Abstract
Safe use of media sources is a part of curriculums for all students, including those with intellectual disabilities. Educators are promoting cyber-wellness through social emotional learning (SEL) incorporated with digital and media literacy skills. When students are prepared to face risky online interactions, they are more equipped to safely navigate dangers encountered online. Students with intellectual disabilities may interact safely in virtual settings either for social activities, learning, or employment when prepared with appropriate functional skills and provided accessible methods and tools. Educators utilizing proven instructional strategies can support students with intellectual disabilities as they access the internet. Students' awareness of potential online dangers along with the development of digital literacy skills can motivate them to be positive online risk takers.
TopIntroduction
The utilization of the internet and social media has become an integral part of most of our existences with many of us spending hours and hours scrolling through social media platforms. Many of us who consider ourselves “internet savvy” have fallen prey to schemes and viruses that interfere with our lives and the lives of people with whom we are virtually connected. So, we must use a preparative lens when we consider cyber safety of students with intellectual disabilities. Rosa’s Law (2017) updated the term used to identify individuals with cognitive delays with onset at birth from “mental retardation” to “intellectual disabilities.” The Individuals with Disabilities Education Act (IDEA, 2017) defines an intellectual disability as, “significantly subaverage general intellectual functioning, existing concurrently with deficits in adaptive behavior and manifested during the developmental period, that adversely affects a child’s educational performance.” The goal is to have realistic guidelines which increase their safety but do not deny them the opportunity to access information and the social media available to them.
Statistics from the 2020–21 calendar year show 7.2 million or 15 percent of all public-school students aged 3 through 21 received some form of special education services under the Individuals with Disabilities Education Act (NCES, 2021). Of those students receiving special education services 6 percent were diagnosed with intellectual disabilities (U.S. Dept. of Education, 2022). A child diagnosed with an intellectual disability may have sitting and walking delays. They may also have problem-solving issues, difficulty with logical thinking, and trouble understanding the cause and effect regarding their actions. There is also the chance they will have difficulty interpreting social cues which would allow them to decipher between safe and unsafe situations (American Academy of Pediatrics, 2015). Understanding how these intellectual disability signs impact the learning process is imperative for productive teaching.
Legal Support
Keeping all school-age students safe needs to be a shared responsibility. Through legislation, government plays a big role regarding safe internet access in both the school and home environments. The short history of the Internet has seen few attempts to legally regulate use by adults. Holmes (2022) identified legislative attempts to regulate content available for children on the internet. With cyber security concerns on the rise throughout the K-12 learning environment, there are legal protections in place for students that govern the types and amounts of information that websites are allowed to gather based on the individual's age. The Federal Trade Commission’s Children’s Online Privacy Protection Act of 1998 15 U.S.C. 6501-6506 Children’s Privacy (16 CFR Part 312) established the regulation of information retrieval and access for school age students. The Children’s Internet Protection Act (CIPA) which was enacted by the United States Congress set parameters that schools are required to follow to guarantee internet safety in order to acquire E-rate discounts. As a result, school districts are obligated to have programs in place to ward against risks such as hacking and unauthorized access to students’ information (CIPA, 2000). New legislation such as the Kids Online Safety Act (KOSA, 2022) has been presented to Congress. If KOSA is passed, it will give parents more control of their minor child’s internet access.
The mission to keep children safe on the internet is a global concern. As broadband availability expands around the world so will the risk of exposure to possible malicious situations. Collaborations are on the rise globally to prevent and combat the dangers vulnerable children face while participating in online platforms. The Disrupting Harm Study for South Africa, surveyed parents and children to gain insight into online risks. Data derived from this ECPAT, Unicef, and International Police (2020) report regarding children’s experiences and parents’ concerns can be used to construct future internet safety legislation. In May of 2022 the European Commission adopted legislation entitled Better Internet for Kids (BIK+) (2022). This legislation defines children’s online rights and strategies to provide further online safety protections for all children residing in countries of the European Union.
Key Terms in this Chapter
Scenario: A story or possible events which can be used as examples for investigation and learning.
Communication: The concept of exchanging thoughts and ideas orally, by sign language, through written words, facial expressions, hand gestures, or the use of an augmentative and alternative communication device.
Social media: Internet applications and websites which are used for entertainment and communication.
Instructional Strategies: Planned techniques used by educators to encourage student involvement and foster learning.
Online Risk: The potential of interacting with any dangerous situations such as cyber bullying and sexual harassment while interacting with others on the internet.
Web 2.0 and Social 3.0: The term describing the asynchronous use of the internet for communication and the growing use of collaboration applications for synchronous communication.
Universal Design for Learning: The plan to ensure the educational process provides multiple means of learning opportunities to meet the needs of all users.
Internet use: Use of the world wide web to gain information, be entertained, or communicate.
Positive Risk: The use of potentially dangerous interactions online for practical training.