PLE Wk #7: Internet Safety Assignment

Reading:

For my 5th article, I read "Changing Technology, Changing Classrooms" in the Spring 2007 Version of the McKay Today Magazine. I thought the readings were very interesting and so applicable to today's world. The prophets and apostles truly are in-tune with the realities of today. I particularly liked Elder Bednar's talk about what is truly reality and by become absorbed in activities that muddle what reality is, we are hindering our body's progression. I also liked Elder Packer's talk about making sure those medias in which we participate are only of the wholesome and uplifting nature. Technology, the Internet, and media can be very useful. But when used inappropriately, they can also be very harmful.

As I become a teacher and parent in the future, I will certainly take the things I have learned and try to teach those children who surround me about the benefits as well as the drawbacks of technology. By showing what kinds of technologies are appropriate and uplifting, hopefully those who I teach will see that technology doesn't always have to consist of violence and gore, but it can be educational as well. But the children will see the things I do more than hear what I say, so I have to make sure that I provide a good example for them in the right ways to use the Internet and media.

From reading these articles, I think by applying the knowledge personally hopefully others will see what impact it has on my life and apply it to their own. If I decide that I won't participate in harmful media, others may do the same... or they might not. Doing is always more powerful than saying.

Watching:

I watched the ikeepsafe video and watched the entire Frontline documentary. I also looked at the Internet Safety Podcast. I thought the Frontline documentary was really interesting and I think that all students should watch it in order to learn about the realities of the Internet and how to be protected while using the Internet. In my future teaching, I will make sure that students are only given websites that are appropriate for learning. I also want to inform students about the dangers of technology.

Doing:
I shared the Frontline documentary Growing up Online with my mother, who is an elementary school teacher, and my sister who just finished her sophomore year of high school. I think this was a valuable experience because it showed my sister, who spends an incredible amount of time online, some of the negative impacts it can have. It also showed my mother some more of the realities of the Internet as it can apply to to her students. Even though she interacts with mostly elementary school students, even children in her classroom have facebook-- a program which can open her students up to the danger of the internet. I thought it was a very good documentary.