Embedded Files
As an educator, I am often asked how to filter what our students experience online. Unfortunately, there isn't a simple answer. Perhaps the best answer is to use a multi-layered approach to protect our younger population.
Protect Young Eyes (PYE) is an organization that serves as a tremendous resource dedicated to helping parents become digital superheroes! Specifically, I would like to spotlight PYE's "Five Layers of Digital Protection" pyramid.
Let's take a closer look at each layer.
RELATIONSHIPS
RELATIONSHIPS
Relationships are the foundation of digital protection.
Protect Young Eyes strongly recommends not spying on your child's phone or keeping secrets from them. This may seem counter-intuitive, but consider this: the goal of digital protection is not to control our children. The goal is to raise young adults who are responsible and capable of making their own wise decisions online. In other words, the ultimate goal is not to control but to teach.
You may tell your child, "We need to be able to trust you, and in return, you can trust us to always be honest with you." You may also say, "We want you to be aware that we plan to look at your phone from time to time," or "We expect access to all of your accounts." Whatever your intentions, communicate those expectations with your child so that trust is maintained both ways.
Build trust not to control, but to teach.
"We filter because we love. We filter because we don’t trust the internet. Not because we don’t trust our kids." - Protect Young Eyes
WIFI ROUTER
WIFI ROUTER
The router is the most important tool in your home to safeguard against the dangers of the internet.
Does the term "router" secretly intimidate you? If you are confused by what a router does, I suggest that you read this article from Protect Young Eyes:
Here is an excerpt:
I’m So Confused by my Router!
“Most parents freeze up when you ask them about their router. “Is that the same as a modem? Haven’t touched it since my internet provider gave us one last year. It’s behind the couch somewhere.”
And yet, at PYE, we believe your router is the MOST important digital device in any home because so many devices are connected to it! In this post, we want to demystify the router, increase your confidence, and point toward a few solutions.”
PYE recommends using a router to filter all devices in your home. This can be done by using a router with filters built-in or via an external device that plugs into your router. The article mentions products you may be interested in researching for your specific home needs.
In summary, a router can give you the biggest "bang for your buck" by filtering all other devices connected to it in your home. Routers don't have to break the bank, and they can provide a substantial layer of digital protection for your family.
PARENTAL CONTROLS ON EACH DEVICE
PARENTAL CONTROLS ON EACH DEVICE
Once you have built trust with your child and have installed a router that filters, the third most effective layer is to filter via parental controls on each device.
For iOS devices (including iPhones and iPads), there are various ways to filter including blocking specific apps and restricting the settings for downloads. Visit Apple's Parental Control page for an exhaustive list of parental control options.
To start, below are seven simple steps to filtering a web browser on an iOS device:
Click the Settings app on any iOS device.
2. Click "Screen Time."
3. Click "Content & Privacy Restrictions"
4. Toggle "Content & Privacy Restrictions" to ON.
Click "Content Restrictions."
5. Click "Web Content."
6. Select "Limit Adult Websites."
In addition to "Limit Adult Websites," Protect Young Eyes also recommends adding the following websites to the "Never Allow" list:
Never Allow List
Never Allow List
Gibiru.com (search engine)
Yandex.com, Yandex.ru, and Yandex.com.tr (Russian search engines)
Dogpile.com (search engine)
DuckDuckGo (bad Safe Search)
Startpage.com (search engine)
Reddit.com (explicit forum)
Quora.com (explicit forum)
Instagram.com (full search from the web)
VK.com (social media)
Pinterest.com (inappropriate content)
Joyreactor.com (porn in memes)
Archive.org (screenshots of the web)
Pholder.com (porn in memes)
Twitter.com (inappropriate content)
Omegle.com (random adult cams)
Chatroulette.com (random adult cams)
Flickr.com (explicit photos)
Tumblr.com (explicit photos)
Thechive.com (explicit content)
Toomics.com (anime explicit)
For Android devices, you will need to use Google Family Link to set parental controls. This article from Google Support explains how.
Additionally, here is a helpful video from Family Tech to get you started:
Note: If a child is over 13 years old, he or she may opt out of Family Link. However, you will be notified via email if your child has opted out. Feel free to withhold his or her inheritance if your child insists on not rejoining (sort of kidding).
LOCATION
LOCATION
Stay public.
No screens in the bedroom.
No screens in the bathroom.
No screens in any area of the home that is not public to all family members.
Place desktop computers where the screen is facing outward.
Devices should only be used in "open" areas of the house. This includes CAC-issued Chromebooks and TVs in the bedroom. Screens should never be private.
Stay public.
CONTROLS ON INDIVIDUAL APPS
CONTROLS ON INDIVIDUAL APPS
Finally, at the top of the pyramid lies controlling the settings inside individual apps. Not that app filtering isn't helpful, but it is more tedious and often less effective than the above approaches.
Still, there is some benefit to filtering specific apps that your child enjoys. Protect Young Eyes has compiled a list of the most popular youth apps and how to filter them.
SUMMARY
SUMMARY
The best approach to safeguard children from the dangers of the internet is to implement layers of protection.
I hope the Protect Young Eyes "Five Layers of Digital Protection" pyramid has provided direction and a starting point as you continue to raise children in a digital era. Don't feel as though you need to accomplish every layer at once. Even just one additional layer can make a significant difference in the well-being of a child.
Look at you becoming a "Techie Parent!"
Page updated
Report abuse