Pastoral Care & Wellbeing
Mr Jarrett Giampaolo - Assistant Principal Pastoral Care & Wellbeing
St Patrick's College
Adolescence: A Valuable Conversation in Cyber Safety
Recently, I watched the Netflix mini-series Adolescence, and, after reading various articles and engaging in conversations on social media, it’s clear that the show has sparked many important questions among both parents and teachers.
In an article written by Amy Sheehan from the ABC she states “While the series takes toxic masculinity, loneliness and the gender divide to its extreme, psychologists and parenting experts say it has sparked "a valuable conversation" for Australian households and schools.”
This conversation is especially relevant for us here at St Patrick’s College, where we continuously strive to provide our students with opportunities to better understand the negative impact of toxic masculinity, the harm of gender stereotypes, and how they can contribute to making a difference in preventing gender-based violence.
St Patrick’s College has recently joined the CoRE Alliance (Communities of Respect and Equality) and has begun working on initiatives that allow our students to play a role in addressing gender-based violence in Ballarat and beyond. Earlier this term, I shared our work with the Melbourne Storm and NRL focusing on movement-based bystander training, along with some of our students attending a Positive Gender Relations Forum just last week. The work here is important and the response and engagement from our students is really encouraging.
Earlier this year, our Year 11 students participated in a seminar titled ‘Men of Honour: A Day of Hope’, which challenged them to explore their identity and purpose in life. Adolescence is a time filled with conflicting messages about what to do and who to become. With the influence of social media and constantly changing technology, this period can be incredibly challenging. This seminar, along with follow-up pastoral care lessons, provides valuable support to help our boys navigate these difficult times.
As the term draws to a close, we are excited to offer Year 10 students an excellent opportunity to take part in The Tomorrow Man program. This program aims to “disrupt stereotypes and build emotional muscle.” In this series of workshops, students will examine the impact of rigid masculine gender stereotypes, while learning tools and skills to foster stronger emotional connections, improve their well-being, and develop a broader emotional range.
At St Patrick’s, building the character of our boys and helping them understand who they are—and how they can become the best versions of themselves—is a continuous process. With the support of our school, teachers, and parents, we strive to educate hope-filled, compassionate and confident young men for their place in the world.
So what can parents do?
Last year, the school hosted an event where Susan McLean came to present on the issue of cybersafety and how to navigate this ever-changing world as a parent. This year she will be returning to speak to all of our students to give them some skills on how to be safe online.
Susan is Australia’s foremost expert in the area of cyber safety and was a member of Victoria Police for 27 years. Widely known as the ‘cyber cop’ she was the first Victoria Police Officer appointed to a position involving cyber safety and young people. In 2003 she was the Victoria Police Region Four Youth Officer of the Year. She has also been awarded The National Medal and the Victoria Police Service Medal and 2nd Clasp, and the National Police Medal.
One of the big messages out of this presentation was to not be afraid of technology. Learn about it and embrace it as your children do. Accept that they will access content that might upset them, often not because they went looking for it and make sure that they are comfortable coming to you when this happens. Spend time online with them. Cyberspace can be a lot of fun.
There are some small steps that you can take as a parent to ensure that your child is safe, the link below is a place to start with Susan’s top tips for cyber safety. Feel free to watch and start your journey to ensuring your child is safe online.
Susan McLean's Top Tips - Cyber Safety Solutions
If parents would like more information on the topics or issues presented in this article, please feel free to contact Assistant Principal – Wellbeing, Jarrett Giampaolo, at jgiampaolo@stpats.vic.edu.au