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8-12 year olds typicaly cannot bypass filters
I hate to be the bearer of bad news, but every filter has an opening. In conversation with someone who had internet in the house at that age, they revealed that they had no trouble at all bypassing OpenDNS and K9, and that was despite their parents being computer literate. And if you let a child have a device of their own, they could always get a more knowledgeable friend to do it for them. No, not every child will, but that still leaves many.
That was half the point. It won’t be every child who skips past the filters and ruins their souls online, but enough will that it’s not worth the risk. And even those with responsible parents, who manage to filter adequately, and limits their use in time and content, still have a huge chance of falling prey to bad friends and negative influences. And that is why it isn’t even a question of weighing up the risks, especially when you consider the enormity of the possible dangers.
I caught that as well. Although it does raise the issue of why a mixed school (If Goldstein could be Jewish, then the Patil twin are probably Hindu) would celebrate Nittel Nacht (let’s keep this topical) so extravagantly. And that’s besides the fact it’s unlikely any wizarding folk are in any way religious.
Do you suppose Nosson Goldstein (as he should now be known, unless you have a better match) lit a menorah in the Ravenclaw common room, next to the statue of Rowena Ravenclaw?
Ordinarily, I would attempt to make a pithy observation regarding the irony of conducting a discussion about the pros and cons of the internet on an online forum, and perhaps point out that this may lead to a slight skewing of the outcome. But, this being the CR, an exception can be made.
And now for some serious points. Don’t have it in your house. Not with a filter, not with a password, nothing. If your child needs it for school work (and only for school, I can think of no other justifiable reason), then they can do it elsewhere in a supervised environment. This does not stem from over zealousness, but from a more liberal attitude. Having something like the internet in your house, even if you only take it’s addictive nature into account, is removing the child’s free will. When they’re old enough to make their own mind up, step away, but as regards bringing up children there is no real other option.
And if your child is anything like any 8-12 year old of today, they know more about computers than you do, and any filter can be circumvented laughably easily. This includes every filter TAG offer, including K9 and ConvenantEyes. Just don’t take that risk.
Personally, I was bought up without internet in the house, for which I am constantly thankful. I look at some children today who have access, even very limited, and it is completely ruining them. So, to paraphrase Nike, just don’t do it.
“Help me, I’m trapped in a road sign factory”