Chapter 7 Reflection

I think the internet can be a significantly useful and almost essential to using computers in the classroom with students. The amount of resources available on the internet is unimaginable, from using search engines for basic research or for the many teacher sources such as Webquests. However, with the internet come many pitfalls.

Some of the main issues concerning the use of the internet discussed in the book are inappropriate materials, privacy issues, viruses, and copyright issues. For starters, it is our job as educators to protect the safety of our students in our classroom. With this responsibility on our shoulders, we must be sure not expose our students to content that could somehow negatively affect them. This issue seems to be the biggest problem when discussing the use of search engines in the classroom. Many search engines can bring up inappropriate, unevaluated sites. Though many schools have some sort of filter to help limit the unprotected sites, there are ways for which students can still find access to undesired places. Similarly, if students are granted access to inappropriate sites, they put the computer and the network at risk of catching a computer virus or making their computer available to hacking. We as educators must also teach our students what is legal and appropriate when using others’ materials. It seems that this idea of copyrighting someone else’s work at all levels of education has become quite an issue. With the number of internet users growing today, it has become much more tempting for students to simply plagiarize a source they find on the internet. It is our job as educators to steer students away from this dilemma at an early age.

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