It's amazing to hear a policymaker say this: "We cannot, and should not, put our children and youngsters in a digital glass cage, hoping they will never encounter any harmful or illegal content online. This will simply not work." That was Neelie Kroes, European Commission vice president and the EU's top legislator for digital issues, in a speech marking International Missing Children's Day (May … [Read more...] about Top EU policymaker on trusting our online kids
digital citizenship
Survival of the most cooperative?
Is evolution evolving? A column by David Brooks in the New York Times points to a growing number of books about a fresh take on evolution. Move over "survival of the fittest," make room for survival of the most cooperative – or maybe survival of the kindest, or the thriving of the kindest, or of the most collaborative? In one such book, The Righteous Mind, the authors "argue that natural selection … [Read more...] about Survival of the most cooperative?
Education as art form: Winners of the ‘What’s Your Story?’ contest
The grand-prize-winning video – produced by Mark Eshleman and performed by Tyler Joseph – is a visual poem about a real-life choice we all continually need to make online. On a spare set with a black line of electrical tape laid down the center of the concrete floor, and with a taped plus sign on one side of the line and a minus sign on the other, Tyler performs his poem, which reads in … [Read more...] about Education as art form: Winners of the ‘What’s Your Story?’ contest
Virtual world ‘mall’ now has online-safety ‘store’
Everloop, a new social site aimed at kids 8-13, is not just another virtual world. Or social network site. It's not a kids' Facebook or alternative to Whyville.net or LEGO Universe, contrary to what's being reported (see Mashable). But it's also not just an online space. What it is depends on who's looking at it. To kids and parents, it's like a virtual-world and/or social-network mall that's … [Read more...] about Virtual world ‘mall’ now has online-safety ‘store’
‘What’s Your Story?’: Video contest for digital citizens
I have a bias because I'm a judge, but I love this contest because it turns digital video producers 13+ into digital-citizenship educators (and teen educators usually have considerable credibility with their peers). The international contest, TrendMicro's "What's Your Story," invites teens to produce and submit a video for one of three broad categories: "Being a Good Online Citizen," "Using a … [Read more...] about ‘What’s Your Story?’: Video contest for digital citizens