Question 5 year old web surfers?

[rynnor]

Theres a big campaign to educate kids from 5 years old on how to be safe on the net.

Seems kinda bizarre - even my 7 year old is barely allowed on the net and then thats only to use specific websites on a laptop while we keep an eye on her.

I dont personally see any ways of completely protecting your kids on the net other than the simple supervision route?

Is a 5 year old - no matter how savvy - actually possible to be safe on the net if the parents are silly enough to give it unrestricted access?

Seems like all these types of campaign are aimed at a very small sub-section of parents who dont give a shit and would ignore such campaigns anyway - what do you think?

 

[kirennia]

Seems like all these types of campaign are aimed at a very small sub-section of parents who dont give a shit and would ignore such campaigns anyway.

I think this sentence of yours pretty much hits the nail on the head. I'm trying to think of something to say that wont end in a rant but... well, lets just stick with 'as above'.

 

[Sparx]

The simple problem is very young mothers dont have enough life experience to be an educator to their children, so someone has to help them.

Looking back now when i got a girl pregnant at 18, i didnt know a patch on what i know now. And i'd be willing to put money on it that i dont know a patch on the 40 year old me

 

[Aoami]

I don't know this as fact obviously, but I can imagine a large percentage of adults have no idea what the internet is capable of, and how easily dodgy stuff can be accessed.

People my age (early 20's) have no idea and they've grown up with it.

The internet is going to be a massive part of life for the young generations for the forseeable future, and if internet use is taught in schools I think it's an excellent idea.

 

[old.Tohtori]

I think you mistook the campaign as "this is how your 5 year old can surf safely and alone unrestricted". Which i doubt the campaign is saying.

Nothing wrong in education, the added safety and supervision is a family matter.

 

[Raven]

As pointed out, the demographic this sort of campaign is aimed at couldn't give a toss anyway, like the alcohol awareness campaign.

Waste of money/time/effort

 

[Shagrat]

Unfortunately I agree with Raven. If some tosspot parent isnt bothered that *their 5 year old is unsupervised online/their 11 year old is getting battered on White Lightning* I doubt any kind of awareness campaign is going to have any kind of effect whatsoever

 

[old.Tohtori]

Ok someone please explain to me where this 'unsupervised net training' comes from?

Like i said, this campaign seems(from what i gather in post 1) to promote safer network surfing and educating kids. Right?

Unsupervised net browsing is bad for a 5 year old, we all get it, but how would it harm to start educating safer net use from an early age?

If you're against it, tell me why.

Noticed that on ilayas thread, people are pro for the advert for educating kids, isn't this the same thing and shouldn't people on that thread say "it's pointess because only silly parents would let kids drink etc"?

 

[nath]

You'd be surprised at how many reasonable, decent parents just don't realise that letting their kid roam free on the net is like dropping them off in soho and saying "I'll pick you up in a few hours, talk to some strangers or something". It's not a matter of not giving a toss, more of not appreciating the dangers of the net for kids.

 

[Bugz]

The one thing I never get about some people in this world/forum is they talk about nanny states and how we are all doomed when the government replaces our brains with government-sensory equipment but the solution to many things seems to be 'educate them better at school.'

 

[kirennia]

The one thing I never get about some people in this world/forum is they talk about nanny states and how we are all doomed when the government replaces our brains with government-sensory equipment but the solution to many things seems to be 'educate them better at school.'

I fail to see the correlation; there is a distinct difference between for example, teaching a child about the dangers of unprotected sex and making them wear a theoretical chastity belt. Likewise, teaching about the dangers of the internet and physically sensoring our brains are two completely different 'wings' of the same... erm... bird?

 

[Bugz]

I mean -> people hate the government intervening in our life but want the education system to iron out all the problems with our children and the future generations.

It's just ironic.

 

[kirennia]

I don't get the irony but maybe I'm just misunderstanding you.

I don't believe that people think the government should cease to do anything whatsoever which is kind of what your reference implies; there is little correlation between education and invasive brain sensory equipment being used on us all. While I realise that you cannot have meant that as a literal comparison but the point still remains.

Because we don't want our every action monitored that somehow means that we cannot ask for education, in a subject with potentially harmful consequences if not addressed, without being looked down upon as hypocrites? At least that's the tone I generally associate with when ones actions are deemed to be 'ironic' and you did mention the forum specifically, hence the 'we'.

A government should essentially be governed by the people. For our kids to be educated is, I'm sure a common ground between the masses of the population. Invasive monitoring, I'm not so sure of.


Granted you could argue that the populous could be persuaded invasive monitoring was for the good of us all through education; a bit of a stretch but still, valid. If you do that however, I'm going to play the 'educating religion as fact is a bigger concern' card anyway!

 

[Ctuchik]

The simple problem is very young mothers dont have enough life experience to be an educator to their children, so someone has to help them.

yes, by taking their child away. thats the only way to help any of them.

 

[Wazzerphuk]

You'd be surprised at how many reasonable, decent parents just don't realise that letting their kid roam free on the net is like dropping them off in soho and saying "I'll pick you up in a few hours, talk to some strangers or something". It's not a matter of not giving a toss, more of not appreciating the dangers of the net for kids.

You can't get raped through a fibre-optic cable though, can you?

 

[nath]

Urm, yes you can dumbass. Paedophiles can make your keyboard give off a smell of hammers to make you more suggestible and take it from there.

 

[Sparx]

You'd be surprised at how many reasonable, decent parents just don't realise that letting their kid roam free on the net is like dropping them off in soho and saying "I'll pick you up in a few hours, talk to some strangers or something". It's not a matter of not giving a toss, more of not appreciating the dangers of the net for kids.

Soho is actually a rather friendly place, mostly full of gays who just want to have fun, then bum.

*disclaimer, Sparx does indeed like fun but not the bum*

 

[rynnor]

I mean -> people hate the government intervening in our life but want the education system to iron out all the problems with our children and the future generations.

It's just ironic.

I like it - the really funny thing is the falling standards in schools.

When I was a kid at primary school you learned reading, writing and maths and the odd bit of art n history/geography.

Now theres a whole national curriculum full of this kinda crap - my daughter spent the best part of 3 days on this in the past week - another half day on a violin assembly.

Before christmas she spent two weeks rehearsing the christmas nativity play - I mean 2 weeks !!!

Surely if you spend less time teaching the kids to read/write and arithmetic they will be disadvantaged?

 

[Sparx]

Theres more to teaching kids than Maths and English. Social study classes like the play are just as important.

Thats one of the reasons why going to school is more important than home schooling, other interaction with children helps build other skills than memorising tables.

 

[rynnor]

Theres more to teaching kids than Maths and English. Social study classes like the play are just as important.

Thats one of the reasons why going to school is more important than home schooling, other interaction with children helps build other skills than memorising tables.

Yes and no - obviously kids need to socialise but one kid who's parents objected to participation spent two weeks turning the tape recorder on/off

 

[rynnor]

I send my kids to school primarily to learn academic subjects - it is my job as a parent to make them into decent rounded human beings.

 

[Wazzerphuk]

Urm, yes you can dumbass. Paedophiles can make your keyboard give off a smell of hammers to make you more suggestible and take it from there.

 

[Sparx]

I send my kids to school primarily to learn academic subjects - it is my job as a parent to make them into decent rounded human beings.

you cant teach them everything, your kids will learn alot more from their friends. If you try to do it yourself you will end up smothering them and them resenting you. Trust me i know it first hand. On the flip side give them too much room and they will push it

 

[rynnor]

you cant teach them everything, your kids will learn alot more from their friends. If you try to do it yourself you will end up smothering them and them resenting you. Trust me i know it first hand. On the flip side give them too much room and they will push it

I dont mean doing it on my own I send my kids to loads of out of school activities and tbh thats the best place for such things rather than trying to cram that in with the academic study.

I think that this is once again aimed at the few percent of crap parents but it impacts everyones kids.