Kevin's speech to the BECTA Conference at the National Motorcycle Museum
I’m pleased to be here at the National Motorcycle Museum. When you see how motorbikes have developed it’s a reminder of how rapidly computers have come to dominate our lives and schools. Now, after five billion pounds of investment in UK education technology since 1998, every school is connected to the National Education Network, more than 99% have broadband, with one computer for every 3 pupils in secondary schools. High-powered computers and accessories are helping pupils to learn everything from word processing to sophisticated design technology. Gone are the days when young people spend endless school days poring over dusty textbooks. Learning is now interactive, sophisticated, and engaging. And now that 2 thirds of 8-15 year olds have access to the internet at home, and almost all 9-19 year olds have access at school, learning can be made immediately relevant to young people, through a familiar medium. Not only that but, through technology, we’re getting disengaged children and young people back into learning, through projects like Playing for Success, where specially adapted learning materials come together with high quality technology in sports grounds to kick start learning. And, because of technology, we’re getting better at communicating with parents, and getting them more involved in their child’s education. With support from BECTA, over 450 schools have started texting or calling parents’ mobiles when their children are absent from school. As a result, absences are down, and a great deal of time and effort has been saved to schools. So technology has changed the face of learning in the 21st century. And BECTA has been instrumental in that. I’m delighted to have the opportunity to thank you today – and to thank all our partners – for the work that you do. Not only to provide opportunities to young people and their families through technology, but also to keep them safe. Because, for all its benefits, technology poses some serious risks too. To return to the original point, just as motorbikes are more than just a way of getting from A to B, technology is more than just a means of accessing information quickly. For young people, it provides a forum where they can virtually meet up, chat, share music and images. The motorbike is synonymous for many with life and freedom. But it is also associated with danger and risk. The internet can be as risky to navigate even though you don’t even have to leave your own home (or wear a helmet). In some respects the internet is still the equivalent of the wild west – unchartered, unruly, and lacking accountability. And of course the dangers of the internet are not so readily visible – you don’t necessarily know who’s sitting at the other end of the network, who posted a doctored photo or a derogatory comment, or the real identity of a new friend you’ve arranged to meet. 46% of children have given out personal information online, but only 5% of parents realise that. 57% of children say they have come into contact with pornography online, but only 16% of parents say their children have. For children, it’s hard to protect yourself if things are not what they seem; for parents, it’s difficult to keep your child safe if you don’t know what they’re doing online or what the potential risks are. The benefits of the internet – from the point of view of learning, creativity, and for social interaction – are huge. The question is, how do we best protect our children as they roam the frontier. Time and again, bullying comes up as a top concern for young people. I’m very clear that anything that constitutes bullying in the real world also constitutes bullying in the cyberworld and should be dealt with accordingly.That’s why, if you laugh at it, you are part of it. The virtual world is not a valueless world. And we have to remember that’s it’s not just young people who are at risk of cyberbullying, it’s teachers too. If derogatory personal comments were posted up on the notice-board about a teacher, or circulated in the school bulletin, it would constitute bullying, and the perpetrator would be admonished. Just because it’s online doesn’t make it any more acceptable. I believe strongly that the internet is an extraordinary human achievement, which you could no more disinvent than you could the motorcycle. We would not want to restrict it in such a way that it took the benefits – and the fun – out of it. But it is our job to familiarise people in this new online world of risk – educate them about what the real risks are, and give them ways to protect themselves, and to establish the rules of the highway. Of course, whenever we try to raise awareness of the dangers posed to children in any set of circumstances, we risk alarming people, and actually that can pose a whole new set of risks. It’s what I call the ‘paradox of risk’: sometimes, out of a desire to keep our children safe it is tempting to deny them certain freedoms. But if we don’t get the balance right we’re at risk of not allowing them to develop the resilience, awareness, and independence they need in adult life. So we all need to take an interest in what our children are doing online – but not let our lack of knowledge deny young people the benefits of this technology, and the chance to learn how to keep themselves safe. To allow children to do that, parents need all the facts.
That’s why, last year, we asked Dr Tanya Byron to look at the risks to children from exposure to potentially harmful or inappropriate material on the internet and in video games. That review is independent and will be reporting next month, and I will read the evidence Dr Byron presents with great interest. As parents, we have to be realistic about the risks to children if we are to get the balance right between keeping them safe and allowing them the freedom to learn. And of course we need to achieve a broader balance in children’s lives, making sure they lead a healthy lifestyle, rather than cooped up in front of a computer all day like battery farmed chickens. And there are broader implications of overusing technology – for example its environmental impact – which we may not necessarily think of immediately.
The sheer amount of electricity used by the servers that power internet sites is sobering. It’s been reported that, in 2006, the major internet search engines used almost the same amount of electricity as it would take to power the whole of Las Vegas on the hottest day of the year. As citizens, we have a duty to use technology responsibly – as a complement to our daily lives rather than being bound to it. That is a lesson for young people also, who are often the most concerned about the environment. And as a government, we have a responsibility to inform parents and young people of the risks, and to get the right information out about what they can do to protect their family. One of the solutions to that is to simplify the information for parents and young people, giving them clear, practical advice that is easy to remember and incorporate into their lives. As parents, there are simple messages we can pass on to our children: Treat your password like your toothbrush – don’t let anyone else use it, for instance. Treat your email address like your home address – don’t give personal details to strangers. Most importantly, as I said earlier, we need to challenge the perception that cyberworld is governed by a different moral code to the real world. If someone’s actions constitute bullying in the real world, it’s almost certain it will be bullying in cyberworld too. The same goes for personal protection. What works in the real world can also work online, such as the old adage ‘don’t talk to strangers’. That attitude is a pretty good shield against anything. It’s the don’t talk to strangers mentality, for the cyberworld. It’s not about stopping young people from using technology, it’s about making them aware of the risks and equipping them to deal with those risks so that they don’t get in the way of making the most of the huge benefits and opportunities technology can bring. We have a collective responsibility to rise to that challenge – government, industry, service providers, law enforcement, parents, and young people themselves. Last week I visited CEOP, who are doing a fantastic job policing the streets of cyberworld. They’re also working hard to raise awareness through very effective advertising campaigns like ‘Think You Know’, and yesterday’s launch of E-Safety day. But I remain dismayed at how many service providers and social networking websites still don’t have a quick and easy mechanism for parents and young people to report offensive content or harassment. Sometimes it’s five clicks or so before you get a contact address to send complaints to. Having a clear place on every social networking site where users can report offensive content and bullying should be a priority. Crucially, it will enable the right people to take action, whether it’s cyberbullying or sinister grooming. I am pleased that many companies are in our Cyberbullying Taskforce, but I want to urge companies to work with organisations like CEOP to eradicate online threats. I think we’ve come a long way in getting the right partnerships in place to keep young people safe: The new Public Service Agreement to keep children and young people safe brings government departments together on this issue and weaves safeguarding children into the fabric of government activity. The Staying Safe Action Plan that we published last week was widely welcomed, and sets out how we will address threats to children’s safety over the next three years, including working with the Home Secretary’s Task Force on Child Protection on the Internet to counter cyberthreats, and introducing the new ICT curriculum for 14-15 year olds in September 08, with increased emphasis on internet safety. Local Safeguarding Children Boards will continue to play a leading role, coordinating local response and resources, and I thank those here today from LSCBs for their important work. BECTA’s LSCB e-safety strategy Safeguarding Children in a Digital World will be a very useful resource to them in planning and delivering that work. Looking ahead to the next 10 years of children’s services through the Children’s Plan, it is both an exciting and challenging time for children’s policy. Modern technology will play a big part in the way we deliver that strategy – through classroom learning, communicating with parents, and improved services. BECTA, the Local Safeguarding Children Boards, and all our partners, will be essential to achieving the vision of this country being the best – and the safest – place to grow up, on or offline. Children and young people will have the freedom – and the opportunities – to realise their talents. In response to the Staying Safe consultation one young person said ‘listen to children and young people, help make the environment safer so we can play and explore without parents needing to control everything we do!’ That is no less valid when we’re talking about the virtual world as it is when we’re talking about parks and playgrounds. I’m confident that, working together, we can make the world – including the cyberworld – a safer place for children. Thank you. |
