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Computers In Your Child's Bedroom

In the news recently there has been discussions about online sexual predators meeting children and teenagers after having talked with them on various websites. Some parents were not aware this was going on since the computer being used was in the child's bedroom.

Do you allow your child to have a computer in his/her room? How much do you monitor the child's activity if the computer is in his/her room?

When I'm fortunate enough to have kids, I would keep the computer in a common room so that I can look over their shoulder occasionally. This may seem like an invasion of privacy, but when it's your child's life and innocence at stake I think that you have to be very vigilant in keep tabs on your child.

Bedroom Childs Your Computers

I may sound overprotective but a computer in a child's bedroom is a "No-No" for me (it does not matter the age of the child as long as he/she is living on my house). My son who just turned 6 use the computer I use and is located in a common room next to his father's computer. We have a special browser where he can only access certain sites and nothing else.

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My 11-year old daughter is allowed to use the computer, but it is not in her room. It is in an open area where we can easily see where she is on the Internet. I won't be putting a computer in her room anytime soon, and if I do, it either won't have Internet access, or will have restricted Internet access as I see fit.

Bedroom Childs Your Computers

I agree with all of you. Having a computer in a bedroom or other out-of-sight location also makes it easier for the user to do things that they should not be doing, because they know that no one else is around to see what they are dong.

Bedroom Childs Your Computers

I heartily agree with everyone -- the computer stays in a public area of the house, never where the kid can be unobserved online.

Having said that, kids will find ways to circumvent your supervision and authority, particularly if they have found a "friend" online who asks them to do something in secret. My son as a teenager had this happen, and only by chance did I discover that a woman in her mid 30's (as old as I was at the time) had mesmerized him. I believe there is another thread about this where the whole story is told.

My point is, don't just trust that because the computer is in a public place and you've placed restrictions on it that your kids will be safe. Check their email, check their chat logs, check I. M. logs (and make sure you have it set up to log everything that they do before they do it), check their online history of websites visited ~ if their history shows up empty, they've wiped it out and you need to find out why. This is not an invasion of privacy, but a necessary supervisory function for parents in today's world.

In my opinion, of course.
Roz

Edited: FarSeer on 9th Apr, 2006 - 10:46pm

Computers In Your Child's Bedroom

On that note there are many programs out there that are geared towards monitoring a family or childs computer for an easy way to do all of this. I personally recommend "I Am Big Brother" which I have included a link for. You can download a demo and purchase it direct from the web site. I have personally used this program and find it is be a very easy interface for monitoring just about everything.

I Am Big Brother

Computers Your Child's Bedroom

Thanks FarSeer for including your personal story. I hope your son is doing well now. Today's teenagers are so computer savvy that they can find ways around the protection you place. Parents have to constantly keep the lines of communication open to know what's going. I know many families may get wrapped up in the daily chores of life (school, work, chores) that maybe they forget to take the time to sit down with their children and find out what's going on. I agree with FarSeer in that you do have to investigate the computer logs to know what's going on and when something seems suspect, discuss it with the child.

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I also believe that limiting access to Internet tools such as Email and Instant Messenger accounts is also key. My daughter does not have her own email address or any instant messenger accounts, even though all of her friends have both. It is my belief that she can communicate with her friends at school or over the phone, and there is no need for her to use the Internet to talk to her friends. Not having these 'tools' has, in my opinion, limited what she has access too online. I know it is not the answer to everything, but it is a good start.