e-Safety

I've just done some research on e-Safety in schools I wanted to look over. I found some really useful websites I could refer to for further advice on these issues, I've included them below:

http://www.bbc.co.uk/cbbc/topics/stay-safe
http://support.securus-software.com/user/71/281667.pdf
http://www.theschoolwebsite.com/healthandsafety.html

Who is responsible for e-Safety in schools?

• It is the responsibility of all members of staff in school to uphold a responsible attitude towards e-Safety. however, it seems common practice to have a designated e-Safety co-ordinator within the school, who monitors issues regarding e-Safety within the school and monitors the implementations put in place to keep the children safe.

What are the key issues regarding e-Safety in schools?

• Contact: children need to be protected from being vulnerable to making connections with strangers who may want to exploit them in some way via chat rooms, blogs and social media, and be made aware of how they can keep themselves safe in these realms outside the classroom and still be able to make the best use of them.

• Security: children should be educated about what information they should and shouldn't give away and what sources are safe and reliable to download from and which may contain viruses.

• Content: schools need to ensure that children are unable to access sites which are inappropriate or offensive due to their content.

• Cyber Bullying: this is an increasingly used form of bullying and needs to be discussed and made visible with the children, and policies related to how to deal with cyber bullying done on computers in and outside the school should be established.

How are parents and carers informed about e-Safety? Where can parents find out about health and safety issues regarding their children's use of the internet?

I found a site which gives advice to parents with regards to their children's e-Safety at home and how that bleeds into the classroom:

http://www.e-learningfoundation.com/e-safety

Other than online advice from sources like these, parents should be informed about their children's e-Safety within school through the school's policies.

What are the rules about photos of children on a school website?

This seems to vary depending on the school. But the consensus seems to be that children, if featured in photographs, should be in groups, with their names either anonymous or only first names included. 

How long should you allow a child to work on a PC (in health and safety terms)?

I couldn't find an definitive answer! But I would assume an hour or so is more than enough, as it seems most ICT lessons are planned in this sort of time frame in the schools I have worked in.

It is clear from looking at these aspects of e-Safety that as a teacher I will need to know my schools policies and implementations to ensure e-Safety, and remember the importance of educating the children about how to use the internet safely and sensibly.