Help students understand the potential dangers that exist on the Internet.

E-mail, cell phones, chat rooms, blogs, instant messages and social networking sites can invite trouble for your students from cyberbullying to more serious Internet dangers. These dangers can consist of making threats; issuing insults and slurs; and other activities that are designed to inflict harm or damage to a person's life or reputation.

Research conducted by the Crimes Against Children Research Center, NCMEC* shows:
• 1 in 7 students are sexually solicited online.
• One-third experience unwanted sexual content.

What makes socializing over the internet so intense is the veiled nature of an Internet presence. Similarly, the vast and repeated dissemination of the offensive material and lurking sexual predators over the Internet amplifies the problem. Young students whose social lives and identities are increasingly based on unanimous internet contacts and cell-phone interactions with their friends could find it difficult to escape that technology when connections and exchanges sour. And while many interacts occur over the Internet outside of school, they still come face-to-face each day on school grounds where many of them must then endure the in-person impact of Internet harassment and potential physical violence.

The three steps school administrators can take to open the lines of communication about Internet safety are:

1. Start an awarness program that helps students understand the hidden dangers on the internet.

2. Encourage positive dialogue about Internet safety.

3. Implement Internet safety education and keep parents informed of potential problems.

* National Center for Missing & Exploited Children