Digital Smarts Blog

With governments around the world telling their citizens to stay home, young activists are becoming creative in their methods of advocacy. So-called digital natives often hear about their movement of choice online first, which has allowed young people like Greta Thunberg to develop international movements without ever meeting the organizers they inspire. Amid a global health crisis, high school and college-student activists are taking to the Internet to promote causes such as the environment. They're taking advantage of platforms like Zoom, using "digital flyering" to rally the like-minded on social media, and organizing livestream events such as Earth Day Live that featured Joaquin Phoenix and Al Gore.

The old Russian proverb “Trust, but verify” aptly describes the relationship you should ideally have with your kids when it comes their use of digital devices and the Internet. Without a doubt, the most powerful tool you have to keep your kids safe online is your relationship. You want them to know that they can come to you about anyone or anything that bothers them online and have a frank discussion, without blame, about how to handle the situation. But with kids being kids, it could be that they will come across (intentionally or unintentionally) some inappropriate material or situation online. That’s where parental controls come in place. With certain kinds of technology helping to filter and field what they come across, that is much less likely to happen.

So where do you need parental controls? Chances are your tweens and teens are most likely to get into sticky situations when they are away from home using their phone, so the first set of parental controls you need to look into are those afforded by your cell phone manufacturer (Apple or Android, for example) and/or your cell phone carriers. Do a search online for what your specific carrier has to offer by using the name of the service and the search term “parental controls” (many of these also apply to tablets). Both cell manufacturers and cell phone carriers offer parental controls, including the ability to set content filters and disable or limit Internet access or certain apps on Web-enabled phones. Mobile controls can also allow parents to disable, limit, or monitor a child’s texting capability, and picture and video messaging.

There are also a myriad of apps for monitoring your child’s cell phone use. What you need from a parental-control app mainly depends on how old your kids are. If you're the parent of children under 12, you absolutely want to be able to block objectionable websites. If you've got teenagers, you might be ok with just monitoring instead of blocking. You might also want to see who your teens are talking to in messenger apps, or where they are late on a Friday night. And you might want to consider a service that monitors your kids' Windows and Apple devices as well as their smartphones. The best parental control apps will offer, at a minimum, a website filter, location tracking, screen-time limits including a scheduler, and an app blocker.

As far as your laptop and desktop goes, again you may want to look into what your Internet Service Provider (ISP) has to offer by doing a search on their website or by contacting them directly. Depending on what operating system you are using (Windows, Apple, Chrome, etc.), there are parental controls built in as well. Again, doing an online search for your operating system and particular concerns is going to be your best bet for finding what you need to fit your particular purpose. There are just as many apps that you can download for your computer– free and otherwise - as there are for your phones. For your computer you are looking for much the same capabilities as for your phones – a website filter, screen time limits, an app blocker, and the ability to limit certain texting and messaging services.

During the shift to remote instruction, many educators are using online proctoring services to monitor students for signs of cheating while they take traditional closed-book exams. Some students are speaking out against these services, objecting to everything from the design of the software to remarking that the whole process is a huge distraction to test taking. The University of California Berkeley has already banned online exam proctoring, with some students saying they may not have the high-speed Internet connection or living situation to make remote exams happen effectively and equitably. Of course, other students are finding ways around these safeguards, using tips and tricks they find online, such as hiding notes underneath the view of the camera or setting up a secret laptop. But as two can play at that game, so remote proctoring services are constantly coming up with countermeasures. On its website, one online proctoring service even has a job listing for a “professional cheater” to test its system. 

Remote Possibilities, a blog by veteran education technology editor Kevin Hogan, delivers down-to-earth insights and practical resources to parents who have suddenly found themselves teaching their children. Get ideas for creating fun (seriously!) teachable moments in Digital Diaries; see What’s Streaming; or find activities for young learners, elementary, and middle- and high-school students. Hogan’s brand of wit makes it a particularly enjoyable experience.

Do you have a kid interested in sports? There are a number of online resources that have been made available helping kids connect sports to math, science, and reading, for free.

The National Hockey League’s Future Goals program is offering two digital resources designed to help nurture STEM skills and encourage healthy lifestyles. Hockey Scholar, for elementary- and middle-school students, teaches about math and science through the lens of hockey. A Healthier Me, a game-based curriculum for elementary-school students, includes free lessons on nutrition, fitness and making healthy choices.

Summer Slugger, from Major League Baseball, helps fourth- and fifth-grade students practice their math and literacy skills through a baseball-themed game-based program. Originally designed to help combat summer learning loss, the 18-week curriculum has been made available early to help support remote learning. 

Houston Texans linebacker and literacy advocate Brennan Scarlett reads to students from Tiki and Ronde Barber’s book “By My Brother’s Side.” The read-aloud session is one of several in the series Texans Storytime featuring different players -- including Justin Reid and Darren Fells -- and members of the Texans organization. The series is part of the Texans’ Huddle at Home program, a collection of free digital resources for teachers and families of K-12 students. Students can participate in a reading program, math drills, a statistics challenge, short workouts with players and log their progress on an activity tracker.

Are you starting to feel like the walls are closing in? Perhaps it is time to travel virtually. CNN Underscored curated this list of virtual tours of historical sites and museums to help transport you and your kids to other places and maybe even, other times. The collection includes the Smithsonian museums, the Great Wall of China, performing arts centers around the world and more. There is even a section with highlighted items from the gift shops.

Despite assurances from experts that it is normal and ok that your kids are spending more time on digital devices in these unprecedented times, there is still a risk of digital addiction. If you want to review some strategies for weaning them away, check out this recent article in the New York Times entitled Is Your Child a Digital Addict? Here’s What You Can Do. The author discusses ways to help them step away from the screen without a battle.

Feel like your workday never ends now that you are working from home? You are not alone. Americans have added three hours to their workdays in the weeks they've been working from home, while French, Spanish and British people added two hours to their workdays, according to tracking from NordVPN. Another VPN provider, Surfshark, has seen spikes in usage from midnight to 3 a.m. as people struggle to get all their work done.

Some parents do not value remote instruction as much as they do in-person teaching, and would not want to pay the same tuition for online classes, a Facebook survey of parents by Tyton Partners found. Among parents of high-school seniors that responded to the survey, 10% said they would not enroll their child in a college that offered only online classes. How are you feeling about how your district has handled distance learning?

The Mozilla Foundation recently released a report detailing how the top 15 video-conferencing apps -- including those used by schools, such as Zoom, Google Hangouts and Microsoft Teams -- measure up when it comes to privacy and security. Of those studied, 12 met the company's minimum security standards.

How can you avoid screen time burnout when it seems like your whole life revolves around devices? Read or listen to an interview on the National Public Radio with Catherine Price,  a journalist and author of How To Break Up With Your Phone: The 30-Day Plan To Take Back Your Life about how to fight screen burnout. Since the pandemic, she's been offering new resources for finding a healthier balance with screens. In particular, she stresses figuring out how to take breaks from your digital devices.

While you might think most reading resources are offline, there are a number of digital options if you are looking for creative ways to get your kids reading. Check out these ideas to bring together literacy and technology:

• Audiobooks: Audible, perhaps the motherlode of audiobooks, is free for kids as long as schools are closed. Looking for some recommendation? A site called Imagination Soup has some Audiobook Recommendations for Kids Ages 6-12 and Teens.. An easy-to-use free app Libby/Overdrive also connects to your local library so you can easily check out ebooks and audiobooks. Unite for Literacy also has books narrated in a variety of languages. You can get a month free of animated story books at Vooks. Tumble Book Library might also have something the others don’t offer. Storybook Online offers famous actors and actresses reading picture books out loud.
• Make a Book Trailer: One idea for getting kids and family (especially grandparents) to engage more over Facetime or Zoom is to get them to read the same book and talk about it. You could take it a step further by asking your kids to make a book trailer to get others to want to read your book. Try this link to look at a collection of book trailers and suggestions for various apps to use to make a short video advertising your book. For teachers looking for creative ways to include technology into reading assignments, a trailer also makes a great alternative to a book report.
• Create a Book:  To practice those writing skills, why not have your kids write a book about something they’ve become interested in? Book Creator has great ideas on how to proceed and is free to schools affected by the pandemic. Or try this list of Best Apps for Creating Books and Storybooks for resources. This is a great way to get kids actively using technology rather than just be entertained by it.

In its latest effort to improve content transparency leading up to the US election, Facebook is adding new location markers on individual business profile posts, on both Facebook and Instagram, which will highlight where the managers of that page or account are primarily located, helping to provide additional context. That’s another tool for you and your kids to use in combatting cyberbullying and misinformation. This new transparency feature will be particularly important with the election in the fall of 2020.

Are you finding that you are playing more video games during the pandemic? How about your kids? In a column entitled “I'm Gaming My Way Through Quarantine — and That's Nothing to Feel Guilty About” from Time magazine online, Matthew Gault says playing games can be a way to compartmentalize what is going on, and can make “social distancing” feel a little more social and a little less distant. And he is not alone. Gaming is up substantially on all the provider’s networks. Experts seem to agree that as long as you are getting some exercise and finishing your chores, work, and homework, there really are no limits on gaming during these times. And if your kids seem to be playing a lot? Ask them if you can play along. It is a great way to find out what they are doing with their time and to build up some credibility in talking to them in the future about gaming.

The recent and rampant flurry of harmful misinformation about coronavirus has been labeled an “infodemic” by the World Health Organization (WHO), and there are many attempts to curb the spread. Facebook recently announced that it would begin to let users know if there were posts that they have liked, commented on, or shared that included misinformation about the coronavirus. Facebook will then point the notified user in the direction of a reliable source. Advocates who want Facebook to take the same actions for political posts say this may be a breakthrough in the battle against false information. It is important in researching this topic to understand the terms when talking about “fake news”. In the language of online security, “disinformation” means the coordinated, purposeful spread of false information, while “misinformation” refers to accidental inaccuracies. This is another conversation to have with your kids about making sure they (and we!) don’t believe everything read on the Internet.

Just because kids aren’t in school does not mean that cyberbullying is taking a rest. With an increase in kids and teens using digital platforms for personal use and online learning, kids who are prone to being bullied in school are likely to now be cyberbullied. When kids are stressed out and bored the opportunity to cyberbully can be appealing. In normal times, according to STOMP Out Bullying, 5.4 million children are afraid to go to school every day for fear of being bullied. “Imagine all those children that are now being home schooled online and afraid to sign into their accounts due to the same reason,” said Ross Ellis, founder and CEO of STOMP Out Bullying. “Children who have more free time on their hands may find additional screen time attractive and cyberbullying can become one of their activities.”

While teachers may be aware of conflicts during online learning sessions, they can only do so much to help children navigate the waters of cyberbullying. Parents need to also be vigilant to signs their children are being cyberbullied, but this can be hard in the present circumstances because some of the warning signs like depression, changes in eating habits and sleeping patterns, feelings of helplessness, and physical symptoms like headaches and upset stomach may also be reaction to being home for so long. Probably the clearest sign that something is wrong is when kids don’t want to go online, spend time on their usual social media apps, or check in with friends.

What can a parent do?

• If you don’t have one, now is the time to make a Family Internet Safety Agreement outlining the responsibilities that your kids must follow when using your home’s Internet service. Here is a sample you can use as an example to create one for your own household during the COVID-19 quarantine and beyond. And if you already have one, it is a good time to review it with your kids. The Center for Cyber Safety and Education has some free tip sheets on a variety of digital safety topics including cyberbullying
• This is a time when it is an essential to communicate with your kids and teens about their online life. Let them know that it’s okay to come to you if they are being cyberbullied. Encourage them to tell you immediately if they are being digitally harassed, cyberbullied, cyberstalked, or if they’ve been approached by a predator. Tell them you won’t be angry about anything. You just want to help them.
• Explain that cyberbullying is harmful and unacceptable. Discuss appropriate online behavior and make it clear that there will be consequences for inappropriate behavior.
• If your child does participate in cyberbullying, be willing to sit down and talk about why, and how owning up to their behavior and making an apology can go a long way in making things right again. Be prepared for the fact that your kids may tell you they thought they were only teasing or that “everyone was doing it,” but remind them that it is likely the person on the other end won’t take it that way. Ask your kids to talk to you if they feel tempted or somehow urged to do it again and search your own life and make sure you are not modeling that kind of behavior. Remind them that cyberbullying is a choice.
• If possible, try to be around when your kids are online on their phones, laptops and tablets. You don’t need to spy on them or stand over his or her shoulder, but just keep tabs on what they are doing online. This is also really good time to ban digital device use overnight and set up a charging station in the kitchen or other high traffic area where the devices will be left overnight.
• While it may not always be your favorite activity for them, allow and support your children when it comes to Skyping, Zooming and FaceTiming their friends, as well as livestreaming on their favorite apps (depending on their age, maturity, and your household rules, of course). Research has shown that socializing and connecting with their peers is essential for their continued healthy development and especially in the midst of chaos and uncertainty.

Common Sense and Survey Monkey recently polled over 800 U.S. teens to find out how they're coping with having their lives upended by the coronavirus, and what they do for connection. Not surprisingly, they're stressed out, they are worried about school and many are feeling lonely and disconnected. Texting and social media are lifesavers, but if your kids aren't texting or using social media yet, you can let them use your phone or computer to FaceTime or Zoom with a friend or relative. You can even set up regular times to video-chat with important people in their lives. Keeping these connections is vital. One interesting item from the survey is that, compared to pre-pandemic times, more kids are going directly to news organizations for information instead of learning about it from friends and family. Make sure to talk to them about vetting their sources for news.

There are a lot of great educational resources on the Internet but it is not always easy to find them, let alone vet them. Common Sense Media has set up a site called Wide Open School that features the best resources from publishers, nonprofits, and education companies, including the American Federation of Teachers, Amplify, Boys &Girls Clubs of America, Head Start, Khan Academy, National Geographic, Noggin, PBS, Scholastic, Sesame Workshop, Time for Kids, XQ Institute, and YouTube. Common Sense is curating the content on the platform and coordinating with key distribution and technology partners including Apple, Comcast, Google, Salesforce, and Zoom to ensure families and educators are aware of the resources and can access them.

Got a teen who loves poetry? The Vancouver Public Library's popular Dead Poets Reading series is expanding to YouTube and people are encouraged to make a 3-to-10 minute video of themselves reading a poem in any language. Hundreds of people have sent in poems and new videos are posted daily.

US teens have rated Snapchat, Instagram and TikTok as their favorites apps in general along with giving them the highest marks for engagement, according to a survey of 5,200 individuals in 41 states conducted by Piper Sandler. The firm's Taking Stock With Teens survey also reports that teens spent an average of 12 hours per week on social media and, while Facebook had been declining somewhat the past couple of years, it's witnessing slight rebound.