Wellbeing

eSafety

Whether you are a parent, carer, grandparent, aunt, or uncle, it can be a difficult task keeping up with young people and technology, or even knowing when and how to start the conversation about online safety. The Office of the Safety Commissioner was established in 2015 by the Australian Government with a mandate to co-ordinate and lead the online safety efforts across government, industry and the not-for profit community. The office is committed to empowering all Australians to have a safer, more positive experiences online. The website link is below and has a range of excellent resources for educators, parents and students.

https://www.esafety.gov.au/esafety-information

Over the last two years the Office has commissioned a number of national surveys of young people aged 8–17 in Australia examining how young people deal with the challenges they face online. (Kids aged 8 to 13 and teens aged 14 to 17). The statistics are concerning and I have included snapshots of some of the most relevant information for parents.

Social media services used in the 12 months to June 2017:

Social media management by age:

Talking to strangers online by age:

Over the coming weeks the Orange Police Youth Liaison Officer will be visiting the school to meet with Years 7, 8 and 9 to discuss digital citizenship and online safety. Each year group session will then be followed-up by conversations and activities in Tutor. The focus during Semester 2 in for these year groups will involve units of work on Cyberbullying and Digital Citizenship that will take place during Tutor time. In the next Family Bulletin I will tackle the online phenomena that is the game Fortnite.

Emma Bylsma

Head of Student Wellbeing