Teaching students how to stay safe online.

While 99% of all that happens on the net is positive and safe which is very similar to the real world, educating teens about Internet safety helps keep them safe and enables them to enjoy the riches available to them online. Safe Connects is differentiated from other Internet safety programs because students use “straight talk” to discuss topics that are important to teens.  This program has established a “student-teaching-students-and-parents” model for school systems throughout America.

The Safe Connects online safety program is based on three premises:

1. Online safety training should reflect the internet is a positive place for all netizens that appreciate the digital safety rules of the road, exclude techno-panic as an educational tactic, and use “straight talk” when discussing the consequences of making poor decisions when online.

2. The voice of youth should be a component of online safety programs used to inform teens.

3. Online safety training is part of a school’s, afterschool program’s, or other youth-serving organization’s culture and an ongoing process rather than an occasional event.

Learn more about Safe Connects by clicking on the “What Is Safe Connects?” link on the left and watch a news story reporting on Safe Connects training being taught to elementary and middle school students ending a summer YMCA program!