CANYON COUNTY, Idaho — From social media and online games to messaging friends, the internet is already part of many students’ lives by the time they reach middle school.
A Middleton School District resource officer is teaching students how to recognize online risks and make safer choices.
School Resource Officer Nick Randall visited a class at Middleton Middle School to talk with students about online safety, including how to recognize strangers online, avoid unsafe messages and be careful about sharing private images or their location.
“The reality is most kids spend most of their day online, and so instead of teaching them not to get online, we want to teach them how they can be safe online,” Randall said.
Randall said about a third of the students he has asked already have social media and internet access. He said teaching online safety early can help students make better decisions as they gain more independence.
During the lesson, students discussed what is safe to share online, including whether it is OK to post about their interests.
Officer Randall also reminded students that deleting a message or photo does not necessarily mean it is gone forever.
“You send something and you say, ‘Oh, probably should’ve deleted it,’ and you delete it, and it’s gone off the other phone. But is it really gone forever?” Randall asked the class.
“No,” students responded.
WATCH: School resource officer teaches Middleton students internet safety
Officer Randall is also finding creative ways to get his message across. He teamed up with YouTuber Jose Monkey to demonstrate how much information someone can learn from a video, even when the person posting it does not realize what they are revealing.
In a video message to Jose Monkey, Randall said, “Hey, Jose Monkey, this is Officer Randall... Can you find me? Good luck, Jose Monkey!”
By using clues from Randall’s surroundings, Jose Monkey was able to show how details in a video can help someone figure out where a person is.
Randall said it is also important for students to speak up if something goes wrong online, including cyberbullying and other unsafe interactions.
“A lot of the calls I deal with have a lot to do with internet problems, with cyberbullying and with kids getting involved in things online that cause a lot of problems,” Randall said.
Parents can reinforce these lessons at home by checking in with their children about which apps they use, who they interact with and what they share online.
Officer Randall’s message is not to keep kids off the internet altogether, but to help them understand the risks and make safer choices as they navigate the online world.
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