Group items tagged

Since the Olympic Village press center opened Friday, reporters have been unable to access scores of Web pages — among them those that discuss Tibetan issues, Taiwanese independence, the violent crackdown on the protests in Tiananmen Square and the Web sites of Amnesty International, the BBC’s Chinese-language news, Radio Free Asia and several Hong Kong newspapers known for their freewheeling political discourse.

The restrictions, which closely resemble the blocks that China places on the Internet for its citizens, undermine sweeping claims by Jacques Rogge, the International Olympic Committee president, that China had agreed to provide full Web access for foreign news media during the Games. Mr. Rogge has long argued that one of the main benefits of awarding the Games to Beijing was that the event would make China more open.

But a high-ranking Olympic committee official said Wednesday that the panel was aware that China would continue to censor Web sites carrying content that the Chinese propaganda authorities deemed harmful to national security and social stability.

FEW DISTRICTS HAVE MORE MILES on their 1-to-1 computing initiatives than Texas' Irving Independent School District, where the teachers have had laptops since 1996 and the current student program began with a pilot launched in 2001. Today, the Irving 1-to-1 program puts close to 12,000 laptops in the hands of students and teachers throughout the district.

After nearly a decade, Owen and her team have learned a few things about maintaining 1-to-1 computer programs in K-12 environments. The cornerstone of her strategy: personnel. Owen keeps two technicians on duty at the 1-to-1 high school campuses, and one at every other campus. On top of that, the district employs a central team of five technicians whose job it is to resolve problems that people at the campus level can't handle.

A survey conducted by MSN United Kingdom found that 74% of teens as compared to 80% in this study did not go to anyone for advice when they were cyberbullied (www.msn.co.uk/cyberbullying, 2006). One reason some teenagers are reluctant to tell parents or adults is the fear of retaliation.

Many times parents don't get involved because they are afraid of invading their teen's privacy. Others may feel that as long as they have filtering software their teen is protected from negative material.

Parents need to be educated about cyberbullying- what it looks like, what the effects are and how to handle it. Rosalind Wiseman, educator and author of the best seller "Queen Bees & Wannabes", suggest parents consider the following: Use technology as an opportunity to reinforce your family values. Attach rules and consequences if inappropriate behavior occurs. Move the computer out of your child's bedroom and into the family room. Teach your child not to share passwords. Install monitoring and filtering software. Monitor your child's screen name(s) and Web sites for inappropriate content. If cyberbullying occurs, save and print out any evidence and decide whom you should contact for assistance.

Cybersmart Detectives is an innovative online game that teaches children key internet safety messages in a safe environment. Children work online in real time liaising with community professionals to solve an internet-themed problem. The activity is based in the school environment, and brings together a number of agencies with an interest in promoting online safety for young people, including State and Federal Police, internet industry representatives and child welfare advocates. In the scenario, children play the role of a school Deputy Principal concerned about the welfare of a new student, who may be being bullied by someone they have met in an internet chat room. Guided by a series of clues, children work collaboratively in teams to solve the mystery of what is worrying the student, and why. 'Cybersmart Guides' respond to the questions and theories posed by the students, and guide the teams through each of the 'clues'. As the scenario unfolds, the children discuss the risks of certain online and offline behaviours, and ways of managing those risks. Although the scenario presented in the activity is simulated, the sense of urgency that excites a class of children taking part is very real. By the end of the activity children will have learned some valuable lessons about some of the risks associated with internet use, especially useful tips for chatting safely online. More importantly, the issues that lie behind the story will have been discussed with professionals who deal with similar issues on a daily basis. Cybersmart Detectives was initially developed by UK-based child advocacy agency Childnet International, and until 2005, operated under the name of Net Detectives. The activity is now independently operated by E-ngagelive. The Australian Communications and Media Authority ( ACMA ), by agreement with E-ngagelive , has adapted the activity for use in Australian schools under the name Cybersmart Detectives.