ClickThinking : Personal Safety on the Internet: Page 6

Internet Safety: A Cross-Curricular Issue

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Integrating Internet Concepts

The Internet has ceased to be solely a computing topic. As a communication and research tool for learning, all aspects of the curriculum, whether subject or topic specific or cross-curricular, are enriched by its use. Nor is its use solely the province of secondary pupils. Increasingly, pupils in primary schools are accessing the Internet and, with adult support, children in pre-school centres may also make use of its facilities.

Teachers of all subjects and ages will find the Internet a useful means of meeting existing curricular requirements.

Personal Safety Curriculum

Both the 5-14 Environmental Studies and the Personal and Social Development Guidelines require schools to have a Personal Safety Curriculum. Government further reinforces them as follows:

"...all education authorities should have in place a personal safety programme promoting pupils' skills knowledge and understanding to assist them in living safely and to feel empowered to reject inappropriate behaviours"
A Commitment to Protect (SWSI The Stationery Office:1997)

Personal Safety Programmes provide a framework to deal with some of the ethical and personal development aspects of Internet use. For example, Keeping Yourself Safe is an important aspect of the PSE/PSD curriculum, and Internet related matters could be incorporated when covering issues such as dealing with strangers, feeling intimidated and developing relationships.

"The skills needed for child protection and personal safety must be unambiguously linked to the contexts in which a child may have to apply those skills"
Promoting Personal Safety and Child Protection in the Curriculum
Mellor, Phillips, Walker and Munn, Scottish Executive 1998

The chart below shows how Internet activities can be successfully matched to the PSE/PSD curricular areas relating to a young person's ability to cope with risks.

Activity	Skills	Knowledge and understanding	Values
sending and replying to emails	communicating	relationships	openness and honesty
forwarding an unpleasant email to the ISP	assertiveness	rights and responsibilities self	respect for others
determining whether to view a dubious website	decision-making	self	self esteem
considering which personal information to provide, and to whom	assessing risk	relationships rights and responsibilities	respecting differences
using email or a chat room to solve a group problem	interpersonal skills	self relationships	respecting differences respect for others
using a search engine or a newsgroup	identifying sources of help	self	respecting differences

Internet focused resources

As Internet use becomes thoroughly integrated into the curriculum, new areas for classroom discussion will arise and an increasing number of learning resources will focus on Internet issues rather than the mechanics of Internet use. (See The Cloakroom, Resources)

the recommendations

All pupils should understand the reasoning behind the school's Acceptable Use Policy.
Any teaching or learning situation that uses, or refers to, the Internet needs to be underpinned by the personal safety issues referred to in this booklet.
Pupils should hear and experience the same standards of Internet use from all staff.
Curricular Internet-mapping exercises such as the one above should be explored for all aspects of the curriculum.
Internet implications should be included when promoting general personal safety issues across all curricular areas.
Teaching and learning resources that recognise and reinforce the positive role of the Internet should be identified or developed, and their use encouraged. One example is the range of CD-ROMs produced by Grampian Police.
The ClickThinking Resource Pack should be used as a vehicle to introduce or progress personal development issues.
A school's Personal Safety Programme and the Personal and Social Education/Development curriculum provide ideal frameworks which should be used to engage learners in the issues surrounding online safety techniques.