Get with IT
Launched by Ireland's Internet Advisory Board (IAB), Get with IT is an initiative designed to help parents know more about the internet and the digital age so that they can make sure their children are safe
while surfing the web or using technologies such as mobile phones. A three-week awareness raising campaign was conducted and an information
booklet produced.
Communication Strategies
This initiative was developed in response to requests from schools and parents for information about technologies and the internet. "In particular, parents who are not tech-literate wanted more information
so that they could discuss these technologies with their children and set down rules for use of the internet or mobile phones for example," said Audrey Conlon, chairwoman of the IAB.
The Get With IT initiative included a 3-week radio campaign that consisted of a series of advertisements on national and local radio stations. The radio campaign featured two different advertisement with humorous family situations with children and parents handling new media tools and jargon. The campaign also used posters displayed at locations around the country, online advertising banners, and a magazine feature.
The IAB has also printed 10,000 copies of an information booklet, which explains, in non-technical terms, what such things as peer-to-peer networks, MP3 players and iPods are. It gives advice on how to recognise if a child is using new media technologies in a potentially dangerous way and what steps a parent can take to prevent or stop this. The guide aims to give parents an introduction to the "lingo" associated with new technologies and help parents "navigate the often confusing maze of new media technologies and tools which their children are using." The booklet is available at libraries and parents can also request a copy through the freephone number 1800 24 25 95, or download the guide online via the IAB's website.
The Get With IT initiative included a 3-week radio campaign that consisted of a series of advertisements on national and local radio stations. The radio campaign featured two different advertisement with humorous family situations with children and parents handling new media tools and jargon. The campaign also used posters displayed at locations around the country, online advertising banners, and a magazine feature.
The IAB has also printed 10,000 copies of an information booklet, which explains, in non-technical terms, what such things as peer-to-peer networks, MP3 players and iPods are. It gives advice on how to recognise if a child is using new media technologies in a potentially dangerous way and what steps a parent can take to prevent or stop this. The guide aims to give parents an introduction to the "lingo" associated with new technologies and help parents "navigate the often confusing maze of new media technologies and tools which their children are using." The booklet is available at libraries and parents can also request a copy through the freephone number 1800 24 25 95, or download the guide online via the IAB's website.
Development Issues
Technology, Children, Youth.
Key Points
A study conducted in April by the London School of Economics and
Political Science (LSE) indicated that that many parents lack the
skills to guide and support their children's internet use and because of this they could be placing them on the wrong side of a digital divide. Of the parents surveyed, 18 percent said they didn't know how to help their children use the internet safely. Many recognised their own responsibility, with 67 percent wanting better advice for parents,
but 75 percent also wanted teaching guidance in schools.
Sources
Young People's Media Network, September 13 2005.
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