Online Resources

• CCISD Online Web Safety Tips
• The American Library Association has created a site to monitor developments associated with the law at www.ala.org/cipa.
• Information about Safer Internet, the European Union's efforts to promote the use of the Internet for safe and appropriate purposes, is detailed at www.saferinternet.org. The site includes news about government initiatives and legislation in Europe.
• The Consortium for School Networking will provide updates on the law and its requirements at www.cosn.org/resources.

Child Online Protection Act

The purpose of the Act is to prohibit online sites from knowingly making available to minors material that is "harmful to minors" (sexually explicit material meeting definitions set forth in the Act). Commercial providers of "harmful to minors" material may defend themselves against prosecution by restricting the access of minors to such material.

If this law were enforced, violators would be subject to fines of up to $50,000 per offense, prison terms of six months, or both. This law also created a temporary Commission to study various technological tools and methods for protecting minors from "material that is harmful to minors."

Online Child Safety Resources

• "Safe and Smart: Research and Guidelines for Children's Use of the Internet," was published by the National School Boards Foundation in 2000. Available at www.nsbf.org/safe-smart/index.html.
  
  
• "Get Net Wise." Designed to provide a safety resource for parents that was "one click away." It includes a useful guide to filtering software products as well as products that monitor children's online activities or that can set time limits on online sessions. Although most of the products are designed for single computers used at home, some of the products are identified as solutions for network servers. Available at www.getnetwise.org.
  
  
• "Kids Connect" is a resource created by ICONnect, a technology initiative of the American Association of School Librarians, a division of the American Library Association. It is designed specifically to help school library media specialists, teachers and students. It is available at www.ala.org/ICONN/kidsconn.html.
  
  
• The American Library Association's "Kids Connect @ the Library" provides resources primarily for parents, but also for children's librarians and school librarians. It can be accessed at www.ala.org/parentspage/.
  
  
• "Parents Guide to the Internet," was created in November 1997 by the U.S. Department of Education's Office of Educational Research and Improvement and its Office of Educational Technology. It is available at www.ed.gov/pubs/parents/internet/.
  
  
• "America Links Up: A Kids' Online Teach-in" was a 1998 public awareness and education campaign sponsored by a broad-based coalition of non-profits, education groups and businesses. Materials are available at www.americalinksup.org.
  
  
• The Media Awareness Network is a project, sponsored by Canadian businesses and non-profit associations, designed to promote online safety and information literacy. It covers a wide variety of topics, including information literacy, Acceptable Use Policies, privacy issues, content management strategies and online marketing to children. Although the public policy information is from a Canadian perspective, much of the information could be useful for teachers and parents. The project's materials are available at www.webawareness.ca.
  
  
• The National Center for Missing and Exploited Children has been involved with the online safety of children since 1994. Its Web site can be accessed at www.ncmec.org.
  
  
• Safekids.com is a site created by Larry Magid, a syndicated columnist for the Los Angeles Times and a long-time advocate for child safety online. It can be accessed at www.safekids.com.
  
  
• The Children's Partnership published "The Parents' Guide," a guide to help get children online and keep them safe, in 1998. It is available at http://www.childrenspartnership.org.
  
  
• Net Family News is a nonprofit news service devoted to serving the needs of teachers and parents working with children online. It helps distribute the news of a consortium of organizations working in this area. Its Web site and newsletter can be accessed at www.netfamilynews.org.
  
  
• ".SAFE" (dot-safe) is a pilot project of the European Schoolnet to develop materials and review best practices to promote Internet safety in schools. www.eun.org/eun.org2/eun/index_dotsafe.cfm
  
  
• Childnet International is a non-profit organization, based in London, England, that works to promote online safety around the world. Its NetBenefit? Program has developed a variety of materials to help students, parents and teachers understand online safety issues. www.childnet-int.org