Sandy Hamrick, student services coordinator for the district, said a handful of incidents involving social media at the high school and middle school levels prompted educators to introduce a more comprehensive program aimed at keeping kids safe while using the Internet and social media.
The program, created by Common Sense Media, has online resources at www.CommonSenseMedia.org for both parents and teachers, Hamrick said. In school, each grade is required to complete a minimum of three lessons that address topics such as being a responsible Internet user, cyberbullying, social media use and the laws surrounding those issues. The lessons are tailored to fit different age groups.
Jennifer Stimpson, counselor at Washington Elementary, said lessons for the elementary-age students are focused on being proactive rather than reactive.
"There's an emphasis on prevention work and teaching these kids before they get caught up in it," she said. "They're responding well and interested in the lessons ... You can see the light bulbs going off in their heads."
Hamrick said it is important to educate parents of those younger students, as well.
"When these situations started with cellphones, parents were clueless. They had no idea of the laws and statutes," she said. "One would think social media isn't in their hands as much as those in high school or middle school, but sometimes it is."
Hamrick said students at the younger grade levels are learning, predominately, about how to be a responsible Internet user by understanding what information is and isn't OK to give out online.
"It's always about our kids staying safe and protected," she said.
At the middle school and high school level, Hamrick said educators are able to be more specific in what they're teaching.
"Developmentally, we have to change the message as they get older," she said. "The intensity of their actions, how much trouble they can get into, it changes. They have to understand that some of the things you're doing online follows you, so protect yourself."
Student resource officers were brought into the fold as well, so that students could hear firsthand about the laws surrounding social media, texting and how it could affect them.
"They talked to the kids about, 'If you cross these lines, this is what will happen,' and a lot of the laws, the kids didn't know about," Hamrick said. "Having that talk and interaction has been pretty powerful for our older students."
Hamrick said because the program is in its first year, they are beginning to gather feedback from parents and staff, and evaluating how effective the program is and how well it meets the district's needs.
"As we've rolled it out, we've had to tweak some lessons to better fit our younger students," she said. "The evaluation process will help us figure out how we can make it better."
©2016 The Star (Shelby, N.C.), distributed by Tribune Content Agency, LLC.
