Children and Media

In Protests of Net Neutrality Repeal, Teenage Voices Stood Out

Millions of Americans have been caught up in a bitter debate over the repeal of net neutrality rules that prevented broadband providers from blocking websites or demanding fees to reach consumers.

Privacy Groups Push FTC Action on Kid-Connected Devices

Consumer groups want the Federal Trade Commission and retailers to crack down on Interconnected toys and smartwatches to protect kids' privacy. 

Sponsor: 

Consortium for School Networking

Date: 
Tue, 12/12/2017 - 19:00 to 20:00

One of the major challenges for education technology leaders is addressing digital equity, particularly out-of-school broadband access. Hear how school districts are working with local, regional, and national businesses in leveraging the Community Reinvestment Act (CRA) to close the digital access gap. School and business leaders will discuss how collaboration can improve school-to-home connectivity as well as access to devices and internet-based resources for families in need.

Moderator: Jayne James, CoSN Project Director

Presenters:



How the FCC Might Soon Disconnect Students

The Federal Communications Commission has taken a series of worrying actions since former FCC Commissioner Ajit Pai ascended to the role of chairman in January 2017. On Feb 3, the FCC abruptly rescinded the glowing E-rate report that had just been released two and a half weeks prior.

Democratic Sens question privacy, security of Facebook's 'Messenger Kids'

Sens Ed Markey (D-MA) and Richard Blumenthal (D-CT) are questioning the privacy and security of Facebook’s new messaging app, which is designed for kids under 13, expressing their concerns in a letter to Facebook CEO Mark Zuckerberg.  “We remain concerned about where sensitive information collected through this app could end up and for what purpose it could be used,” they wrote.

The Return of the Techno-Moral Panic

Our present panics tend to arrive just as new parts of our economy, culture and politics are reconstituted within platform marketplaces — shifts that have turned out to be bigger than anyone anticipated. Aggravation about “fake news” followed the realization that the business and consumption of online news had been substantially captured by Facebook, which had strenuously resisted categorization as a media company. Children’s entertainment has migrated to new and unexpected venues faster and more completely than either parents or YouTube expected or accounted for.

Without Net Neutrality, How Would Internet Companies Treat K-12 Districts?

One of the main fears that school officials have about curtailing “net neutrality” is that internet service companies will have new powers to throttle or block the flow of online content that serves as academic lifeblood for many districts. But gauging whether those worries are justified or overblown requires a lot of speculation about industry behavior, and how it would apply to schools. Chris Lewis, a vice president of the advocacy group Public Knowledge, said dire scenarios envisioned by some school officials are not unrealistic.

Facebook Has a New Messaging App Aimed at Those 13 and Under

More than 1 billion people — mostly adults — use Facebook’s Messenger app to communicate every month. Now, the future of Messenger is set to become much younger. 

When Students Can’t Get Broadband, Career Success Proves Elusive

For many university students, high-speed internet access on campus is as expected as sidewalks and electricity. With a large number of college curriculums and tools dependent on these digital connections, what happens for students who don’t have regular access to high-speed internet? According to new research from the Independent Colleges and Universities of Florida (ICUF) presented to the Higher Education Coordinating Council (HECC), the lack of widely available broadband internet access in Florida is correlated to a smaller percentage of citizens with college degrees or certificates.

Strong Gains in School Broadband Connectivity, But Challenges Remain

The majority of school districts today (85 percent) fully meet the Federal Communications Commission’s short-term goal for broadband connectivity of 100 Mbps per 1,000 students. However, recurring costs remain the most significant barrier for schools in their efforts to increase connectivity. Collecting feedback from 445 large, small, urban and rural school district leaders nationwide, the fifth annual survey examines the current state of technology infrastructure in US K-12 districts. (The FCC has used past findings to modernize and expand funding of E-rate.)

Children's Lawyers Drop Privacy Suit Against Viacom Over Tracking Cookies

Attorneys for a group of children have agreed to withdraw a long-running privacy lawsuit against Viacom. The document withdrawing the case, filed with US District Court Judge Stanley Chesler in New Jersey, doesn't indicate whether any money changed hands.

Major tech-industry group drops opposition to sex trafficking bill

The Internet Association -- which counts Google, Facebook, Twitter and others among its members -- reversed course and said it will support the Stop Enabling Sex Traffickers Act (SESTA), a bill designed to make it easier to sue websites that enable sex trafficking online. The bill has been a source of tension between the technology industry and Washington for months.

WiFi-equipped school buses help students get online

The digital age continues to spark creative developments in education. Wireless gadgets are now commonplace in the typical American classroom. But while technology is helping thousands of students reach new heights in their education, many others are falling behind. Dubbed "the homework gap" by researchers, students without the use of reliable internet access at home find it harder to complete and submit homework assignments, further expanding the inequality already seen in low-income communities.

Online schooling: Who is harmed and who is helped?

[Commentary] Online courses have the potential to improve instruction at every level of education. Adaptive online courses can allow students to learn at their own pace, with material adjusting to fit the needs of both advanced and remedial learners. Online courses can also open up more curricular offerings in schools that lack specialists, such as those in rural areas. Online courses are particularly attractive to school and district leaders looking for ways to trim costs.

FTC Provides Additional Guidance on COPPA and Voice Recordings

The Federal Trade Commission is providing additional guidance on how the Children’s Online Privacy Protection Rule applies to the collection of audio voice recordings by organizations covered by the law, which requires certain operators of commercial websites or online services to obtain parental consent before collecting personal information from children under 13. The FTC updated the COPPA Rule in 2013, adding several new types of data to the definition of personal information, including a photograph, video or audio file that contains a child’s image or voice, to data already covered, such as a name, address or Social Security number. This update has prompted some questions about the application of this requirement when a child’s voice is collected for the sole purpose of instructing a command or request.

In a new policy enforcement statement, the FTC noted that the COPPA rule requires websites and online services directed at children to obtain verifiable parental consent before collecting an audio recording. The Commission, however, recognizes the value of using voice as a replacement for written words in performing search and other functions on Internet-connected devices. The FTC will not take an enforcement action against an operator for not obtaining parental consent before collecting the audio file with a child’s voice when it is collected solely as a replacement of written words, such as to perform a search or to fulfill a verbal instruction or request – as long as it is held for a brief time and only for that purpose.

The Common Sense Census: Media Use by Kids Age Zero to Eight 2017

Babies and young children are accessing and viewing media in new ways now that the majority of American families have mobile and internet-connected devices at home. Smartphones, tablets, and other devices also present new challenges and opportunities for parents introducing media to their kids for the first time. Combined with the data from the 2011 and 2013 reports, the 2017 Zero to Eight study gives us a clearer view of how young children's media use has evolved over time and provides a foundation for how we can use technology to support children's learning, play, and growth. Take a look at the infographic and read our blog post for highlights. This research helps us update Common Sense resources with the most useful and relevant information for today's parents, teachers, and leaders. Together we can make media a positive influence in kids' lives -- especially during the first eight years.

In “Exploring the Digital Divide,” Common Sense finds that there are still substantial gaps between lower- and higher-income children in home computer access (25 percentage points) and high-speed home internet access (22 percentage points).

Child advocacy and privacy groups to FTC: smartwatches can endanger kids

Child advocacy and privacy groups are calling on the Federal Trade Commission to investigate several smartwatch brands and the risks they pose to children, part of a global effort, they said. They also want them pulled from store shelves.

The groups, which include Consumers Union, Public Citizen and the Center for Digital Democracy, said in a filing with the FTC that the watches, essentially wearable smartphones, have "significant" security flaws and lack privacy protections. Privacy groups are filing similar complaints in Belgium, Denmark, the Netherlands, Sweden, Germany and the UK. While the watches are meant to allow parents to keep up with their children, the groups said research has shown that a stranger can "take control of the watch with a few simple steps, allowing them to eavesdrop on conversations the child is having with others, track and communicate with the child, and access stored data about the child’s location."

Rural Youth Technology Survey: Technology Alone Will Not Prevent Rural Flight

The vast majority (96%) of rural young people age 14 to 22 years old have cellphones, including 17% who get mobile service from a local provider and 75% who get service from a national carrier, according to a rural youth technology survey conducted by the Foundation for Rural Service. Nearly the same amount (95%) have internet connectivity at home, and a substantial portion of them get connectivity from a local provider. Just under one in three respondents get internet connectivity from a satellite provider. That 95% number is considerably higher than overall home internet take rates that other surveys have found, underscoring how much more important the internet is for households that include teens and young adults.

The survey also included questions about how rural youth use technology — information that could become increasingly valuable as those young people become technology decision makers. About two-thirds of respondents to the FRS survey would consider living in a rural area soon after graduation.

Sen Markey, Rep Barton Press Mattel on Baby Monitor Privacy

The co-founders of the Congressional Privacy Caucus are concerned about a new Mattel baby monitor's ability to record and transmit sensitive information, as are a bunch of privacy activists. Sen Ed Markey (D-MA) and Rep Joe Barton (R-TX) wrote the toy company Sept 29 about their new, voice-controlled, Aristotle monitor. They described the device as a Wi-Fi enabled talking device with audio and video monitoring that could be in a child's room from birth through adolescence. They want to know how the device will monitor—photos, videos, voice recognition—how the information will be stored and protected, how parents' permission will be obtained, and whether the device is compliant with the Children’s Online Privacy and Protection Act (COPPA), which Sen Markey co-authored.

“In today's connected world, it is crucial we keep an eye on privacy and data security,” said Rep Barton. “That is the exact reason Senator Markey and I founded the Bipartisan Privacy Caucus over a decade ago. Our goal in the letter to Mattel is not to stifle innovation and product development, but to ensure that parents know how their child's data will be protected.”

White House announces new tech jobs initiative

The White House will put at least $200 million in grant funding towards bolstering STEM and Computer Science education “particularly among historically underserved groups,” the administration announced. The minimum $200 million commitment from the Department of Education is supposed to bolstered by private sector contributions that senior administration officials say will be announced later the week of Sept 25. The money will be available to schools across the country to bolster their science and technology programs, at the start of the 2018 fiscal year. A senior administration official said that the White House had been having conversations with school superintendents and governors across the country, encouraging them to take advantage of the funding.

A majority of high schools in the US do not currently offer computer science courses and 40 percent do not offer physics courses. The administration’s push comes amid continued calls from technology companies for more skills training and reformed worker visas to fill high-demand technology and engineering roles. A senior administration official told reporters on a call that the initiative was born out of input from such companies seeking more STEM workers.

About 6 in 10 young adults in U.S. primarily use online streaming to watch TV

The rise of online streaming services such as Netflix and HBO Go has dramatically altered the media habits of Americans, especially young adults. About six-in-ten of those ages 18 to 29 (61%) say the primary way they watch television now is with streaming services on the internet, compared with 31% who say they mostly watch via a cable or satellite subscription and 5% who mainly watch with a digital antenna, according to a Pew Research Center survey conducted in August. Other age groups are less likely to use internet streaming services and are much more likely to cite cable TV as the primary way they watch television. Overall, 59% of U.S. adults say cable connections are their primary means of watching TV, while 28% cite streaming services and 9% say they use digital antennas.

Parents Television Council Urges Netflix to Toughen Parental Controls

Spurred in part by the news that T-Mobile will be giving Netflix to its subscribers (and their families) for free, the Parents Television Council is urging Netflix CEO Reed Hastings to employ content protections. The other spur was Disney's decision to pull its content in favor of its own streaming platform. "[N]ow is an opportune time for Netflix to recommit to providing families with both abundant, suitable programming choices and adequate parental controls,” PTC President Tim Winter wrote. PTC suggests Netflix's parental controls need tweaking, including by requiring a passcode to switch from a child's to an adult's profile, and better blocking of adult profiles and titles on its mobile app.

Can Public Schools Close the Digital Divide?

As students across the country head back to school this week, you might imagine their school leaders consumed by last-minute hiring decisions, meetings with principals and other school leaders, and ongoing management of the district’s finances and facilities. But for Pam Moran, superintendent of Albemarle County Public Schools in Virginia, there’s another topic weighing on her mind: the district’s broadband infrastructure—or the network of equipment and technologies needed to provide high-speed internet service to Albemarle’s classrooms.

Over the past decade since she began leading Albemarle’s schools, she’s been at the helm of the digital transformation reshaping the district. The tools, then, exist to help districts to bridge the digital divide for their students. The problem is that many districts don’t have access to these tools. Places like Albemarle Schools provide a clear example of how school districts can close the digital divide; now we need to address the barriers that keep other districts from following suit.

Melinda Gates: I spent my career in technology. I wasn’t prepared for its effect on my kids.

[Commentary] I spent my career at Microsoft trying to imagine what technology could do, and still I wasn’t prepared for smartphones and social media. Like many parents with children my kids’ age, I didn’t understand how they would transform the way my kids grew up — and the way I wanted to parent. I’m still trying to catch up. For other parents trying to decide how to do their job in a way that feels right despite the bewildering array of changes brought on by smartphones and social media, I want to share some of the resources that have helped me and my friends. Hopefully, these tips can spark conversation and help parents become resources for each other:
Learn about the issue
Unplug
Have Tough Conversations
Advocate for your kids
Make a Plan
[Melinda Gates is a businesswoman and philanthropist. She is co-chair of the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation]