Annotated Version: EU Safer Internet Forum - Rethinking Responses to Young People's Online Lives

Rethinking responses to young peopleʼs online lives
Participation, protection, provision

Rethinking Responses to
Young People’s Online Lives

EU Safer Internet Forum - October 20th 2011
Practical Participation - tim@practicalparticipation.co.uk | @timdavies
Thursday, 20 October 2011


work
Local o

h
digital yout
nline en

Researching
gageme
nt

Putting the talk in contex
age 16 Iʼve been involved
t: From 2002 2011
at the
1999 intersection of Childrenʼs R
Campaigning, Youth Partic
ights 2007
ipation and
digital media.
E-Participation in Action

es
Rethinking p olicy respons


work
Local o

h
digital yout
ether
t came tog
nline en
ts ﬁrs
Tho se elemen was part in
the
when I
for m e in 2002 UN Comm
ittee
to the
delegation d as a

Researching
UK of the Chil
gageme

ts outh
o n the Righ gove rnments y
membe r of the UK ghout the
trip I
. Throu
advis ory board Global
Taking IT
nt

the
was using eﬂections
and
blog r
platform to t on the
2002 photos an
d to repor
ring t o, and to in
teract 2011
Com mittee hea home.
ople back
1999 with, youn
g pe
2007

es
Rethinking p olicy respons


work
Local o

h
digital yout
nline en

Researching
gageme
nt

2002 2011
1999 20077, working with the UK National
In 200
Y outh Agency, I was
asked to look

es
into “How were you
th workers

olicy respons
engaging with socia
l network sites?”.
So we did some surv
ey research,
some focus groups,
and some action
research - and foun
d the answer was
“generally not very w
ell”: but

Rethinking p


but, there was real potentia
l for
informal educators to enga
ge with
social media: (a) to give yo
ung people
space to critically discuss an
d explore
with their peers the role of
digital
media is playing in their liv
es;



but, there was real potentia le to
l for (b) to support young peop
informal educators to enga nce to make
ge with develop skills and resilie
unities,
ung people the most of digital opport
space to critically discuss an participate
d explore including opportunities to
with their peers the role of ciety; and
digital as equal stakeholders in so
es;



and (c) to encourage yo
but, there was real potentia le to ung people to
l for (b) to support young peop become, in the words
of a famous
informal educators to enga nce to make
ge with develop skills and resilie youth work pamphlet o
f the 1980s,
unities,
ung people the most of digital opport ʻCreators, not consum
ersʼ in the
space to critically discuss an participate
d explore including opportunities to online world.
with their peers the role of ciety; and
digital as equal stakeholders in so
es;



le, Iʼm not
rrent action on te chnology and young peop
But as I look around at cu ial. Fear, or at best chec
k-list based
g that potent
convinced we are realizin or voluntary sector supp
orted youth
are limiting public
approaches to e-Safety es through which young
people could best
ry opportuniti
engagement with the ve e digital citizens. And weʼ
re missing
d develop as activ
develop digital literacy an online safety because of
our current
to improve
hundreds of opportunities
strategies.



work
Local o

h
digital yout
nline en

Researching
gageme
nt

ponsesʼ to yo ung people
at how we sh ould be ʻRethinking Res
So I came to look
and the Internet 2002 2011
wn to the way we
est that in part comes do
1999
In this presentation Iʼm go
ing to sugg
young people and the Internet. Both in the
use of an 2007
frame our responses to and in the
direct and resear ch Internet safety work,
tunity-riskʼ dichotomy to t to the Internet.

es
ʻoppor
ʼ frequently drive policy making with respec

olicy respons
way that common ʻmyths
hts of the Child
the idea that the U N Convention on the Rig
Iʼm going to put forward fer digital
framework for thin king about supporting sa
can offer a richer conceptual
lives.

Rethinking p


Three core inputs

Youth work online month of action: www.youthworkonline.org.uk

Rethinking responses paper: http://bit.ly/oJKVOd

Challenging myths workshop: www.ycig.org

I draw upon three key inpu
ts into this presentation:
- The experiences of the Yo
uth Work Online network of
exploring digital media in w over 1000 practitioners
ork with young people;
- A recent paper on Rethink
ing Responses presented
at EU Kids Go Online
- A recent workshop at the
Internet Governance Forum
ʻChallenging Mythsʼ to youn in Nairobi that looked at
g people and the Internet.



The current frame

So what is the current fram
ing? Well, looking at recent
events, the phrase that cons conference papers and
tantly returns is ʻopportunity
and riskʼ.



So letʼs take a look at the
dominant framing of Inte
opportunity and risk. rnet safety work:

Since early UK Children G
o Online work, quite possib
about the Internet and youn ly long before, questions
g people have been framed
and risks. We might sugges in terms of opportunities
t this was an attempt to ba
otherwise have been just ab lance a framing that would
out ʻrisksʼ, and in that sens
framing is useful. e, an opportunity-risk

“…online opportunities and risks go hand in hand: the
more children and young people experience the one, the
more they also experience the other, and vice-versa.”
Livingstone & Bober, UK Children Go Online, 2005



d, much
ted as thin gs that go hand-in-han
And yet, ra ther than being presen as if they were two sid
es of a
s and risks
policy ma king treats opportunitie nity.
on reducing risks can raise opportu
b alance: as if focussing

Risk Opportunity



d, much
ted as thin gs that go hand-in-han
And yet, ra ther than being presen as if they were two sid
es of a
s and risks
policy ma king treats opportunitie nity.
on reducing risks can raise opportu
b alance: as if focussing

port unity
Op

R isk



and in
rch that op portunity and risk go h
But if we ta ke seriously the resea shing down
just push-do wn risk without also pu
h and, weʼre not able to
opportunities.

Risk Opportunity



and in
rch that op portunity and risk go h
But if we ta ke seriously the resea shing down
just push-do wn risk without also pu
h and, weʼre not able to
opportunities.

Opportunity

Risk



that
be the ʻhea vierʼ concept: the one
And as Risk in policy making tends to in the past
ung people are involved: we have
gets m ore attention when yo ol of fear-based mess
aging that are
locking, contr
ende d up with policies of b elf-expression, to play,
to creativity
n rights to s
very w illing to compromise o
ge risks.
and s o-on in order to mana

Risk Opportunity



The frami
ng has a s
And yet m econd pro
uch resea blem: risk
exposure rch and pr is not nec
to risk, wit actice foc essarily b
constructi h o u t l o o ki usses on ad. Harm
ng logic m ng at how measuring is.
between r odels or n frequently and reduc
isks and h arrative th risks lead ing
arms. at show th to harms,
e mediatin or
g factors

Risk Opportunity



Broken frames drive bad policies




1] Mis-use of blocking and ﬁltering





2] Confusing of risk to organisations with risk to individuals






3] Neglect of digital divides







4] Downplaying the full range of Children’s Rights







4] Downplaying the full range of Children’s Rights

5] Inspiring ineffective safety campaigns



about young
n alternativ e framing for thinking
Before I go on to sketch out a out a few quotes from
last months
ant to draw
people ʼs online lives, I just w and the Internetʼ work
shop at the
ng people
ʻChalle nging myths about you rly useful in
orum, wh ich think were particula a polarising
Internet Governance F a deﬁcit approach, or
ove beyond
highlig hting how, when we m and capacity building
approaches.
r education
mode l, we can identify bette

Challenging myths
Moving beyond deﬁcit-focussed models and polarised claims



Myth: Young people are digital natives,
or digitally naive

“...the tendency to pigeonhole young people into
one category or the other prevents us from
developing a deeper understanding of diverse
youth experiences of networked media, and how
individuals can have different experiences at
different times and in different spaces.”
Sheba Mohammid



Myth: Young people don’t care about privacy

“ ...if we were given more of a knowledge of what
privacy is and how we can protect ourselves, youth
would be more personally invested in action.”

g peopleʼs
Dalby focus sed on exploring youn
Kellye Coleman and Conner ency of information ca
mpaigns to
ting the tend
attitud es to privacy: highligh to convince young peo
ple to care
t they have
start fr om an assumption tha nd Conner argued tha
t young
ast, Kellye a
about their privacy. By contr what young people ne
ed (and
y, but that
people care a lot about privac ive information and gu
idance to
d) is support
d, what most of us nee d reasons
indee
fy good strategies for
managing pri vacy, and to have goo
t if they are not
Kellye Coleman
identi re importan
v acy-protecting steps a
given for why extra pri
.
already being adopted
se, but a
for informati on about ʻprivacyʼ per
Kelly e outlines a desire not ontexts.
t privacy in particular c
detailed dialogue abou EU Safer Internet Forum - October 20th 2011


Myth: Social media is addictive
“The Internet is all your favourite things in one
place. When your favourite things change you just
add another thing. It's not addiction, just having a
really fun time kind of thing. Having all your
favourite things in one place. Who wouldn't want
Dan Skipper to be on that?”

The phrase ʻInternet Addictio
nʼ is a one that particularly fru
our young panelists in Nairobi strated many of
. Perhaps the response to th
application of this term to youn e general
g peopleʼs online behaviours
summed up in one blog post was best
on this workshop, which note
Internet addiction; then we m d that “If we call it
ight as well call any time spen
fun an addiction”. t on something



Myth: The Internet is a free, anarchic
playground
“The myth is that young people think the Internet
is all free. It's all open and whatever you do, it does
not yield any negative consequences... The opposite
is actually the truth...

Many fear the Internet is under surveillance which
leads to serious chilling effects or freedom of Max Kall
expression and democratic participation. ”

some risks
hi ghlight that we canʼt simply list
The responses to these myths o muchʼ
ta lking to strangers; spending ʻto
(e.g. disclosure of information; er analysis
move them. We need a far deep
time online) and then look to re gs the
pe ople, and shared understandin
based on dialogue with young a digital world.
diverse dynamics of young peopleʼs experiences of


A new frame?

place
e oppo rtunity-risk tension. Well, the
So how can we get beyond th of the
ithin th e UN Convention on the Rights
Iʼve looked for a framework is w
Child.



UNCRC
Protection

Participation

Provision
The convention is the most w
idely agreed International tre
rights ascribed to all those un aty: framed in 1989 and cove
der 18. It includes a subtle ap ring a wide range of
and whilst encouraging adults preciation of the ʻevolving ca
to act in the best interests of pacities of the childʼ,
views of young people are fu any child or young person, re
ndamental to decisions made cognizes that the
about their lives.
The rights in the UNCRC are
commonly divided into three
Participation Rights. groups: Provision Rights; Pro
tection Rights; and

United Nations Convention on the Rights of the Child


Pr
n
io

ov
ct

isi
e

on
ot
Pr
Participation

The UNCRC is the most widel
y agreed International treaty:
rights ascribed to all those un framed in 1989 and covering
der 18. It includes a subtle ap a wide range of
and whilst encouraging adults preciation of the ʻevolving ca
to act in the best interests of pacities of the childʼ,
views of young people are fu any child or young person, re
ndamental to decisions made cognizes that the
about their lives.
The rights in the UNCRC are
commonly divided into three
Participation Rights. groups: Provision Rights; Pro
tection Rights; and



So what would this mean in th
e context of Internet safety?
rights within a clear structure. Well, it helps us locate young
peopleʼs various
Telling us whether we start fro
m protection, participation or
professional, or an Internet S provision, as an e-safety expe
ervice provider, we each need rt, a participation
guide to actions we should ta to consider related rights of yo
ke. ung people as a
!



on key
g people to pa rticipate in decision making
in terested in supporting youn
So for example, I might be ered sensitive.
issues that might be consid
social issues, possibly even
ion of
, is not realized in isolation from the provis
pr ession, a participation right regulation and
-The right to freedom of ex to take place, nor in the absence of laws,
ort that enables expression expression.
spaces and supp ion, abuse or harm as a result of their free
ung person from discriminat
responses that protect a yo
!



le was
for young Gyp sy and Traveller young peop
ple, Savvy Chavvy, a social network site set up selves, particularly importan
t for many
For exam express them
iﬁ c group of young people to le attention to
created as space for a spec ebook. The project has paid considerab
who had been expe riencing racist abuse on Fac eping who was allowed in the space, and
that it was
sa fe, with moderators gateke volved in itʼs
ensuring the provision was tting the rules of the space and getting in
participative, with young people involved in se
ent.
moderation and managem


Support digital citizenship

Empower young people

Respond to risks

Promote resiliency

Provide positive spaces

Youth shaped services

!


late, we can ad
d Support digital citizenship
the th ree-P’s re xpress what
o expr ess how oe
rinciple t of the triangle
T one p
six p rinciples: e on each side ts), Empower young people
ook lik lar set of righ
re sponses l ussed on a particu tion - showing
foc sec
(r esponses ciple at each inter areas of rights
rin ing
and one p ually re-enforc Respond to risks
how t hese mut relate.

Promote resiliency



!




Respond to risks

Promote resiliency



So if we’re researching e-part
icipation,
we should ask how it empow
ers young
people with skills to manage
their safety
online, and how young people
are
shaping the provision of part
icipative
spaces.
!




Respond to risks

Promote resiliency

n policy, w
e Provide positive spaces
tectio
lann ing a pro uilds on young
If we’re p k at how it b s in
to loo articipant
need ed p
empower , and how we Youth shaped services
people as protection
their own ote resiliency.
prom

!




Respond to risks

Promote resiliency



Etc...

!


!


how
t mode l: a sketch of
This is just a draf frames for th
inking
rnative
we can ﬁnd alte lives
about yo ung people’s

Reﬁning a
model tha
depth of i t
nsights int can capture the
technolog o yo
y that rese ung people and
people’s o
wn voices arch, and young
foundation o
s of the U ffer us; the strong
simplicity; NCRC; an
will take m d a need f
ore work. or

!




Respond to risks

Promote resiliency



But the tr
iangle of
way to ta rights doe
ke any st s give us
widen ou arting po a
r perspec int, and
response tive on ap
s to supp propriate
lives. orting saf
er online

!


Where next?



Where next?
g,
ty-ris k framin
n an o pportuni ncourag
ed
estio oe
r e next? dy ou to qu I hop e Iʼve als
So: whe convince rnative. e) in
o pe Iʼve for an alte da challeng
Well, I h er the need s a resource (an
and to consid e UNCRC a
t th
you to look a ing.
ng that fram
developi



Where next?

A number of people Iʼve di
scussed the Three-P model
take it and just slot it within with have tried to
their existing work: an extr
about e-Safety. But I donʼt a slide in the deck
think it can work like that: itʼ
broader challenge to Intern s intended as a
et safety policy making; an
policy, which in many cont d indeed to youth
exts fails to ﬁnd root in the
UNCRC.



Where next?

have their place.
Information based campaigns
on access to
Negotiated, transparent and proportional restrictions
to play.
technologies or online spaces have a role
better
ortin g young people to live safer,
But these are just part of supp sing many
lives in a digital world. And in most cases weʼre mis ung
mprom ise of the full realization of yo
components and risking a co
peopleʼs rights.
fact, itʼs already
Fortunately, I think the time is right for rethinking. In n, Iʼve
a lin e of critique in this presentatio
going on. Although Iʼve taken th Work
ussi ons at this years annual ʻYou
been encouraged that the disc to build
ce w ere much more about projects
Onlineʼ open space conferen ks to
king around local government bloc
digital literacy, than about wor
digital engagement.



Where next?

Emerging good practice
is out there. And the chan
rights based responses fu ce to develop
rther is here.



Continue the conversation...

www.youthworkonline.org.uk

www.ycig.org

www.timdavies.org.uk

@timdavies


Annotated Version: EU Safer Internet Forum - Rethinking Responses to Young People's Online Lives

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