Table 10.1 Social and Educational Strategies for Protecting Children on the Internet
	Description One Illustrative Advantage One Illustrative Disadvantage Parental supervision Active, in-person supervision of child's Internet use Provides closest connection to the values that the parent wishes to impart to child. Probably not feasible to provide constant active supervision of child's Internet access, especially as child gets older Peer assistance Help provided by sibling or peer mentor acting as guide to child's use of the Internet Provides guidance and influence to which children may be more responsive (compared to parental advice or assistance) Older sibling may lead younger one into trouble; non-family peer mentors may spend little time with child Acceptable use policies (AUPs) Statement explicating in detail what constitutes acceptable and unacceptable use of the Internet and what consequences flow from the latter Provides clear behavioral guidelines for child about what should and should not be done Infractions of AUP may not be discovered; without concerted attention, may become just one more form to be filled out Internet safety education (ISE) Explicit instruction on what constitutes safe Internet behavior and how to recognize dangerous, inappropriate situations Provides clear guidance for child about how to conduct himself or herself on the Internet No obvious forum in most existing curricula to include ISE Information and media (I/M) literacy Facility in using critical reasoning skills to obtain information sought and to evaluate the content of information that is received Emphasizes critical reasoning skills that are valuable in many contexts other than Internet use No obvious forum in most existing curricula to include I/M literacy Compelling content Develop content specifically designed to appeal to children that is noncommercial and educational and/or positive in orientation Availability of such material would help to divert children's attention from inappropriate materials and experiences Child market not preferred by most businesses because adult market is more lucrative Media campaigns Initiatives featuring media spots and public service announcements about the nature of the Internet, the potential dangers of Internet activity for children, and parental options for exerting influence Can contribute a basic awareness of the issues in a broad segment of the population Absent follow-through in other non-media channels, significant constructive behavioral changes in parents are unlikely