“Kids are just adept at technology. They know the latest things because they’re on it all the time. […] And so we have to empower them with their own skills.”
— Diana Graber
In this Art of Allowance Podcast episode, host John Lanza speaks with guest Diana Graber about the challenges of and the strategies for raising kids in a digital world. They discuss understanding children’s developmental readiness for technology, emphasizing ethical thinking in digital spaces and balancing the risks and the benefits of an online presence. Diana highlights the importance of teaching teens to protect their finances digitally via privacy measures and scam avoidance and the dangers of oversharing online. (Both kids and adults are guilty!) She and John also explore the need for parents to advocate for digital education in schools, especially through peer learning opportunities.
Diana Graber is the author of Raising Humans in a Digital World: Helping Kids Build a Healthy Relationship with Technology and the founder of Cyberwise and Cyber Civics, two organizations devoted to digital literacy. She developed and still teaches Cyber Civics, the popular middle school digital literacy program currently in use in the US and across the globe. Diana has appeared on The Today Show and NBC Nightly News as well as in The New York Times and The Wall Street Journal. She has a B.A. in Communication Studies from UCLA and an M.A. in Media Psychology and Social Change from Fielding Graduate University.
Links (From the Show)
- Connecting with Diana
- Diana on LinkedIn
- Diana’s book, Raising Humans in a Digital World: Helping Kids Build a Healthy Relationship with Technology
- Diana’s digital literacy program, Cyber Civics
- Cyber Civis on Facebook, Instagram and X
- Diana’s digital literacy organization, Cyberwise
- Cyberwise on Facebook, Instagram and X
- Digital- and Money-Smart Mentions
- Jonathan Haidt’s book, The Anxious Generation
- John’s newsletter on Haidt’s four norms
- Michele Borba’s book, UnSelfie: Why Empathetic Kids Succeed in Our All-About-Me World
Show Notes (Find what’s most interesting to you!)
- Diana’s book’s title explains her passion. [3:05]
- What can you do to help your children use tech well? [3:52]
- The real dangers of school-age kids’ going online [4:38]
- Helping children develop “ethical thinking” [6:44]
- Why bans don’t work when it comes to digital literacy [9:19]
- How do you teach kids that something advertised as “free” online really has a price? [10:12]
- The efficacy of digital literacy in the classroom [12:47]
- Crafting a positive online persona [15:02]
- Diana explains her concept of “oversharenting.” [17:03]
- Why Diana wants a “do over” of her money-smart journey [18:47]
- Basic starting points for keeping information safe online [21:14]
- The worst-case scenario: sextortion [23:06]
- Where are teens most vulnerable online? [25:15]
- Diana shares best practices for teens to protect their personal and financial information. [29:03]
- How can you help your children avoid oversharing online? [31:33]
- Diana’s reframing of our mission to engage kids and empower parents [33:12]
- Googling yourself: a family activity related to digital reputation [35:20]
- The three literacies [37:44]
- Digital empowerment takes education. [39:19]
- Investing in face-to-face communication [40:30]
- Diana’s online and offline advice [41:36]
- A book recommendation for raising empathetic kids [41:58]
- Reaching Diana online [43:00]
- Make sure your child is being taught digital literacy! [43:37]
If you liked this episode …
Ready to start a conversation with your kids about media literacy? Media Literacy Now CEO and Founder Erin McNeill shares strategies for doing so. And just like Diana and John discuss, manipulation is a great starting point. Listen in at 37:32 for all the details, or watch the corresponding short.
Want more resources to protect your kids online? Josh Golin, the Executive Director of Fairplay, shares many recommendations to protect children from both the obvious and the subtle pitfalls of materialism and social media. For a preview of his suggestions, stream this video.
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