I hope you are well and having a good week. I can’t believe we’re in October already, I promised myself that as I approach the big ‘six zero’ next year I would be slowing down, but so far it has been 7-days-a-week working since the end of August. I’m hoping half-term comes around as quickly as September has gone! Updates
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Research – Building AI Proficient Education
We’re almost into year 4 of generative AI and yet, through no fault of schools/colleges, we are so far behind educationally. School/college leavers are walking into a new era of their lives where many initial interviews are being carried out by a chatbot, where job opportunities require AI skills, where AI proficiency isn’t a ‘nice to have’, it’s a must.
I read a paper from The Tony Blair Institute which looks at this in depth and I think it makes for an interesting read, calling for a significant overhaul in both the primary and secondary curriculum to prepare children for a world where AI is being embedded everywhere.
If you’re interested in AI, specifically how AI should be integrated into the curriculum (potentially ideas for what/how you can start embedding), I would recommend having a read of the paper which you can find HERE.
EFF – Blocking Access to Harmful Content
There’s no doubt the Online Safety Act is a contentious one with many different opinions. Personally I welcome it, it may not be perfect but given that prior to this we had nothing it’s a step in the right direction.
I read an article from the Electronic Frontier Foundation (EFF) this week who argue that blocking access to harmful content will not protect children. The EFF lean towards privacy rather than child protection, which is an age-old argument that has never had any weight; the two should work together.
Personally I disagree with pretty much everything they say in this article, but to give balance I think this is an excellent piece where you could draw out statements from the article to be used for classroom discussion/debate, for example:
- Age verification systems lead to less privacy – are mandatory age verification systems a tool for surveillance or a means to protect children and young people? Is there a balance? Is this an erosion of privacy? Do students agree or disagree that age verification systems should be in place? Why?
You can find the article HERE
Instagram Safety Tools – Do They Work?
Meta, as well as others, have been rolling out more and more safety tools in the last year as legislation around the world is starting to hold tech companies to account for allowing potential harms on their services. Over the coming weeks a new tool is being rolled out by Meta (onto Instagram) which bans under 16’s from live-streaming.
But do these tools work?
According to some recent studies, the answer is no. In fact, according to a Meta whistleblower, around two thirds of the safety tools were found to be ineffective stating, “although Meta consistently makes promises about how its teen accounts protect children from sensitive or harmful content, inappropriate contact, harmful interactions, these safety tools are mostly ineffective, unmaintained, quietly changed or removed.”
This is really damning: it’s a concern for parents who rely on these tools, it’s a concern for professionals who teach young people about these so-called safety tools.
You can read a brief report in The Guardian HERE, the full report ‘Teen Accounts, Broken Promises’ can be found HERE.
Free Resources – Anti-Bullying Week
For Parents – A Guide to navigating Social Media Safely
This is a fantastic guide from the Center for Countering Digital Hate (CCDH), it goes into lots of detail and I’m sure parents will find it interesting and useful. The guide goes into areas such as:
- How social media platforms and algorithms operate.
- The various types of harms that children may experience.
- Practical advice and guidance.
- Supporting resources.
You can download the guide HERE.
Weekly Update to your Inbox
Online Safety Pro
Staff, parent and governor online safety training.
- Annual staff, parent and governor training (pre-recorded videos).
- Half-termly staff and parents updates (video for staff, PDF newsletter for parents.
- 12 month subscription – 1 single low cost per school (not per person).
- All written and produced by Alan Mackenzie, an online safety specialist for over 17 years.
- Discounts for multi-school or MAT purchases.