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I was recently asked to teach a group of sophomores about Internet safety.  I had the sense that these students might already feel that they have mastered this topic since they're addressed it a few times in school already.

So, I sent them an online survey asking them about their level of comfort with the topic and their level of interest in the class.

Sure enough, they were none too excited about the upcoming class and indicated that they already felt they had heard "the talk" about not giving out personal information on MySpace and Facebook before.  I did the best I could to make the class interesting and fresh and to engage the students in new conversations.  And there really were new things to teach them, things they thought they knew but didn't.

Lately, I've noticed that whether they are truly masters or not, teens feel pretty confident about whatever it is they're doing online. From how to safely participate on a social networking site to effectively searching for information, it sometimes seems to me that teens think they've got it conquered.

And, I don't always blame them for feeling that way.

They tell me stories about how some of their parents are "clueless" about computers and the Internet.  And some teachers seem intimidated by these overconfident young people and believe all the media hype they hear about the wired Net generation.  So, in comparison, it's not surprising that teens should think they're in charge.

But just like I discovered in the Internet safety class, the kids don't actually know everything about the Internet.  Yes, the Internet is their technology, their future.  But we adults are still responsible for teaching them safety, effective research techniques, netiquette, legal and ethical use of intellectual property and more.

The kids I've worked with pick up technological skills so, so quickly. Sure, that's a little intimidating, but it doesn't mean that they come out of the womb knowing how to make the best use of Google.  And it doesn't mean that they know about online predators and what constitutes fair use of images they find or how to find hidden resources in the "deep Web."

That's my job, as a teacher and as a parent: to stay up-to-date with technology, to stay alert and to watch for the gaps in kids' knowledge, to find interesting ways to communicate new skills to them.  To know what my kids and my students are doing online and to help them make the best of a technology that could shape their futures.

Don't believe the media hype.  Sure, kids are wired in their aptitude for technology, but they still need adults  to help them make responsible, safe and savvy use of it.