Recommendations for Parents The Massachusetts Aggression Reduction Center Bridgewater State College Copyright 2008 © Elizabeth K. Englander

All recommendations are based on….. Research conducted at MARC Research conducted elsewhere Fieldwork conducted by MARC with children, faculty, school administrators, and professionals working with children Copyright Elizabeth K. Englander

Recommendations about parental controls on a child’s computer MARC lists software. Parents should evaluate software for themselves. Software that permits you to see everything that your child types is recommended (e.g., McGruff) Don’t sneak parent controls – tell your child that you will be looking at what they do online, because your most important role is to keep them safe. While all computers should be in a public area of your house, this alone is not enough. You need to see what your child is doing online and your child needs to learn from you that the internet is not a private place. Copyright Elizabeth K. Englander

Issues regarding cell phone usage by children Recall why you gave your child a cell phone. Most parents do this so they can contact them for safety reasons. By default, most cell phones today arrive with messaging, cameras, and internet access enabled. Taking photos in some contexts, and recording voices without permission, is a CRIME in Massachusetts. Most kids don’t know this or don’t believe they personally could ever be charged. Copyright Elizabeth K. Englander

Problems we see regarding cell phone usage by children Children under 15 report overwhelmingly high numbers of abusive texting via cell phones Children under 15, with internet access on their cell phone, have the capacity to instantly upload photos to the internet without any possibility of the parent knowing Cell phones do keep a record of texts but they are easily erased by the child – practically speaking it is impossible to track what your child texts Copyright Elizabeth K. Englander

Recommendations about cell phone usage by children Children under 15 should not be using messaging technology Children under 15 should not have access to the internet via their cell phones It is fine to give children cell phones, provided the phones have the restrictions above and the numbers are checked regularly You can put these limits on a child’s cell phone by calling your cell phone provider Copyright Elizabeth K. Englander

Recommendations about online game playing by children Different games feature different security devices. See our online download, “No child left online” for guidance about security for different ages. Games which feature “free typing” (i.e., when a child is able to chat by typing in the text freely) tend to have more cyberbullying. Parental security (see Rec’s about Parental Control software) will always let you see what your children type. Copyright Elizabeth K. Englander

What do children need to know? Everything they do online “counts.” A threat is a crime and no one will care if you think it’s a joke. No matter what the “privacy” settings are, ANYTHING you put online can potentially be seen and put in a public area. Think before you post. You cannot, with 100% certainty, delete ANYTHING from the internet. It may be archived, copied, etc., and seen again in the future or by people you didn’t intend. Post less rather than more. Sometimes things posted SEEM innocent but come back to cause trouble for people. Don’t go to the computer when you’re mad. It’s tempting to use it to take revenge but ultimately it makes YOU look bad. Copyright Elizabeth K. Englander

Questions? Free downloads & info: (508) Copyright 2008 © Elizabeth K. Englander