Instant messaging and chatting in many ways are similar to each other. They both allow people to communicate with each other in ‘real time’. The big difference between the two is that ‘chat rooms’ are often public (but can be private) and can be joined by any one, Instant Messaging (IM) is a private conversation between two people and you can only join via invite. In the case of IM, the message is delivered directly to the person at their machine but chat takes place on the internet in ‘chat rooms’. With chat rooms, users normally have to register to join, but in many cases this is an alias and it is this anonymity that users like. This can create a serious risk, as users can never be quite sure who they are talking to and can have serious consequences if users are not aware of this. IM is a more secure alternative but issues can arise on shared machines as in many cases other users are notified when the machine is on line, not necessarily the person who is registered. This allows access to the IM software and messages can be sent by anyone.
These links provide some useful links to Chat Room and Instant Messenger teaching resources
http://www.thinkuknow.co.uk/ - Aimed at older students and adults
http://www.chatdanger.com/
http://www.bullying.co.uk/pupils/internet_safety.php
http://www.bbc.co.uk/chatguide/
http://www.websafecrackerz.com/bbb.aspx
http://www.msn.co.uk/customercare/protect/cyberbullying/default.asp?MSPSA=1