Google Updates Kids Online Safety Curriculum

Google Enhances Be Internet Awesome Curriculum for Enhanced Digital Safety

Google has announced an update and expansion to its digital safety education program, Be Internet Awesome. This initiative is designed to equip school-aged children with the skills needed for responsible internet navigation.

Launched initially four years ago, the curriculum currently reaches 30 countries and millions of children, according to Google. The latest update introduces nearly a dozen new lessons for both parents and educators.

Focus Areas of the Updated Curriculum

These new lessons address crucial topics such as online gaming, the use of search engines, video content consumption, fostering online empathy, and preventing cyberbullying. The program aims to provide comprehensive guidance in these areas.

Google collaborated with the University of New Hampshire’s Crimes Against Children Research Center to assess the program’s effectiveness. This evaluation, the first significant one since 2019, identified areas for improvement.

Expert Collaboration and Program Refinement

Following the review, Google partnered with leading online safety organizations, including Committee for Children and The Net Safety Collaborative, to refine the teaching materials. This collaboration resulted in age- and grade-specific lessons.

The expanded curriculum now encompasses a wider range of subjects and provides a more robust set of resources for families.

New Lesson Content and Skill Development

The new lessons offer guidance on navigating online gaming environments, utilizing search engines effectively, and critically evaluating video content. Furthermore, they incorporate social-emotional learning to help students address online harassment and cyberbullying.

A key component of the update focuses on search media literacy. Students learn to evaluate the credibility of search results and understand how search engines like Google function.

Lessons also emphasize the importance of online empathy, kindness, and appropriate responses to upsetting or inappropriate content.

Addressing Online Gaming Safety

Recognizing the increasing role of online games in children’s social lives, the curriculum now includes lessons related to gaming safety. These lessons address verifying the identities of online gamers and protecting personal information.

Students are encouraged to consider whether online contacts are who they claim to be and to avoid sharing private details.

Family Resources and Parental Controls

The updated curriculum directs parents to families.google, a recently launched online hub offering tips and information on managing family tech usage.

Google’s Family Link app has been updated to provide parents with greater control over app usage and screen time. Parental control features have also been introduced on YouTube for tweens and teens.

Availability and Access

The revised Be Internet Awesome curriculum is now available to parents, families, teachers, and educators through the official Be Internet Awesome website.

This update represents Google’s ongoing commitment to fostering a safer and more responsible online experience for children.