Teenage Attitudes

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YouthLearn
Helping Parents and Youth Navigate the Internet
Tony Streit, Director
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What Do We Want To Learn Today?

• What are the issues your children
• are struggling with?
• Attitude, Substance Abuse, School
• Attendance, Physical/Verbal Abuse,
• Running Away, Curfew
• What is your familiarity/comfort level with
  technology?
• Email, Surfs the web, Cell Phones, PDAs, IM,
  Blogging, Gaming, Online Communities
• What do you find useful/valuable online?
• What are your concerns about your childs use of
  technology?

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Street-Level Youth Media
Founded in 1993 Grew to serve 3,000 young
people in neighborhoods across the city
Projects aired on local television, via the
internet in festivals around the country
2001 budget of 900,000 with youth salaries more
than 25
www.street-level.org

• Mission
• Educate Chicagos young people in media arts for
  self-expression, communication social change
• Build self-esteem critical thinking for youth
  neglected by policymakers/formal learning
• Address community issues, access resources
  gain inclusion in new IT based society

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YouthLearn Activities

• Training and consultation around program design,
  teaching techniques
• Research on promising practices and trends in
  the field

• Online community offers a virtual meeting place
  -- discussion list, newsletter
•  Website serves as a repository of best practice
  resources
• YouthLearn Guide is our textbook and hands-on
  instructional tool

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Online Resources Related to Internet Safety
What might we encounter online? YouthLearn Tips
on Safety -http//www.youthlearn.org/techno/safety
1.html National Academy of Sciences Net Safe
Kids Website - http//www.nap.edu/netsafekids/ G
et Net Wise Website - http//kids.getnetwise.org
Netsmartz Website - http//www.netsmartz.org/ N
et Family News Online Community -
http//netfamilynews.org
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Tips for Dealing with Technology in the Home

• Food for thought
• Computers are sophisticated tools that require
  skill to use effectively.
• Too much of a good thing can be bad.
• Rules in real life should apply in virtual world
  as well.
• If trust/safety is an issue, keep computers out
  in the open.
• Use computers and online safety as an
  opportunity to talk about real issues.
• Be open to multiple points of view/opinions.
• Turn to others for help.

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The Risks and Challenges With Information Access

• Religious/Political Content
• Gambling
• Financial Risks
• Gaming
• Virtual Communities

• What might we encounter online?
• Sexually Explicit Content
• Graphic Violence
• Hate Groups
• Advertising and Commercialism

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Controlling Computer and Online Access

• Filtering and Blocking
• Local PC filtering software
• ISP based filters
• http//kids.getnetwise.org/tools/tool_result.php3?
  display_start1functionality_id_array5B5D93145
  2504.82116
• Why you need to be careful when making the
  decision to block access
• http//kids.getnetwise.org/tools/controversial
• Making a user agreement with your child
• Childrens Partnership Parents Guide to the
  Internet
• http//www.childrenspartnership.org/AM/Template.cf
  m?SectionHomeTEMPLATE/CM/HTMLDisplay.cfmCONTEN
  TID4687

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Youth Today Need Technology Skills to Get By

• Media/Digital Literacy is important because
• Media today takes multiple forms.
• Information comes from numerous sources, not all
  reliable.
• Youth need to know about imaging/messaging to
  fully understand intent.
• It takes experience to recognize mainstream and
  alternative media.
• Media consumption and media making relates to
  civic participation.
• Media can be used to share ones own point of
  view.
• More Media Literacy Resources are available at
• http//www.pbs.org/parents/childrenandmedia/

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The YouthLearn Initiative at EDC
Education Development Center, Inc. 55 Chapel
Street Newton, MA 02458 1.800.449.5525 www.youthle
arn.org Tony Streit tstreit_at_edc.org