Data: Public and Private

Not a day goes by in the developed world when some form of interaction or transaction requires the sharing of personal information. We all take informed decisions about the information we wish to share - often our name, date of birth, address and contact numbers are high on the list. Increasingly, purchasing goods and services on the internet or join social networking sites will also require an email address too.

An increasing concern amongst parents and carers as well as educationalists is the apparent lack of awareness amongst children and young people about the boundary between private data and public data. Often, they appear all too willing to share what many would consider to be private data and information about themselves without understanding the short and long term consequences.

Social networks in particular have attracted a lot of attention recently as they become increasingly popular. However, as many have discovered, it is often very difficult to remove private information because it very quickly forms part of the public domain. Sometimes the facility to edit or remove data and information is extremely difficult after the event. In addition, search engines efficiently trawl and cache information from web pages - creating a secondary source or archive which is readily accessible to anyone, anywhere at anytime.

Just as in real life, we all have to think carefully about sharing our private information. Many children and young people need help and guidance to fully appreciate and understand the boundary between "private" and "public" when sharing electronic data and information. They need the confidence to act decisively before sharing private data and avoid this becoming embedded in the public arena for many years to come.

The challenge for parents, carers and educators would seem to be:

How is it best to support and help children and young people in making decisions about sharing private data and information in our increasingly "virtual world"?

Information literacy

Everyone, everywhere makes use of the ubiquitous search engines to find and locate a wide range of information via the internet. The algorithms driving the listing of web content and search routines are very powerful and, above all, quick.

In educational settings, searching and locating information is a pre-requisite of the personalised learning agenda but developing the capacity of learners does not seem to feature highly, especially for children and young people. Often, the learner searches with just a few key words which, in turn, lead to an overwhelming and, sometimes, frustrating list of possibilities.

Where effective learners use of information literacy strategies they display cognitive and transferable skills - problem solving, evaluation and communication skills. The key to effective use of search engines in educational settings is for learners to apply such skills and associated information expertise in a systematic way.

There would seem, therefore, a clear role for developing at the very least awareness of information literacy. In the UK, information literacy is defined by the Chartered Institute of Library and Information Professionals as:

"Information literacy is knowing when and why you need information, where to find it, and how to evaluate, use and communicate it in an ethical manner."

For educators, a useful starting point on this topic is the Information Literacy Website which features a good range of valuable resources and associated links, materials and links to other websites. These include a small number of case studies about the use of information literacy in schools, public libraries and higher education.

Using search engines to "turn up" the most useful information in the most accurate and efficient way via information literacy strategies is essential in our fast moving world. As educators, do we pay sufficient attention to sharing and using information literacy strategies with our anytime, anywhere learners?

Online Safety in the Virtual World

With the increasing popularity of Web 2.0 technologies such as social networks, the ubiquitous chat rooms and message services as well as other online products, it is encouraging to see that steps are being taken to advise children and young people about their online safety.

In the UK, The Child Exploitation and Online Protection Centre (CEOP) has designed some programmes to support teachers, parents and carers in this important area. The centre works to catch paedophiles, many of whom use the online products that have become popular with many children and young people.

The latest programme - Thinkuknow CyberCafe - is targeted at children aged 8-11 years of age and covers a wide range of internet and text related activities. This follows the successful launch and uptake of a similar programme targeted at young people aged 12 upwards in secondary schools. The website (registration required) also provides access to a resource area for teachers and others working with children and young people, with plans to introduce support materials for use with younger children.

Whist schools take many steps to eliminate access to inappropriate websites and material, there is always the concern amongst teachers, parents and that children and young people might access unsuitable material or participate in these online packages without realising potential dangers.

CEOP has produced a useful list of tips for children to follow:

• Don't give your real name on gaming sites
• Best not to have anyone on your IM (instant messaging) list that you don't know in the real world
• You can block people in IM and chat areas
• Best not to meet people you meet online, they might not be who they say they are
• Tell an adult you trust if an online friend asks to meet you
• Report a contact to CEOP if you think they might be an adult

There is no doubt that Web 2.0 technologies on the internet offer many creative learning possibilities for children and young people to explore and research a wide range of information as well as derive enjoyment through use of interactive learning activities. The challenge for educationalists everywhere is to provide and promote a safe environment and encourage anytime, anywhere learners to follow guidance so as to help protect themselves.

Succession planning

Whenever there is specific expertise amongst educators within any educational organisation, there is always the need to consider succession planning to ensure there is continuity of experience and provision for children and young people.

Over the past two years, we have selected and listed over 400 podcast channels in our podcast directory, over 80 from schools. During this time we have noticed some interesting trends. Many podcasts from schools are published on a regular basis; for example on either a weekly or monthly cycle. Some publish podcasts on an occasional basis whilst others produce a series of podcasts for just a limited period.

During a recent review of school podcasts listed in our directory, where podcasts were produced for only a limited period a number of factors emerged:

• podcasting was a short burst of activity related to a specific curriculum topic or development of ICT skills;
• the teacher with the expertise and/or interest in educational podcasting had moved on to another post (some may also migrate into education support services);
• podcast production relied upon expertise and support obtained from an external source;
• technical problems arose in producing podcasts or maintaining the necessary ICT infrastructure.

Of these, the most common factor was the teacher leaving the school - effectively taking the educational podcasting knowledge and expertise with them. This would seem to underline the importance of a policy for succession planning, especially for the small school or organisation. Whatever podcasting expertise there is amongst the staff team, some action to share this expertise more widely would seem a sensible option. For example:

• providing effective in-service or professional development of other teachers and adults;
• developing the confidence and expertise of the children and young people themselves.

Should we not be investing in effective succession planning strategies?

Learning Platforms

A previous post highlighted the VLE conundrum - when is a VLE not a VLE. Within the UK the spectre of VLEs in schools and colleges was, at one time, clear. Nowadays the buzzword is all about "learning platforms" so is this just another case of "re-inventing the wheel" or is it something more profound?

If you are wanting to know more, a range of information and some publications on this topic are now available on the Becta website in the UK. These include:

• Learning platforms and personalised learning: an essential guide (a PDF download);
• What is a learning platform?
• What are the main benefits of a learning platform?
• Funding for your learning platform
• Providing a personalised learning space
• Preparing for a learning platform
  
• Functional requirements and technical specifications (file download in Word and PDF)
• Learning platform case studies

Browsing through this material provides some insight into current developments in the UK and benefits for teachers and educators, students and pupils as well as leaders and managers.

Whatever perspective you are from, this information should help you become more informed but don't expect to find all the answers!

Wikipedia and student research

Writing in the Education Guardian this week, John Sutherland discusses the use of Wikipedia as a resource for research and the potential pitfalls of assuming all content is authorative. He makes the points well and goes on to highlight the advantages and disadvantages of this kind of resource for any form of research activity by students.

The debate about the content of Wikipedia has been running for a while. Like all "open" sources of information on the internet, there has always been the possibility that entries from contributing authors may be unreliable and biased.

In his piece, John Sutherland highlights the key and invaluable role of an author in the "wiki" enterprise and he argues conincingly that teachers should establish clear protocols for their students so they are aware that such content may be unbalanced and lack authenticity.

This is another timely reminder about a key role for all educators involved with new technologies. We all need to ensure that today's e-learners use such sources with a "wise head"!

E-Safety and E-Learning

The advantages and disadvantages of emerging Web 2.0 technologies for effective and personalised learning are being identified every day. As educators, one concern that we all share is the need to ensure a sensible approach so that learners, whether young or old, are safe when online. The key question is this:

• How can we develop effective policy and practice on e-safety for e-learning?

Rightly, many different groups including policy makers, educators, parents, carers and interest groups are becoming increasingly concerned at the way in which social networking websites are being exploited by unscrupulous people. Children and vulnerable young people are most at risk. In the US, the "Deleting Online Predators Act 2006" is proposing to remove the problem by banning such websites (Download PDF). In effect, the consequence of such an action would be to remove many of the valuable e-learning sources that are currently being used with many learners.

The Association of Colleges NILTA - the voice of the Further Education sector for ICT and e-learning in the UK - has raised concerns about the route to censorship in a recent post "DOPA, social networks and keeping young people safe". In particular, they emphasise the impact this would have on the development of online learning and for disadvantaged groups.

"In addition to commercial ownership, the bill defines social network sites in terms of those which elicit personal information, include a personal profile, support blogging or journals, and enable communication amongst users" (AoC NILTA, 2006).

Within educational communities, applying such a definition would simply result in sites such as Blogger falling directly into this category. This and many other similar sites are already being used effectively by educators to develop imaginative, effective and supervised learning activities for both children and young people. Removing access to such sites within the managed learning environment of a school or college would prevent some young people and their educators from particpating in carefully planned e-learning programmes. Without private access to the internet this could also further aggravate the "digital divide".

There are very genuine worries about the kind of information and material that is readily accessible and can be shared via social networking sites. Whilst organisations such as the Child Exploitation and Online Protection Centre are undertaking important activities in this area, the real dangers and potential risks for personal safety and well-being are a concern of us all. BECTA provides some good resource material about e-safety.

The essential task is to ensure an effective strategy for e-safety within learning communities. All young people, educators, parents, carers and communities need to accept responsibility and act accordingly, promoting understanding amongst children and young people about the benefits and pitfalls of social networking technologies in our digital age.