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To Willard the key is not to frighten children, but instead teach them proactive ways to protect themselves while adults keep an eye out as well. Willard charges students to act responsibly, such as "Stay Out of the Garbage," and avoid pornography or other "gross stuff" online, and also to "Connect Safely," reminding kids not to send mean or nasty messages. Adults get some advice as well-with Willard cautioning them not to make a big deal if a child brings up something that happened online, such as a stranger trying to gather personal information. Any kind of extreme response, like taking away Internet privileges, could discourage them from bringing up concerns again.

Social networking Web sites and other technologies enable schoolyard bullies to pack a bigger punch. Advice and concerns from Nancy Willard and other experts in the field.

Written by attorney/educator, Nancy Willard and tailored for parents.Cyber-Safe Kids, Cyber-Savvy Teens is primarily a parenting book - parenting for the Information Age. Generally, parents do a good job of raising their children to make safe and responsible choices in the Real World. But now, children and teens have the ability to interact with people from throughout the world and to access a wide range of material that may or may not be appropriate for them. So what is a caring parent to do?

An effective school-based strategy to address the issue of online safety should include these six key components:
EDUCATIONAL USE - Schools must ensure that when students use the Internet, their activities have an educational purpose -- class assignments, extra credit work, and perhaps some high quality enrichment activities as a reward
SUPERVISION AND MONITORING Schools must shift focus from reliance on filtering to better supervision and monitoring.
MEANINGFUL CONSEQUENCES Misuse of the Internet must lead to a meaningful consequence -- but it should be recognized that suspension of Internet access privileges just causes more work for teachers. Requiring a service contribution to the school and establishing "close monitoring status" for all Internet use are preferable consequences.
ACCIDENTAL ACCESS TO PORN - All students and staff must know that if inappropriate material appears, they should quickly turn off the monitor or turn it so it can't be seen, and then report it. Following any incident or discovery, there must be a responsible assessment of culpability.
INAPPROPRIATE BLOCKING Selected staff in every school building must have the authority and ability to quickly override the filter to provide other staff or students access to sites that have been inappropriately blocked
INTERNET SAFETY AND RESPONSIBLE USE EDUCATION Schools must provide effective Web 2.0 Internet safety and responsible use education to students and parents.

Presentation by Nancy Willard outlining the dangers of association with online communities by at-risk youth. This includes self-harm communities, hate groups and gangs and suicide communities.

This guide from Nancy Willard provides educators with insight into these concerns and guidelines to prevent and respond. This guide provides only a brief overview of these concerns. More information, as well as implementation documents, is available in Cyberbullying and Cyberthreats: Responding to the Challenge of Online Social Aggression, Threats, and Distress (Research Press)

This guide from Nancy Willard provides parents with insight into these concerns and guidelines to prevent your child from being victimized by or engaging in online harmful behavior. It also provides guidance on things you can do in either case

School Library Journal [Jan 07] Practical advice from attorney and cybersafety expert, Nancy Willard, on a common sense approach to online safety. Nancy proposes that library media specialists add "stranger literacy" to their curriculum for information literacy to help teens and children learn to assess the safety and trustworthiness of online encounters. She also offers helpful guidelines.

What happens when there is a cyberbullying incident at your school? These documents from noted educator and attorney, Nancy Willard, will guide you through the process of documenting the incident, creating a review process and decision-making.

Responding to the Challenge of Online Social Aggression, Threats, and Distress
This book belongs in every school district! Nancy Willard is Director of the Center for Safe & Responsible Internet Use and a noted expert and speaker on the challenges and legal issues related to technology use in the schools. Her book helps school administrators analyze and intervene in cases involving cyberbullying or cyberthreats. She includes illustrative examples, recommendations for practice, and many practical resources. Available through Amazon.com

Protocol developed by Lawyer/Educator Nancy Willard for school or district involvement in investigating, documenting and disciplining sexting incidents.

The Authority & Responsibility of School Officials in Responding to Cyberbullying Article by Nancy Willard, M.S. J.D. [Journal of Adolescent Health 41 (2007) S64-S65]

What is Cyberbullying?About a third (31%) of all students ages 12-14 have been bullied online according to a study by Opinion Research Corporation (2006). This research paper will examine some of the reasons for "cyberbullying," and what may be done about it.

Nancy Willard and Anne Collier offer eight ways to deal with cyberbullies in this article.
1. Identify and block.
2. Set boundaries.
3. File a complaint.
4. Contact the school
5. Send the parents a certfied "cease and desist" letter.
6. Call an attorney.
7. Contact the local police.
8. Talk with your kids about what's acceptable.

Cybersafety expert and Internet Law Attorney, Nancy Willard, has some ideas for schools as they develop and adapt safety strategies to address Web 2.0. She also offers some questions that school staff can discuss to assess and improve the manner in which they are addressing these issues in their building:

Kids can be mean.\n\nIt's a fact of life we've all experienced. Gone are the days, however, when avoiding a bully meant ducking out of the back door at school. Thanks to personal computers, cellphones and instant messaging, it's now easier than ever for children to attack each other, often anonymously.

links to books by Nancy Willard, excecutive director of the Center for Safe and Responsible Internet Use

Parents can help kids avoid being victims by encouraging them not to post personal information online "that allows other people to see how vulnerable they are" to teasing, Willard says, and by asking them to communicate with friends, and friends of friends, only. Having the computer in a family room or other well-trafficked area allows Mom and Dad to better observe a child's reactions and gauge whether something is wrong.

Cybersafety in a Web 2.0 World: What Parents & Policymakers Need To Know [PDF]

Interview with the Honorable Melissa Bean, Larry Magid, Nancy Willard and Sharon Miller Cindrich.

Do school officials have the authority to impose discipline in response to harmful off-campus online speech? Should they? This is a major challenge facing school administrators today. Many state legislatures are now adding statutory provisions requiring schools to incorporate cyberbullying into bullying prevention policies. But this has presented some concerns. For example, in Oregon and Washington, language incorporated into cyberbullying legislation appears to restrict administrators from responding to any off-campus bullying regardless of the harmful impact on campus. Administrators from these two states are advised to check with their legal council. Administrators in other states should understand that the American Civil Liberties Union is trying to use language in the cyberbullying statutes to override federal case law and restrict administrators from doing anything in response to off-campus harmful speech.