KS3 Computing/Safety

eSafety
eSafety is an important topic to cover early on in Year 7, often in the first term. With the widespread use of social media and mobile phones amongst teenagers, it is critical students are made aware of the dangers they may be exposed to online.

eSafety is an ever-evolving subject - we simply don't know how the next generation of online dangers will present. For now, this topic must introduce students to the dangers of:
 * Cyberbullying
 * Privacy
 * Fraud
 * Grooming
 * Exploitation
 * Indecent content

Ideas for the classroom
Students enjoy group discussions, exploring these topics together. Introduce an example scenario (e.g. newspaper article, video clip, etc) and then direct the discussion based on this. Links to example scenarios are in the following section.

It is then a good idea to give students creative licence to create their own poster/presentation/fact sheet warning younger students about the potential dangers in a specific area (choose one at a time) and what they can do to prevent/avoid/react to such dangers. Creating a digital product will give each student the opportunity to explore the issue for themselves in a fun way.

Useful resources online
The following two sites have powerful resources to use as focal points for discussion in the classroom:
 * thinkuknow
 * CEOP

Make sure to check out the policy for social networking and accessing online resources in your school. Other tools which can be fun to use whilst exploring eSafety issues are:


 * Classtools.net (Fakebook)
 * Edmodo
 * Kidblog
 * Wiki spaces for education