Session Information
06 SES 09, Childrens' Practices, Perspectives and Media Literacy
Paper Session
Contribution
The Internet is an important interaction environment for individuals. Even internet has various benefits such as easy access to information, more frequent contact with friends, hosting educational materials and use for entertainment, it also has various online risks such as security threats, cyber bullying, sexual content (Baştürk Akça, Sayımer and Ergül, 2015). Adolescents and children under 18 can be vulnerable to online risks because of their lack of critical thinking skills, experience, level of awareness and ability to manage risky situations to cope with online risks (OECD, 2012). In this case, the way of using internet effectively and safely without damaging individuals physically, emotionally and psychologically becomes very important. In the OECD (2012) report, it was stated that children should be aware of online risks to protect themselves from online risks.
It is suggested that safe internet use trainings and effective integration of media or internet literacy with school curricula are beneficial strategies to use the internet in a safe way and make the internet useful for children. They emphasized that instead of preventing children from accessing online opportunities by restricting their internet access, a balanced policy should be pursued about the risks and opportunities that would arise from using these environments. According to media use habits of children study, time spent on internet increases as to grade level and 81% of high school students (9th to 12th grade) access to internet via computers at home and 58% of them access to internet via their cell phones.
In addition, these rates are higher than children at the primary level (Radio and Television Supreme Council, 2013). While internet access decreased with age, it is being investigated how children can use secure internet in terms of the risks that may encounter on the internet environments (Holloway, Green and Livingstone, 2013) and in this scope there are suggestions particularly to parents, teachers and institutions and organizations that will enact various laws.
In order to become active digital citizens, children need to use digital media and gain various experiences. While internet supports learning, entertainment and communication-interaction, and its access decreased with age day by day and it brings risks with various opportunities for children. (Livingstone and Haddon, 2008). In this context, if young children are thought to have had lacking skills and confidence in digital environments compared to their older friends (Livingstone, Haddon, Görzig and Olafson, 2011), they need to be trained with various skills in order to ensure their own safety in the digital environment.
Children who are not developed required skills and not guided in the digital environments are left alone in the online environments. Children who are straying in the online environments become the focus of bad content and harmful behavior. In this point, it becomes crucial to provide a useful education for children and help them to make right decisions. Students who can make the right decisions will be trained in today's world expected skills . At this point, the pioneer of behaviors in the digital environment is digital identity and as well as digital profile which must be examined as new concepts. The digital profile can be said to represent the social and personal characteristics of an individual in digital media (Sohier and Bree, 2016; Livingstone, 2008). Given that digital media affects every aspect of children's lives, the importance of children's shaping their own identities and building relationships with others becomes evident. In this regard, the aim of this study is to examine how children who recently met with the internet have created their digital profiles on various online platforms.
Method
Expected Outcomes
References
Baştürk Akça, E., Sayımer, İ., & Ergül, S. (2015). Ortaokul öğrencilerinin sosyal medya kullanımları ve siber zorbalık deneyimleri: Ankara örneği. Global Media Journal: Turkish Edition, 5(10). Cresswell, J. (2012) Educational Research: Planning, Conducting and Evaluating Quantitative and Qualitative Research (fourth edition). Pearson: Boston. Holloway,D., Green, L., & Livingstone, S. (2013). Zero to eight. Young children and their internet use. LSE, London: EU Kids Online. Livingstone, S. (2008). Taking risky opportunities in youthful content creation: teenagers' use of social networking sites for intimacy, privacy and self-expression. New media & society, 10 (3). pp. 393-411. Livingstone, S., & Haddon, L. (2008). Risky experiences for children online: Charting European research on children and the internet. Children & Society, 22(4), 314-323. Livingstone, S., Haddon, L., Görzig, A., & Ólafsson, K., (2011). Risks and safety on the internet: the perspective of European children: Full findings and policy implications from the EU Kids Online survey of 9-16 year olds and their parents in 25 countries. EU Kids Online, Deliverable D4. EU Kids Online Network, London, UK. OECD, (2012). The Protection of children online. Report on risks faced by children online and policies to protect them. Obtained from http://www.oecd.org/sti/ieconomy/childrenonline_with_cover.pdf on 21.01.2016. Radyo ve Televizyon Üst Kurulu (RTÜK), (2013). Türkiye’de çocukların medya kullanma alışkanlıkları araştırması, Bizim Matbaa, İstanbul. Obtained from http://www.byegm.gov.tr/uploads/docs/RTU%CC%88K%EF%80%A2_Tu%CC%88rkiyede_C%CC%A7ocu_klar%C4%B1n_Medya_Kullanm_a_Al%C4%B1s%CC%A7kanl%C4%B1g%CC%86%C4%B1_Aras%CC%A7t%C4%B1_rmas%C4%B1_Eylu%CC%88l_2013.pdf on 15.12.2015. Rose, S., Spinks, N., & Canhoto, A. I. (2015). Management research: Applying the principles. Routledge. Sohier, R., & Brée, J. Proposal of a Digital identity Scale. Obtained from https://www.researchgate.net/profile/Joel_Bree/publication/306537908_Proposal_of_a_digital_identity_scale/links/57befd4608ae2f5eb32e70f0.pdf on 21.01.2016.
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