Safe use of the Internet in schools

October is Computer Learning Month. More and more studies confirm that when quality digital information technology is employed by well-trained teachers, student achievement increases in both academic content and in the essential skills of reading, writing, and critical thinking.

The good news is that the use of computers and the Internet supports many of the traditional and research-proven practices in education and also adds some new possibilities: learning can take place anytime and anywhere; world-class resources are available to all students; significant non-learning time is saved in using inquiry-based activities; and learning resources can be customized for individual learning styles and reading levels.

The bad news is that student access to the Internet in schools creates a variety of hazards for students and teachers: cyber-bullying, pornography, identity theft, spreading rumors, cheating, etc. How are schools trying to deal with these personal threats to students and the distractions that erode the teaching and learning process?

ProQuest editors have created a BookCart learning activity to help your students learn more about the dangers of using the Internet both in school and at home: "Protecting Students from Internet Threats."

This BookCart is your lesson plan because it includes (a) essential questions for critical thinking (you can create others); (b) a place for you to type specific directions for students); (c) a place for you to list the state standard; (d) a place for you to build a quiz; (e) more than 30 relevant and credible articles and websites for students to select from and cite.

The BookCart also includes models for written and PowerPoint reports in the Web Links section. These models support the integration of essential questions for critical thinking that are included in the BookCart.

Teachers or librarians can copy and adapt this BookCart model and hundreds of other models from the ProQuest Carts collection.

• Logon to the eLibrary Teacher Edition.
• Click the BookCart Admin link at the top right of the Teacher Edition.
• Click the ProQuest Carts tab.
• Type "Protecting Students from Internet Threats" in the Search box to locate it quickly.
• Click the Copy icon in the Actions column to the right of this title.
• Click Return to My Local Carts.

This BookCart already includes all the information that a student needs to complete the assignment. But, teachers can edit it to tailor it for their students.

To edit each CourseCart for your students to use:

• Click the first new BookCart Title with the prefix "Copy of."
• Delete "Copy of" and then type your name in the Author boxes and your email.
• Optional: Edit the existing directions for your students to use in the Description box.
• Scroll down and click Save.
• Return to My Local Carts.

Traditional Search Activity: Assign students to write a report of at least 150 words (or a PowerPoint presentation of at least two minutes and seven slides) citing at least three resources and addressing the following essential questions for critical thinking:

• How does filtering student Internet use provide protection for students doing research?
• What are the threats to students using the Internet in schools?
• What can parents do to help protect students against Internet abuse?
• What can government do to protect students and youth on the Internet?

Pathfinder: Type "internet safety for students in schools" > Enter "Internet or schools" in the Document Title box > click Search

Use our custom ProQuest models for written or PowerPoint reports written and PowerPoint-style reports.

Another opportunity for librarians to copy the new ProQuest CourseCarts

If you missed last newsletter, ProQuest introduced the first collection of model BookCarts that correlate to the major topics and issues found in government/civics textbooks. ProQuest calls this course specific collection "CourseCarts." Here's the list of CourseCarts for "U.S. Government & Civics."

Here's another opportunity for you to add these CourseCarts to your school collection.

• Logon to the eLibrary Teacher Edition to access BookCart Editor.
• Click the BookCart Admin link at the top right of the Teacher Edition.
• Click the ProQuest Carts tab.
• Scroll down list of Folders on the left, then click U.S. Government & Civics CourseCarts.
• Click the Copy icon in the Actions column for the first CourseCart.
• Click Return to My Local Carts.
• Repeat the process until all CourseCarts are copied.

With editing, each CourseCart can include information that students can use to complete the assignment (example: write a report of at least 150 words that cites at least three resources and addresses each of the essential questions listed).

To edit each CourseCart for your students to use:

• Click the first new BookCart Title with the prefix "Copy of."
• Delete "Copy of" and then type your first and last name in the Author boxes.
• Type your email address in the email box.
• Type any brief STUDENT DIRECTIONS for the assignment in the Description box.
• Scroll down and click Save.
• Click the My Local Carts tab to return to your collection.
• Repeat the process until all CourseCarts are edited.

You can continue to use and share these CourseCarts each year with minimal future editing.

Innovative Librarians & eLibrary BookCarts

Each of these librarians had a BookCart vision for increasing librarian-teacher collaboration. Their stories (read here) will provide motivation and strategies for other librarians who subscribe to any of the eLibrary family of learning resources and want to get started on building their own collections of 21st Century resources for learning through inquiry-based activities:

Ana Banos
Sweetwater Union High School District, San Diego, CA

Ann Martha
Philadelphia School District, PA

Diane Gallagher Hayashi
Stelly School, Saanich SD, Vancouver, BC, Canada

Elizabeth Golden + Johanna Lawler
Greater Essex County SB, Ontario, Canada

Carolyn Hoye
Coyle & Cassidy HS, Taunton, MA

All Stories: Read here!