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| Dr. Vu Thu Huong believes that children need to be equipped with skills to deal with online scams. (Photo: NVCC) |
Recently, there have been a series of online scams targeting children. Although authorities have issued a series of warnings, online scams and kidnappings still exist and prey on children’s fear, lack of coping skills, self-protection, and lack of understanding of the digital world .
The World and Vietnam Newspaper had an interview with Dr. Vu Thu Huong, former lecturer of the Faculty of Primary Education , Hanoi National University of Education, about equipping children with skills from an early age, helping them proactively respond to fraudulent situations whether online or in real life.
Scams surround
The phenomenon of children running away from home due to conflicts with their families or being lured through social networks is becoming more common and leaving behind many serious consequences. In your opinion, what is the underlying cause of this situation?
Children today have a life that is too materially abundant but boring. They just go to school and then come home to play on their phones. They don’t have to do housework, they rarely have to take care of anyone, they rarely interact with society, they don’t go to the market, they don’t communicate with neighbors or the streets, so their relationships are very limited and their vision is very limited.
Children today are also very inactive. Girls are not taught to do handmade things like sewing, embroidery, knitting. Boys are not taught to fix electricity and water, make wooden objects… Children hardly participate in community activities like summer activities like before.
Children are also "blocked" from news by adults because of the notion: What do children know? Children's interest in current events makes adults worried. Because of the news blockade, children gradually form a lifestyle of indifference to current events, bewildered by very real concepts such as money laundering, white goods, stocks, conflicts... Therefore, when approached by subjects, children easily believe that the information is true and are forced to follow the subjects' instructions.
Poor life knowledge due to lack of contact with the surrounding environment, little work, little contact, too much time using electronic devices, lack of community living environment such as clubs, organizations, only classrooms and family have made children become weak and delusional.
Children are strangers to their families, sometimes even against them, while easily trusting strangers due to their shallow understanding, making them vulnerable to psychological manipulation. In addition, many children have almost zero legal knowledge, so when they encounter fraud, they are easily manipulated to varying degrees.
Meanwhile, kidnapping and fraud tricks are increasingly sophisticated, often using psychological manipulation to make children leave their families and naively fall into fraud traps. This comes from a lack of understanding, behavioral and coping skills, and also from the gap between parents and children.
Equipping children with skills early and from a distance
In the context of increasingly sophisticated scams, especially on social media platforms, children are easy targets for exploitation. So what are the most urgent skills that children need to be equipped with early to protect themselves?
Know yourself and know your enemy, and you can fight a hundred battles with no danger of defeat. The basic skills children need to know come from life and legal knowledge. If every child knows the tricks that criminals often use and the related legal knowledge, they will not be easily fooled.
There are two concepts that children need to know: There is no law that prohibits children from telling their parents if they are in legal trouble. No one in this world will give you money for free. If children know these two things, they will definitely understand that they need to tell their parents immediately if they feel in danger and they will be suspicious when someone "kindly" gives them money.
First, the family needs to remind the child many times that he must call the family no matter what happens, even if he is arrested by the (fake) police. The family should have the fastest and most effective ways to communicate and text each other. If possible, the child should share the location with the family before carrying out their requests. The child can even declare to the "fake police" that he will not do anything until his parents are there. That way, the child will have a better chance of escaping the risk of being scammed.
With principle number 2, children understand that it is not easy to receive money from others without requirements. Children need to be suspicious if someone shows willingness to give them money. With that suspicion, children can ask their parents and teachers about this situation and have a better chance of escaping danger.
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| Many online scams are flourishing. (Illustration: Internet) |
According to you, what adjustments should the education sector and schools make to supplement knowledge and life skills, especially skills in using social networks safely for students? Should this be considered a core curriculum?
In the context of strong technological development and social networks increasingly becoming an indispensable part of young people's lives, equipping students with knowledge and skills to use the Internet and social networks safely is extremely necessary. The education sector and schools cannot stand aside.
First, digital literacy and cyber safety education should be included as part of the curriculum or integrated into subjects such as Civics, Information Technology or life skills programmes. Children need to understand how to differentiate between real and fake information, how to protect their personal identity, identify online scams and cyberbullying and have a sense of ethics when interacting in the digital environment.
In addition, teachers also need to be trained in technology knowledge and skills to guide students to use social networks safely. Students cannot be expected to change if adults do not have enough knowledge to guide them.
Digital literacy education should not only be taught in the classroom but also reinforced at home. Only then will students be fully equipped to protect themselves and use technology as a useful tool rather than a potential threat. As the digital world comes into contact with the real world, online survival skills must be an essential competency for the younger generation.
I think it's time for children to have a subject that teaches them how to prevent and respond to all risks and dangerous situations in life such as fire, flood, earthquake, and even fraud, abuse, and kidnapping in various forms.
This subject should be designed from grade 1 to grade 12 with increasingly complex situations and exams and assessments. This way, children will have more knowledge and better skills to deal with situations in life.
Building a trusting relationship between parents and children
The fact that children are being lured and enticed online shows a gap in education and a lack of connection between parents and their children. How do you assess the current role of parents and what is being neglected?
I realize that parents today lack a lot of knowledge about child psychology and skills in working with children. Many people only care about studying, evaluating their children's abilities by studying and ignoring the opportunity to educate their children at home. The pressure of achievement, the pressure of life and even unreasonable educational methods have widened the gap between parents and children. This has created opportunities for bad people to approach and manipulate children.
In many families, parents do not trust their children, do not communicate with them, but trust friends and outsiders. This creates a distance between parents and children, making it difficult for parents to support their children when needed.
There are also parents who discriminate between their children, favoring one of them, causing the children to distance themselves from each other, feel sorry for themselves, and think that their parents do not love them. The children will be easy prey for bad people to approach and scam.
Many parents are worried and confused about how to properly educate their children in the digital age. As an education expert, can you suggest ways for parents to build a trusting relationship and prevent their children from being drawn into the virtual world?
The first thing we need to do is educate our children about "can/cannot/must". There are things they can do as they please, things they are absolutely forbidden from doing, and things they must do even if they don't want to.
For example, children are not allowed to leave the house without their parents' permission. Children must inform their parents if strangers approach too closely. Parents should respect their children more, minimize unnecessary interference, and talk respectfully with their children to create a good relationship with them.
In particular, parents should regularly discuss current social issues with their children. This not only provides children with a lot of knowledge in life, helps them broaden their horizons and have skills to deal with and prevent kidnapping and fraud. In particular, respectful and fair communication will help children understand and connect with their parents more.
Source: https://baoquocte.vn/chuyen-gia-giao-duc-chia-se-cach-giup-tre-ung-pho-voi-cac-chieu-tro-lua-dao-truc-tuyen-bat-coc-online-322857.html
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