Social, Legal, and Ethical Writing Project The internet can be a powerful tool if used properly.

Issues that occur every day include: cyber-bullying, plagiarism, child predators, and a digital divide between different genders and ethnicities. These issues can influence education on all levels. Cyber-bullying is a form of teen violence, using technology, like cell phones and the internet, to bully and harass another person. A few different forms of cyber-bullying are: sending mean messages or threats to a person's email account or cell phone, spreading rumors online or through texts, posting hurtful or threatening messages on social networking sites or web pages, etc. These things can lead to anxiety, depression, or even suicide (Bullying Statistics). An overwhelming, 81% of youth agree that bullying online is easier to get away with than bullying in person (Internet Safety). Children not only need to be protected from their peers, but from sexual predators as well. Using Internet communication tools such as, mobile phones, social networking, online gaming, chat rooms, email, and instant messaging can put children at potential risk of encountering online predators (Online Predators). Predators use multiple strategies to seduce their targets. Some of those strategies are, giving them attention, being kind to them, listening to and sympathizing with their problems, giving them gifts, and connecting with them through music and hobbies (Online Predators). Parents can protect their child from sexual predators by doing the following things: filtering and blocking websites, block outgoing content, such as personal information, to chat rooms or emails, and limiting the amount of time online (Ongaurd Online).

Plagiarism is another problem that can arise from the use of the internet. Plagiarism is turning in someone elses work as your own, copying words or ideas from someone else without giving credit, failing to put a quote in quotation marks, etc. (What is Plagiarism). Between 2010 and 2011, over 35 million papers were submitted to turnitin.com. There were over 128 million content matches from these papers on the web (Lepi, Katie). That is from just one plagiarism checking program alone. Tips for avoiding plagiarism include: know what is and is not plagiarism, take notes before writing your paper, and make sure you give credit to the original authors when working on your paper (Plagiarism Prevention). When in doubt, cite your source. White children have a greater risk than African American and Latino children of being exposed to one of the above issues due to the digital divide among ethnicities. The digital divide is the discrepancy between people who have access to and the resources to use new information and communication tools, such as the Internet, and people who do not have the resources and access to the technology (Digital Divide). African American and Latinos are much less likely to have access to a computer with internet at home than are Whites. 40.5% of African Americans and 38.1% of Latinos have access to home computers with internet, where as 67.3% of Whites have access to computers with internet at home (Fairlie, Robert). That is a difference of 26.8% between African Americans and Whites and 29.2% between Latinos and Whites. These gaps could be what lead to educational learning gaps in many schools. There is a much smaller gap in the digital divide between genders in developed countries as opposed to race and socioeconomic status divides. The percentage of men to

women who use the Internet is reported for the following developed countries: Australia: 74% to 71%, New Zealand: 78% to 77%, Singapore: 69% to 54%, and United Kingdom: 68% to 65%. The two exceptions to this trend seem to be Sweden:75% of men online and 78% of women and the United States: 71% men to 73% women (Hilbert, Martin). Of the six countries listed above, the digital divide between genders is the greatest in Singapore and the least in New Zealand. In conclusion, students using the Internet for social media, research, or just for fun should be aware of all of the possible issues that they may encounter, such as, cyber-bullying, online predators, and plagiarism. Educators and parents are the key to eliminating these potential problems. They have the opportunity to educate students on ways to prevent cyberbullying, online predators, and plagiarism. Educators should be aware of the digital divides between race and gender in their own classrooms and guide instruction with the above information in mind.

Works Cited "Cyber Bullying Statistics." - Bullying Statistics. N.p., 2009. Web. 28 Sept. 2013. <http://www.bullyingstatistics.org/content/cyber-bullying-statistics.html>.

"Cyberbullying Statistics." InternetSafety101.org: Statistics. Enough Is Enough, 2009-2013. Web. 28 Sept. 2013. <http://www.internetsafety101.org/cyberbullyingstatistics.htm>.

Fairlie, Robert W. "Are We Really A Nation Online?" Www.civilrights.org. N.p., 20 Sept. 2005. Web. 28 Sept. 2013. <http://civilrights.org/publications/nation-online/digitaldivide.pdf>.

Hilbert, Martin. Digital gender divide or technologically empowered women in developing countries? A typical case of lies, damned lies, and statistics. Womens Studies International Forum, 34(6), 479-489. Web. 28 Sept.2013 < http://www.martinhilbert.8m.net/DigitalGenderDivide.pdf>

Lepi, Katie. "The Current State Of Plagiarism In Education." Edudemic. Edudemic, 27 Jan. 2013. Web. 28 Sept. 2013. <http://www.edudemic.com/plagiarism-in-education/>.

"Online Predators: Help Minimize the Risk." Online Predators. N.p., 2013. Web. 28 Sept. 2013. <http://www.microsoft.com/security/family-safety/predators.aspx>."Parental Controls |

OnGuard Online." Parental Controls | OnGuard Online. N.p., Sept. 2011. Web. 28 Sept. 2013. <http://www.onguardonline.gov/articles/0029-parental-controls>.

"Plagiarism Prevention: A Guide for Students - Delta State University." Academics. Delta State University, 2013. Web. 28 Sept. 2013. <http://www.deltastate.edu/academics/libraries/libraryguides/roberts-laforge-guides/plagiarism-prevention-a-guide-for-students/>.

"What Is Plagiarism? - Plagiarism.org." Plagiarism.org. IParadigms, 2013. Web. 28 Sept. 2013. <http://www.plagiarism.org/plagiarism-101/what-is-plagiarism>.

"Digital Divide." Webopedia. Queen Street Enterprise, 2013. Web. 28 Sept. 2013. <http://www.webopedia.com/TERM/D/digital_divide.html>.