VA Schools to teach mandatory Internet Safety, but who is doing the teaching, and what is the curriculum?

The AP says it's true.

MIDLOTHIAN, Va. (AP) -- On a screen at the front of a classroom, Gene Fishel flashed an online social-networking profile of "hotlilflgirl," which said she was 15, enjoys being around boys and wants to meet new people.

The next image revealed the real "hotlilflgirl" -- a mug shot of a 31-year-old man who was convicted of sexually abusing 11 children he met online and was sentenced to 45 years in prison.

"Not little, not fly and not a girl," said Fishel, a Virginia assistant attorney general. He warned his audience about the dangers of sharing personal information on the Internet and agreeing to meet Web acquaintances in person.

Fishel's presentation at James River High School recently was one of many being held this school year in the state, the first to mandate that public schools offer Internet safety classes for all grade levels.

I'm not saying it's a bad idea (it's a great idea) but can we do without the scaremongering? Sean Aune at Mashable sums it up, but I've got reservations. He says:

The Virginia program is attempting to safeguard the children by educating the students as well as the parents. To the children, they are trying to explain never to meet anyone you meet solely online, as well as trying to remember that anything you post today could come back to haunt you years from now when applying to a university or a job. For the parents, they are trying to explain that they should install filtering software as well keeping computers in common areas of the home so they can monitor their child's activities while online.

So, they're telling kids that anyone on the 'net will hurt them if they don't meet them online, even if it's via a social network based around their own community or interests (user groups, meetups, etc)?  I can understand the whole "audit trail" thing but I think the focus should be on how to be a responsible contributor, not a fearful lurker. Parents keeping an eye on the little ones is never a bad idea.

While I've never been a major fan of the concept of "school as parent" in teaching children what they should really be learning at home, this is one time where it is quite possible the school would know more than a parent. Nonetheless, as the oldest member of the Mashable staff, I am happy to say that education officials are at least trying to school parents on the need to pay greater attention to their technological responsibilities when it comes to their children. The most effective defense will generally be for parents to get involved in their child's activities, whether they be online or off.

I'm sorry, but you missed a point that this effort is being (at least in this case) led by a law enforcement official, an Attorney General. NOT a trained teacher. 

If education officials want to teach online safety and responsibility (the two go hand in hand, I think) than TEACHERS need to be trained. This isn't a law enforcement problem.

Further, can't schools train teachers to point out the bad by emphasizing the positive applications of social networking and related technologies? If the message is fear, it will fail. Weapons grade fail.  

Lawyers should be in courts, not classrooms.