Online Safety in a Foreign Language - Connecting with Teens

The inescapable dangers of our increasingly connected world are likely most threatening to our young adults. Teens, especially, see social media and related online platforms as inextricable from their public and private personas. These digital natives have grown up being comfortable with sharing all aspects of their lives with the Internet - without the healthy suspicion and caution of those who have seen the technology grow over the years. The importance of protecting our teenage Internet denizens apparent, it falls to parents, teachers, and industry professionals to effectively educate this group. What follow are tested methods and associated research on relating to and informing teenagers so they might understand and properly mitigate the risks they face. Importantly, this paper explores these topics in a way that doesn't overstate the dangers or attempt to upheave the norms of communication so organic to this generation.