From the Director of Primary

It was wonderful to see so any grandparents attend Maxine Lowry’s masterclass – The iGenration: Kids and Screens at the conclusion of the Grandparents’ & Family Friends’ Morning.   A range of topics were addressed regarding devices including appropriate screen time, cyberbullying, online grooming, internet addiction and practical steps to allow grandparents to “get up to speed” with their digitally connected grandchildren.

Given that today’s children are more connected than ever before, the challenge of cybersafety is increasingly more difficult.  Teaching our students to engage positively online is of vital importance so that they have the knowledge to make thoughtful and safe decisions online. 

One topic that was discussed was the social media apps that the students are using. This has also been a major talking point at school, especially the highly inappropriate manner in which some students engage with one another both in terms of the language being used and the images sent to one another. Furthermore, many social media apps have age restrictions that often commence from 13 years of age.

The following is a list of some social media apps and their minimum age limits:

• Facebook: 13 years
• Facebook Messenger: 13 years
• Flickr: 13 years
• Instagram: 13 years
• Kik: 13+ (parental permission required up to 17 years)
• Linkedin: 14 years
• Minecraft: All ages (parental permission required for mojang account if user under 13 years)
• Moshi Monster: All ages (aimed at 6-12 year olds. If user is under 13, parental email required)
• Pinterest: 13 years
• Reddit: 13 years
• Skype: 18 years (parental permission required up to 17 years)
• Snapchat: 13 years
• TikTok: 13 years (parental permission required up to 17 years)
• Tumblr: 13 years
• Twitter: 13 years
• Vimeo: 13 years (parental permission required up to 17 years)
• Vine: 13 years
• WhatsApp: 13 years
• YouTube: 13 years

Maxine Lowry drew attention to the work of Susan McLean, an expert in the area of cyber safety and young people, who wrote the book, Sexts, Texts and Selfies.  Susan McLean is very clear on the issue of social media apps stating that age restrictions should be non-negotiable. Why be the parent who says no to age-restricted apps / games / sites?

• Because it is your responsibility to protect your child
• Because it shouldn’t matter what the other kids are doing
• Because the internet is not a child’s playground
• Because hindsight is a wonderful thing
• Because prevention is better than cure. (Susan McLean: Sexts, Texts and Selfies, pg.27)

It is vitally important that we all work together in order to guide the students to make safe and sensible choices online.  Susan McLean provides a number of ways in which we may do so when checking if a game or social media account is suitable for your child:

• Google the app and visit the website
• Do a simple search – “Is XXX safe for kids?”
• Check on line articles
• Check age restrictions
• Check the information for parent sections
• Check the security settings (pg. 25 – 26)

Additional sources of information may be gained from the following sites that may help you to engage in an eSafety dialogue with your child.

eSafety

iParent – by the Office of the Children’s eSafety Commissioner

I strongly encourage you to discuss current social media use with your child and perhaps it is time to re-evaulate how much online time is available, the type of social media apps and the manner in which they are being used.

ICAS Results

It was wonderful to note the number of students who participated in the ICAS Assessments last term.  Congratulations to the following students who have received either a Merit, Credit, Distinction or High Distinction for Science and the Digital Technologies.