HOW DO WE PROTECT OUR CHILDREN ONLINE ?
Protecting your kids in the virtual world is not much different from protecting them in the real world. Supervision starts with ensuring your PCs are in a communal area such as a study, not hidden away in a bedroom. Beyond that, supervision varies depending on age .Young kids need close supervision ,as they would if they were playing near a dangerous road .For older teenagers, its more of a case of keeping lines of communication open, taking a genuine interest in what they are doing . Keep yourself informed about the latest tech and sites and preferably, use them yourself. No 1 rule should always be: never provide anyone with any information that will identify you, where you live, go to school or hang out. Never arrange to meet any strangers: reinforce this by openly discussing the danger of strangers on line and how easy it is to falsify name, age, gender and photos on line. A curfew is also a must .If kids or even teenagers are up too late online, there's also the health issue of sleep deprivation, as well as lack of supervision .
Completely banning a teenager from MSN, could be counter-productive, resulting in them alienated from their peer group or simply going behind your back and using Messenger whenever you're not around . The best approach is to set and police only the most important rules and to educate, communicate and supervise in the most appropriate way for the age of the child. We should encourage a good balanced life with sports, music and other hobbies that don't rely on a computer .Yes, I know all this is easier said than done especially most of us are time-poor generation
