1 . How to Protect Against Undue Influence Online

The potential for undue influence has become increasingly significant in this era of digital interconnectivity. Undue influence can affect our perceptions and influence our decisions. It may even end anger our autonomy (自主) and mental health.     1    

Understand what undue influence is

The first step to protecting yourself is understanding what undue influence is. Undue influence refers to a situation in which an individual or group employs unreasonable control over another person’s behavior information, thoughts, and emotions.     2     Disinformation campaigns, persuasive advertising, and even content designed to cause fear, uncertainty, or dependency may often appear online.

Develop media literacy skills

In an age of fake news, it is crucial to develop media literacy skills.     3     Become a consumer who can tell the quality of information, identify the source, check for credibility, and look for your unconscious assumptions and preferences.

    4    

Delete as much data as you can about yourself. Be mindful of what information you share online, and always ensure that your online activities are secured through reliable sources. Review all policies on platforms, especially “free” ones. If you aren’t paying, then you are the product, as in many cases, they are selling your data.

By including these steps into your digital life, you can protect yourself from undue influence in the online world, ensuring that you can think and act independently, free from ill control.

    5     It is your mind. Only you should control it!

A．Prioritize privacy

B．Be mindful of free ones

C．It’s vital to have a health y Internet and real-life balance.

D．In the digital world, undue influence can take many forms.

E．Everyone deserves the right to live free from undue influence.

F．They involve analyzing, evaluating, and creating media in various forms.

G．Here are some essential strategies for you to protect yourself online from undue influence.

2 . The case for and against social media

Is social media harmful to teenagers?     1     Social media sites have been blamed for most of the world’s social problems from feeling disconnected and lonely to having difficulty forming meaningful relationships. Yet, many of us feel a need to use social media because it offers something we cannot find elsewhere, despite knowing the downsides.     2    

An argument for social media claims it can strengthen social bonds by facilitating relationships with people in different geographical areas. For example, social media has helped old school friends to get back in touch after many years without contact.     3     These are real benefits of using social media.

    4     The argument used by many people is that interactions on social media are no substitute for face-to-face communication. When you are out with friends how many times do they check their phones? for example.     5     Research highlights it is far more satisfying to physically laugh out loud in real life rather than to replace the act with a typed representation of laughter such as “haha” or “LOL”.       

Ideally, we should have enough self-control to be able to limit our use of social media, enjoying the benefits it can bring.

A．The disadvantages of social media.

B．In my opinion, the disadvantages of social media outweigh the benefits.

C．It is all too easy to become absorbed in this online life rather than communicate in real life.

D．People secure jobs now through social media or research information for their studies.

E．This is the question we are going to examine.

F．We will look at the arguments for and against using social media before answering the question.

G．We aim to control our use of social media.

3 . T. S. Eliot wrote of “Distracted from distraction by distraction /Filled with fancies and empty of meaning.” T. S. Eliot never had a smartphone.

Neither did I for a long time. No Facebook account; not even email. But according to my date of manufacture, I’m supposed to be a digital native. Perhaps it’s because by the age of 20 I was living in the Welsh countryside with no signal and no Wi-Fi.

When I finally fell into the digital world, I fell hard. Unlike my friends for whom social media and mobile technology had grown and flowered around them, for me it was a sudden immersion. I got Facebook, Twitter and Gmail accounts at the same time that I got an iPhone 4. I would check my phone; five minutes later I would check my phone again. I was addicted and it started to affect my relationships with friends and family

One night, without a word, I abandoned my iPhone and bought a Nokia 3310 and became the talk of the town. Soon I became aware that not only had I stolen secret time back from the hurried days, but somehow a secret space as well. I could stretch out, free to think again, to be wholly creative and to learn meaningfully.

But, wherever I went I got bloody lost. Wandering blindly around London, only to miss appointments, became a frequent pastime (消遣). What did we do before Google Maps? I was useless. The change was worth it, though. I’ll sound like an overstatement but I think it changed my life. My choices are broader and healthier because I’m not being screamed at all day.

I bought a new Samsung phone last week. I had been scared of the rate of progress, crying: “Stop the train! Stop the madness.” But I want to be part of building the future, and to do that, you’ve got to swim in contemporary waters. Rejecting the modern world doesn’t help anyone. It slows you down and I need to be efficient. Time will tell whether I’ve mastered the wisdom to reject constantly checking my phone.

1. What can be learned about the author when she lived in the Welsh countryside?

A．She read a lot of T. S. Eliot.	B．She had no friends to talk with.
C．She had no access to the Internet.	D．She was afraid of the digital world.

2. Why did the author buy the Nokia 3310?

A．She thought she needed a spare phone.	B．She found her iPhone stopped working.
C．She wanted to attract people’s attention.	D．She hoped to break her smartphone addiction.

3. What happened after the author used the Nokia 3310?

A．She led a simple and healthy life.	B．She found her life was in a mess.
C．She spent more time with her friends.	D．She became an example for other people.

4. For what purpose did the author buy the Samsung phone?

A．To seek wisdom.	B．To stop her madness.
C．To keep pace with the times.	D．To get back to the real world.

4 . Safer Internet Activities

To help schools promote safer Internet messages to families, beyond Safer Internet Day, the Education Safeguarding Service’s Online Safety Team has worked with Kent Children’s University to produce a Safer Internet Day Challenge pack for children aged 5 to 14.

This pack contains 10 key challenge activity ideas, as well as useful resources for children, schools and families to access. The Challenge will run until 31 June so there is plenty of time to get involved.

The Safer Internet Day Challenge starts with schools and families today and you can find the resources here. So why not send the activities home to your parents or caregivers so families can get involved?

Young people who are part of Kent Children’s University can earn a varying number of Learning Credits for each activity completed outside normal school time.

More Information

For more information about Education Safeguarding, please visit the Education Safeguarding Service website.

If your school would be interested in finding out more about Kent Children’s University (either the school or family models or both), please email kcu@theeducationpeople.org. For more information, please visit the Kent Children’s University website.

Share Your Safer Internet Day Stories With Us

We encourage teachers and staff working with children and young people aged 3 to 18 in educational settings to share their Safer Internet Day stories, displays or activities on the Safer Internet Day website! Don’t forget to tag@UK_SIC and @TheEdPeople into any posts you share.

1. Who are the activities intended for?

A．University students.	B．Children aged 5 to 14.
C．People aged 3 to 18.	D．School teachers and staff.

2. What can students of Kent Children’s University get from the activities?

A．Student aids.	B．Full-time caregivers.
C．Extra credits.	D．Educational resources.

3. Where can Safer Internet Day stories be shared?

A．Safer Internet Day website.

B．kcu@theeducationpeople.org.

C．Kent Children’s University website.

D．Education Safeguarding Service website.

5 . We’re fortunate to have access to the dynamic network technology, which provides rich resources for learning, connecting and entertaining ourselves.     1     The same tool that can enhance our work efficiency also has the power to trap us in a web of distractions (分心之事).

    2     An astonishing 84.4% of us, on average, report being distracted at work. There are some usual suspects. Emails steal the attention of 26%. Phone calls and texts influence a massive 43%. Coworkers shift the attention of 27%. And the Internet, with its infinite source of information and entertainment, distracts 41% of us. What’s more, a survey reveals that an overwhelming 67% of workers say that their work is often affected by the excessive time spent on meetings and calls.

These distractions are more than mere annoyances.     3     It is their lasting impact that makes it impossible for us to focus on any single task. In this way, they greatly reduce our work efficiency.

A study offers more insight into our struggle with distractions. It found that our brain waves pulsate (搏动) at different frequencies depending on the type of external stimuli. The rhythm is faster for automatic stimuli but slows down for tasks we consciously choose to focus on.     4    

Just think about it: You’re involved in a project, and then your phone receives a text message.     5     And regaining your focus might be harder than you anticipate, The same goes for that catchy news headline or an interesting social media post that catches your eye-pulling you away from your task and making you lost in the sea of distractions.

A．But it is double-edged.

B．Some distractions can be avoided.

C．Statistics reveal how common this issue is.

D．They’re also persistent and endless in getting our attention.

E．The sound of it is loud enough to interrupt your concentration.

F．Stimulating our interest and increasing the speed of our work are important.

G．This makes maintaining focus in the noisy world an ever-increasing challenge.

6 . Family vlogging — the frequent recording and uploading of personal videos of the family, usually on video sharing website — has become big business nowadays, especially among parents of young children. The more viewers such videos can get, the more money the family can make. At first thought, it does seem like an easy way to make money. However, are we doing right by putting their lives up for public attention?

For one thing, as the children grow up, they increasingly become aware that what they do needs to be admirable enough for the public to enjoy — Being young children, they also would want to do whatever it takes to please others. They then feel the pressure to be perfect, and as that is something not always possible, they become anxious and stressed. Comments from viewers and the expectations of sponsors (赞助者) can also affect the parents’ reactions towards their children.

Another problem is the lack of privacy in the children’s lives. As the children reach adolescence, there is a greaser need for personal space. At 12 or 13, very few children would appreciate being filmed while eating or having a conversation with their friends. Teenhood is a time of significant change in an individual, both physically and emotionally, and is a time when parents need to protect their children and guide them, instead of exposing them to the eyes of the public.

Family vlogging can be irresistible, given how it allows parents to bring greater fun to their family lives. There is also the easy money and the fame to look forward to. Indeed, all would probably go well, but only as long as parents keep in mind that, if not managed well, making their children live their lives in the unforgiving eyes of the public could prove to be a big mistake.

1. How does vlogging about children’s lives influence the family?

A．Children will get used to public attention.

B．Children may suffer from too much pressure.

C．Parents may show no concern for their children.

D．Parents become addicted to exposing their children to the public.

2. How does the writer mainly develop his argument?

A．By providing examples	B．By listing numbers
C．By making comparisons	D．By analyzing causes

3. What’s the writer’s purpose of writing the text?

A．To introduce a new big business

B．To show how vlogging influence people’s lives.

C．To persuade parents to watch out for comments from viewers.

D．To convince parents of the danger of vlogging about children’s lives.

4. What’s the writer’s attitude to vlogging about children’s lives?

A．negative

B．positive

C．neutral

D．uninterested

7 . Sometimes the people least likely to engage with Twitter, Facebook, Instagram, or Zoom are the people who can benefit from it the most.

The “silent generation”, or those born between 1928 and 1945, aren’t usually mentioned alongside the likes of Twitter, Facebook, and Instagram. A study this year said that 45 percent of people over 65 use social media sites. Yet, for the majority of seniors, it is more about gathering information than sharing things about themselves.

For example, AARP has pointed out that Facebook’s largest function for older folks has been helping them keep in touch with their families, especially their grandchildren. But this doesn’t really reflect the digital connectivity (连接) many elders are experiencing.

BJ, a friend who just turned 80, does not own a computer, yet he’s one of the 4 out of 10 seniors with a smartphone, which never leaves his side. For him social media is purely social — no grandkids, just people from every stage of his eight decades. It has kept him youthful and connected. He has figured out how to make Facebook and Instagram work for him by asking his younger friends for help when he gets stuck.

Jesse Epstein, who has been teaching in a college for 44 years.He moved to Costa Rica with his wife and young child four years ago when he was 70. “I wouldn’t be able to live the life I now lead without the assistance of Zoom, Google Classroom, WhatsApp, and Microsoft Teams,” Epstein tells me on the phone, speaking from his home in Tamarindo. “My current students are all masters-level schoolteachers. I use Zoom to observe and evaluate how well they incorporate (融入) these technologies into their lessons live in the classroom. I was surprised by how much more attentive students seemed to be online than they typically were in the classroom receiving the same material.”

He keeps in touch in a very real way with friends he’s known for decades. “Networking technologies have supported all my life choices and helped me and my family achieve a level of freedom and independence which I didn’t think was possible for someone in their mid-seventies,” he adds.

1. Why are the elderly called the “silent generation”?

A．They hardly share personal experiences online.

B．They are too shy to deliver a speech in public.

C．They never keep in touch with others online.

D．They are unfortunately speech-impaired.

2. Why does the author take BJ as an example?

A．To express good attitudes towards life.

B．To explore possible ways to stay young.

C．To reflect the popularity of Facebook.

D．To show the real social connection.

3. Which is not the benefit of networking technologies according to Jesse Epstein?

A．Students are more likely to concentrate on the class.

B．All his life choices are backed by online technologies.

C．He can improve his teaching skills and methods.

D．His family members have freedom and independence.

4. What can be a suitable title for the text?

A．Social Media Gives the Silent Generation a Voice

B．Social Apps Are Welcomed by People of All Ages

C．Networking Technologies Are a Double-edged Sword

D．The Silent Generation Are Eager for Connectivity

8 . Cyber-bullying (网络欺凌) may take place in the online world, but it is no less damaging than in the real world. The Internet has become a kindness desert, a place where few flowers bloom. Bullying is pretty common.     1     According to those bullied, they’re usually seen as being different from the crowd. They are unique.

Being bullied is a frustrating and painful experience. Online bullying can really hurt others, and it can have serious consequences.     2     Some people have even committed suicide because they were harassed (侵扰) online and didn’t think it would ever stop. Here are some valuable tips to help you address a bully and protect yourself in a safe way.

Don’t blame yourself.     3     It’s only the bully’s fault, so don’t blame yourself for his or her shortcomings.

Stay away from bullies. Bullies hope you interact with them so that they have an excuse to keep picking on you. When the bully starts orally attacking you, remove yourself from the situation if you can, simply by walking away.

    4     Try as you might to ignore the bullies when they are saying ugly things about you. Remind yourself that you are a great person and that nothing the bullies say matters.

Speak out. Nobody has the right to make you feel unsafe, uncomfortable or unhappy. Find someone you can talk to, your teacher or your parent and tell them what’s going on.     5     Follow these tips and you should feel well-equipped to deal with your bullies the next time they attack.

A．Keep track of bullies.

B．Be sure you’re wonderful.

C．Adults can offer help if they know about the problem.

D．Being bullied can make you feel alone, scared, and hopeless.

E．Your parents are willing to help you when recognizing your problem.

F．If you are being bullied, it’s essential to know that it is never your fault.

G．Studies have found that nearly one-third of all students are bullied each year.

9 . Due to social events in recent years, the relationship between social media and teenagers mental health has been under heated discussion.

On Sept 30, a British court decided that content on social media platforms contributed to the depression of 14-year-old Molly Russell. Russell interacted with 2,100 posts related to pessimistic, self-harm in the six months, leading up to her depression, reported the Observer website.

The correlation has also been proved by science. A study in 2019 showed that the frequent use of social media by teenagers can lead to a decrease in their mental health.

So, how can we make sure that teenagers won’t get hurt while using social media? Chan, 18, from the University of Macao shared her experience. Chan said that she once came across short videos romanticizing mental illnesses such as depression and anxiety. She immediately reported them to the platform.

But she said that the users’ power to regulate videos is still limited. “It is ultimately the responsibility of the social media platforms to filter out content that is potentially harmful.” She also noticed that the age of social media users has become increasingly younger. Society should pay attention to this, she said. “Since it’s not possible to cut off access to social media for younger users, why not introduce a ‘supervision mode’ with which parents can regulate the content to be viewed by teenagers beforehand?” she said.

Wu Chengyu, 18, studies at Tianjin Experimental High School. He said that several years ago he came across a game that lures teenagers to self-abuse and depression. He quickly chose to ignore it so he wouldn’t be influenced. This is the same way he reacts when exposed to negative content on social media.

In Wu’s opinion, teenagers today should improve their social media literacy(素养), telling real from fake and good from bad. “Also, everyone can be a content creator on social media.” he said, “We should all strengthen our awareness of ethics”.

1. What led to Russell’s depression according to a British court?

A．Her interaction with others online.

B．Negative information on social media platforms.

C．Short videos she watched on the Internet.

D．Her addiction to online posts.

2. Which of the following statements does Chan probably agree with?

A．The number of younger social media users should be limited.

B．Parents should monitor the content to be viewed by teenagers in advance.

C．A supervision mode ought to be introduced by parents.

D．It is the responsibility of the society to romanticize mental illnesses.

3. Who should be ultimately responsible for removing negative content according to Chan?

A．Parents.	B．Internet users.
C．Content creators.	D．Social media platforms.

4. What does Wu suggest teenagers should do?

A．Use social media wisely.	B．Reduce social media usage.
C．Stay away from online games.	D．Learn more about social media.

10 . Digital technologies are taking up too much of our time and attention. Many of us will spend a significant part of our lives staring at screens, missing out on satisfying relationships and feeling more emotional pain. For many years, we’ve been taught that the solution to this potential harm is some form of digital detox (脱瘾), which mainly shows us what not to do after our digital addiction.     1     Try the following three steps to achieve balance in your and your family’s digital life:

Determine your problem times

Identify the times and situations when being on screens is making your life worse. It could be when you are streaming a TV series right before bed, feeling depressed afterward and losing hours of sleep. Or you could be getting stuck on your device at the dinner table and end up getting distracted.     2     Identify your top two or three problem situations.

    3    

Once you identify the pain points, for example, scrolling (滚动浏览) on TikTok for hours keeps you from sleeping and makes you feel depressed afterward), ask yourself: What is screen time replacing and what goals is it serving? In other words, what are you actually hungry for? You might be endlessly scrolling because you want to feel uplifted at the end of the day. Write down the things you really want.

Try a substitute

    4     It’s crucial to pick something that consistently makes you feel good. For example, if your goal is social connection, make plans for a nice meal with a friend or take that weekly meeting in person rather than via Zoom. If your goal is inspiration, schedule time for oil painting, reading historical fiction or whatever it is that uplifts you.     5     And at last, you will become empowered, healthy and wise digital citizens.

A．Identify your true desire.

B．Determine your pain points.

C．Pretty soon, these replacements will make you feel more satisfied.

D．But the only way to truly gain control is to take positive steps in advance.

E．Or maybe you are inefficient at work because you’re doing too much online shopping.

F．Ask yourself how you can meet those needs through something other than screen time.

G．If your digital life is out of balance, reducing time on devices is an important first step.