Database: Web Sites for Children

Media and Internet competence are among the key qualifications that need to be acquired at an early age. For today’s children, the Internet is not only a leisure-time medium but also a learning medium, which they already come into contact with in primary school. How do children deal with the Internet in their leisure time and at school? What sort of sites do they encounter and what role do their social environment and different learning contexts play in beneficial ways of dealing with the Internet? Can different styles of usage of the computer and Internet lead to educational disadvantaging of children?

The web site ‘Children and the Internet’ provides information about projects commissioned by the Federal Ministry for Education and Research that have been in progress at the German Youth Institute since 1999. This site provides interim findings from ongoing projects and articles discussing completed projects. The information is supplemented with references to the current literature, educational materials that can be recommended, and media protection measures for children and young people.