salmeron off from a critical mobilization tool. “Facebook is one of the sites that connects you with everyone the most … it’s kept me in contact with people and groups from all over the world,” she said...

 http://www.theatlantic.com/education/archive/2016/04/internet-filtering-hurts-kids/479907/

Lower test scores for students who use computers often in school, 31-country study finds

For those of us who worry that Google might be making us stupid, and that, perhaps, technology and education don’t mix well, here’s a new study to confirm that anxiety.

 

“Those that use the Internet every day do the worst,” said Andreas Schleicher, OECD Director for Education and Skills, and author of “Students, Computers and Learning: Making the Connection,” the OECD’s first report to look at the digital skills of students around the world. The study controlled for income and race; between two similar students, the one who used computers more, generally scored worse.*...

http://hechingerreport.org/lower-test-scores-for-students-who-use-computers-frequently-in-school-31-country-study-finds/

"...many of us have lost trust in the administration because of the way business has been handled..."

 ...A good example are the particulars involved in the digital conversion and 24-hour learning via personal technology devices. While there is certainly an upside to this vision, there are significant downsides that have never been discussed, such as data mining.

What company is capturing and storing our children's data and for how long? Is it shared? How are the children's activities tracked and how will such information impact their academic future? Above all, what about their privacy rights?
Another issue is the forced reliance on even more technology when many parents are consciously limiting screen time in favor of their children building relationships and participating in the community. Was this ever even considered? It all happened way too fast, without regard for the unintended consequences of such a massive overhaul of the way our children will be learning...

Read more: http://www.baltimoresun.com/news/opinion/bs-ed-dallas-dance-20140829,0,2890508.story#ixzz3C7HIDRIK