Sack the Net Nanny?
As the Federal Government floods the media with warnings of online perils, an internet visionary has criticized any approach to safety that focuses on filters and stirring fear of cyber-stalkers. Author and academic Howard Rheingold (pictured) says parents should educate rather than censor their children.
He says that by censoring the internet “you are not encouraging a good relationship with your child”. More…
While I don’t necessarily argue that parents need to talk to their children more, I do have to speak up as the parent of four teens who surf the net quite a bit and say, talking isn’t enough!
I think it’s important to remember that kids are impressionable! I’m not sure there is a magical age that determines a childs ability to determine the difference between real and fiction - harmful and not. Unless predators are going around the net with a skull and cross bones tattood on their IP or User I.D.’s there’s no real way to keep them from approaching our children and saying all the right things.
We’ve got to remember, these predators have a great deal of experience talking to children, saying the right things, offering them things parents don’t - when parent’s are only just learning how to parent the child or children they have.
I believe it’s important to combine talking with our kids AND every other technological resource there is available to keep our children safe, so we can do our job as parents, even if it is the first time around!
I know I’m a first time parent of teens and openly admit I haven’t a clue on how to address some issues - but I learn right along with my kids. In the meantime, while I am learning, I’m going to put every possible safety net in place to insure my kids don’t fall victim to preventable harm while I am learning how best to parent and deal with those uncomfortable issues many of us parents tend to ignore.
Tags: parenting, net nanny, internet safety, technology
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POSTED IN: Parenting
2 opinions for Sack the Net Nanny?
Relationship » Sack the Net Nanny?
Sep 25, 2007 at 7:19 am
[…] unknown wrote an interesting post today onHere’s a quick excerptHe says that by censoring the internet “you are not encouraging a good relationship with your child”. More… While I don’t necessarily argue that parents need to talk to their children more, I do have to speak up as the parent of four … […]
me
Oct 13, 2007 at 1:44 pm
The problem is parents depend on filters, which don’t work very well.
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