Internet+Safety

**Cybersmart: Safeguarding Your Stuff, My Stuff, Our Stuff**

 * DESCRIPTION**

The digital world has invaded nearly every aspect of society, and each new day seems to bring a new technology that integrates the Internet with some new device and some new aspect of life. Internet safety today is more important that ever, yet as the online universe becomes more integrated with daily life, larger segments of the population may be overlooking the need for security. For this assignment we were tasked with selecting a lesson plan on Internet safety and writing a short analysis. We were required to select a lesson that was of interest to us based on our current work or school environment, and asked to consider the lesson based on its importance to our individual situation. We also examined the article //Meeting of the Minds// which details some of the generational differences in opinion about the digital world, and incorporated those observations into the lesson plan analysis. The lesson plan analysis can be found here:


 * SELECTION PROCESS**

The lesson plan I selected, //Safeguarding Your Stuff, My Stuff, Our Stuff// deals specifically with cyber-security and different ways that people can protect themselves. The original lesson plan can be found here. Though the lesson is geared toward high school students, the topics are important to anyone who uses computers and the online world. I specifically selected this lesson because it applies to both my career in the corporate world and my work as an adjunct at a university. College students in the classes I teach are constantly online, and a reminder about the importance of security is always important. Students may tend to think they are already knowledgeable enough, or worse feel that they are "invulnerable" to online attacks. In my experiences in corporate America, issues of cyber-security are generally left to the "computer experts" (ie: the IT department.) Corporate computers are generally set up with passwords, firewalls, virus protection, etc. before the end-user ever clicks a mouse button. The employee begins to feel that they are completely safe because someone else is watching over them. In my career, I have rarely seen any significant employee education about Internet security. Certainly basics are covered, such as not revealing your passwords to other people, but in general security is left to be handled by the IT department. This "corporate malaise" is exactly why some education in this regard is necessary. The materials in the lesson plan, while well suited for high school or college students, could easily be adapted for use in the corporate environment.


 * REFLECTION**

One of the more interesting aspects of this assignment I found was the content of the article //Meeting of the Minds//. The article shows how teens and adults respond to different issues of digital life and Internet security. What was significant to me was the different perceptions about the specifics of the lesson plan I selected. While older people might be less knowledgeable about the technical requirements of computer safety and what should be done, they seemed to be more willing to recognize the seriousness of the problem. Adults in the article tended to acknowledge and respect that there were online dangers in regard to security, though they were more ignorant of the subject. Conversely, the younger people seemed to know more about what problems the problems are and what tools and technical knowledge are necessary, but were less concerned about the issues. The younger people seemed to feel more at home in the online world, and hence felt less vulnerable to attack. I think both of these angles provide interesting viewpoints, and would lead to very different ways in which the lesson needs to be taught based on the audience. While adults in corporate America would need to be taught the basics of cyber-security at first before moving into more technical aspects, they would generally be trusted to accept the gravity of Internet safety. With younger people an educator could delve into the technical aspects more quickly, but would have to spend greater time demonstrating the seriousness of the subject.


 * REFRENCES**

Global Kids, Inc., The GoodPlay Project at Harvard University’s Project Zero, Common Sense Media. (October 2009). //Meeting of Minds: Cross-Generational Dialogue on the Ethics of Digital Life.// Retrieved from []

Cybersmartcurriculum.org. (2010). //Safeguarding Your Stuff, My Stuff, Our Stuf.// Retrieved from []

Bobek Ltd. (2007). //Banner Images//. Retrieved from []