A Note on Control and Children

Control on the internet has become a large issue in contemporary society because it is perceived as a medium for free speech. Many users of the internet are aghast at the concept of government control of the internet. However, total lack of government control is not a desirable method to any one either. The government regulates contracts and the enforcement of them as well as any legal or commercial disputes that may be produced over the internet.

Despite the backlash against government internet control over adult use, there has been a wave of parents who want restrictions and limitations placed on children's use of the internet. Because children are seen as vulnerable and in need of protection, people feel that children should be subject to special treatment. Laws would protect them so that they will not be exposed to adult situations that are beyond their ability to handle. Thus, the federal law for children on the internet was passed.

This law explicitly details how children's sites should be governed and what restrictions must be in place to make the site a "safe" environment for children. It is supposed to protect children.

Federal law governing the internet is a good idea, especially with children because there are a plethora of websites on the internet that are not appropriate for children to visit. Furthermore, the law will protect them from sexual predators and allow them to have a positive experience of the internet. Though children can seek out racy sites, adult content should not be exposed to unsolicited children. We can't protect them from everything, but I believe it is important to protect them from things that are unnecessary.

-Jessica Cha

The Generation Gap

While conducting my research, I came across an interesting issue: what parents actually know about the internet. Teenagers, especially those between the ages of 11-16, have grown up with the internet. In fact, many of them responded in an interview that they could not imagine life without it. This early exposure and daily use of the internet by teens, and preteens, have left them extremely proficient in navigating the online world.

Parents, however, are far behind their children. Despite the software claiming to prevent adware, spyware, and graphic websites from being accessed by children, parents know relatively little about the internet and what can be accessed on it. Most parents have given up and are allowing children free reign of the internet as long as they promise not to purchase anything on the internet and look at pornography. They trust controls on the websites and the teen's own moral judgment when navigating the internet.

Growing research has pointed that this may be especially dangerous. Children often lie on waiver forms and applications for use of a social networking site because they want to see what only adults are supposedly able to use. It is the prohibited activity that, once again, is turning children to engaging in dangerous activities. The internet can't, as of yet, make one prove that they are of a certain age. It assumes that one is telling the truth when subscribing to certain services.

So, where is all this going? To an internet-savvy generation, the internet is another place for them to be and use at will. They use it for everything: schoolwork, play, and social networking. To teens, the internet is another medium of communication that is just as intimate as a phone call. It allows them the facade to be an adult in a world where an adult is the only person that is able to make decisions. With the growing discrepancy in knowledge about the internet between teens and parents, it is hard to say how much parents can control their children from running rampant on the internet. Is it safe to let these kids run rampant or are they just having fun?

-Jessica Cha

Children and Internet Use

My group and I are looking at children and internet use. It's amazing to me because the use of internet and technology in general has changed so much, since we were kids. (Which is not even THAT long ago!) Kids today are using social networking sites, playing a bunch of video games and Disney even has virtual worlds specifically for kids. I was actually talking to one of my best friends this weekend and she was telling me that her cousin who is in the 5th grade has a cell phone and sent her a text a few days ago. I had to beg my parents to get me a cell phone and this was when I was in the 8th grade! Yes, time has definitely changed. 

I think it is wonderful how advanced technology has become, but in a way, it freaks me out a bit. Children using various websites and being exposed to SO much was unheard of a few years ago. I really think that parents totally have the right to be over protective of their children when it comes to internet use and they should be keeping an eye out when it comes to their online activity. This article that I read on CNN is about how Myspace kicked off 90,000 sex offenders from their website. Yes, 90,000!! If I were a parent, I would be horrified to know that my kids were potentially talking to networking with these people. I think children are being exposed to too much. 

Our group is looking into why children (preteens - mostly between the age of 10-14) use the internet. We are looking into what sites they use, and what their motives are when they visit these sites. We have started doing some research and are finding some pretty interesting data so this research is going well so far. 

We worry now about the kids of this generation, but I wonder sometimes, how things will be when we are parents and we are raising our kids. A bit scary, right? 

-Miko 

Video games good for children~!

I found this article on yahoo and I remembered that there was a group that was doing something about children... but I could not remember if it was a SNS or a gaming genre...

This article talk about a study that shows that video games are good for developing strategy, creativity, memorization of facts and other vital skills. It brought me back to our discussion of how on the internet the young can teach the old and how there is no real sense of age status... meaning.. just because a person is older that that person has to teach the others...

the only part of this article that made me sad was the suggestion that parents limit their children's gaming time...

The last line was also interesting to consider... that the average gamer in Europe is 33

Hope this helps~