"It’s true to say that the vast majority of children, whilst at different levels of risk, will not come to harm. But what can we as parents do to give ourselves a level of assurance that our children are safe and know what to do if they get into an unfamiliar situation, or one that makes them feel uncomfortable?" Alan MacKenzie gives some practical advice.
Read MoreYoung people and the internet
“Young people can be sensible online – if they want to be”, says Ellie Gregson. Ellie offers a teen’s-eye view of staying safe online.
Read MoreLazy e-safety messages are no help to our children
"Until adults move on from the dismissive and patronising position of ‘the online world isn’t real or valid’ we will continue to fail in the quality of the support we offer our children."
Simon Finch suggests a much more useful approach.
Internet Safety
Being safe on the internet is vital. If you’re concerned about being safe on the internet or just want a few ideas of how to be safe you have come to the right place!
Internet safety articles
Before the half-term break in the UK we had Safer Internet Day. A special edition of my ezine, Digital Education, was published, containing a range of articles about e-safety. Four of those will be published next week on this blog. There are articles of use to parents, teachers and students. Here is the list of articles, and when they will appear.
Read MoreReview of Go On, Bore ‘Em: How to make your ICT lessons excruciatingly dull
Whether you're a newly qualified teacher starting out on your career, an experienced classroom practitioner, or somewhere in between, you will find something to take away from Terry Freedman's digital publication Go On Bore ‘Em, says Ben Davies.
Read MoreHealth Warning: Can using the web damage your health?
Can using a computer be injurious to one's health? If you're trying to book a particular rail journey via a particular website in the UK, the answer is a resounding "Yes", according to this article I wrote in February 2008.
Read MoreReview of Comic Strip Creator
I thought I’d explore Comic Strip Creator, which is a program you can use to create comic strips, funnily enough. Here are my initial thoughts:
Read MoreThe 3,000 Part Computing Lesson
Every so often there comes along a new daft idea (or a newly-packaged old idea that has been mangled out of recognition (and thereby rendered useless) so that its “inventor” can be designated as a guru. Me? Cynical? Never!) One of the more unfortunate manifestations of this phenomenon was the three part lesson. It sounds good and logical, but then the thing that usually happens happened: Ofsted started insisting on it, and Headteachers demanded to witness it in every lesson. Woe betide the brilliant but hapless teacher whose lesson plans failed to include the three parts.
Read MoreAn article that I suppose might be called an infomercial
"Erm, tell me, Terry. How do you actually earn money?" This is a question that I am constantly asked because, I think, I don't do a lot of self-promotion as far as drumming up work is concerned. I've tended to rely on word of mouth referrals, but in order to pre-empt the question I quoted at the start of this paragraph, and because I think I ought to be a bit more overt in my approach, I thought I'd write some articles about what I do for a living.
Read MoreSend in the e-Cadets! Making kids responsible for e-safety
I came across the eCadets scheme recently, and mentioned it in the special e-safety edition of Digital Education. I thought it sounded very interesting. With schools looking for more sustainable eSafety solutions I caught up with the co-founder of the innovative eCadet scheme, Henry Platten, to find out how to create a lasting eSafety legacy in your school. Ever come across those schools where the e-safety “policy” consists of a Local Authority template with the blanks filled in with the school’s name, and stuck in the bottom of a filing cabinet in the headteacher’s office? Well, the e-Cadets scheme aims to change all that by giving the children themselves responsibility.
Read MoreSafer Internet Day
In time for Safer Internet Day, we published a special e-safety edition of Digital Education, the ezine for those with a professional interest in education technology. Here is some information about three of them.
Read MoreDigital Education e-Safety special: Out now!!
This is a bumper edition that contains loads of articles, including contributions from Rose Luckin, Maddi Holt, student Ellie Gregson, student Caleb, pupil Anna, Alan Mackenzie and Simon Finch. Read on for the full list of contents.
Read MoreDigital Education, with e-safety supplement:
I thought you might like some information on the forthcoming edition of Digital Education, which includes a special e-safety supplement. It contains the following articles:
Read MoreTaking stock of the new Computer curriculum: 5 key questions
Now that the new Computing curriculum in England has been running for nearly a term, it's a great time to stand back and take stock. Actually, I recommend doing that even if you are not in England and/or have not needed to change anything. Here's a list of 5 questions you might care to ask yourself:
Read MoreShould philosophy influence educational policy?
You might think that philosophy has little to do with education in general or Computing in particular, but the concept of “smart thinking” espoused in the following article by Mel Thompson certainly has resonance with “computational thinking”.
Read More