It is important for us as educators (eventually) to respect copyright and fair use rules because our students will model our behavior. We “have a responsibility and legislative mandate to model ethical, legal, and appropriate respect for US copyright law.” (Fryer) We can teach our students about this by giving them basic guidelines to follow when they are working on a project. The Technology & Learning Chart is a fantastic tool for us to use. It is precise, clear, and it will not overwhelm students with too much information.
Online safety refers to the act of keeping our students safe from online predators. Predators are people who wish to contact, harm, or use a student for their own purposes without the consent of the student or the parents. Sexual predators are the most heinous of these predators and we as educators must remain vigilant in protecting our students. We need to teach them to always use a cyber name when they are online and NEVER reveal personal information such as real name, address, hometown, or phone number to someone they have never met. One website we visited in our homework assignment taught kids to get offline if anything ever felt even a little “creepy”. I think that is an excellent standard to go by: Creepy=Goodbye! Cyberbullying refers to online bullying and usually involves students and their peers. Mean and nasty remarks online can have a terrible effect, as we all have seen. Unlike a verbal attack in person, this attack is now in cyberspace forever for all to see.
I learned a lot this week about the boundaries for all students when it comes to copyright laws. I really appreciate having the Copyright and Fair Use Guidelines for Teachers. This website is a great resource for us to have in our repatoire.
