CTU Apps and Young Users: Warnings and Safeguards Presentation

APPS AND YOUNG USERS: WARNINGS AND SAFEGUARDS ASSIGNMENT INSTRUCTIONS OVERVIEW

Collaboration and communication apps have become ubiquitous in everyday functioning, but there
can be risks and benefits to using these web-based tools, especially for children and teens. Few
would question that the Internet substantially influences children and teenagers, yet children and
teens often lack the self-regulation skills needed for decision-making in the complex digital world.
Applications on a smartphone can easily pull children into the digital world where cyberbullying
and the constant availability of sexual content represent a potential source of stress for children.
Apps historically noted as potentially dangerous for children and teens include Snapchat, Whisper,
Blendr, and WhatsApp. An unfortunate reality exists where new apps are continually being
developed to look harmless and to mask the more dangerous apps in use by young people. Careful
oversight and monitoring by more knowledgeable parents and adults are increasingly important.
The ability to block inappropriate apps and content is essential for schools, teachers, and parents

INSTRUCTIONS

Scenario: You are viewed as an expert in educational technology and have been asked by your
principal to plan and conduct a 10-minute presentation for parents on the possible dangers of social
media apps targeting children. The principal’s goals are to:

 Inform parents of what is happening in the complicated digital world where children are
concerned
 Demonstrate the types of challenges children are facing with actual recent news stories
 Express the importance of parental monitoring
 Equip parents with tools they can use for decision-making and monitoring.
1. For your presentation, identify three or more apps of particular concern for educators and
parents. Avoid apps that are already commonly known (e.g., TikTok, Snapchat, etc.) unless you
focus on a new danger recently identified in the news for these apps. Do your best to identify
apps that are new on the scene. For each app identified:
 Provide a brief description along with an image of the app.
 Reveal two or three possible risks for each when used by school-age students.
 Include at least two news items as evidence of the app’s risks and dangers to children.
Limit your browser search to news items published/produced within the last six months.
2. Present information from both the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) and your state’s
attorney general to support your claims.
a. Using the Federal Bureau of Investigation’s What We Investigate link provided with
this assignment, browse the podcasts, press releases, and videos for a resource (current
within the past 12 months) that addresses your topic. In your presentation, insert a direct
link to the FBI resources referenced.

https://www.fbi.gov/investigate

b. Using the National Association of Attorneys General link provided with this
assignment, search for your state’s attorney general website. Include the name of your
state’s attorney general and contact information in your presentation. Share examples of
information and news items on your attorney general’s website regarding children and
Internet/social media risks. Encourage parents to contact the attorney general to
recommend additional safeguards for children. In your presentation, insert a direct link
to the attorney general resources referenced.

https://www.naag.org/

3. Discuss warnings and safeguards that should be put in place for child safety.
a. Use personal experience and current news items (published/produced within the last six
months) to support the warnings and safeguards you propose.
b. Also, use current (12 months or newer) professional literature such as journal articles
and research to support your claims. To do this, limit your search in the Jerry Falwell
Library to dissertations, theses, and journal articles.
4. Conclude your presentation with endorsements of the best parental monitoring tool and content
blocking tool.
a. It is suggested you gain actual experience with these two tools by requesting a free trial
of the tools you select.
b. In your presentation, briefly defend your recommendations based on features, cost, etc.
Build the slide show portion of your 10-minute presentation using PowerPoint or Google Slides.
Your presentation must include audio narrations recorded within the presentation software’s audio
record feature. The final presentation should be professionally formatted with quality slide design
based on best practices. It should include a title slide, references slide(s), and a credits slide with
any needed copyright attributions for images, etc. Use current APA formatting.
To submit this assignment, generate a shareable link to your narrated presentation either through
OneDrive (for PowerPoint) or through the sharing features of Google Slides/Google Drive. Ensure
the permission settings of your shared presentation will allow anyone with the link to view the
presentation. Copy and paste the shareable link to your presentation in the assignment submission
area for this assignment.