Wellbeing - Senior School
As we reach the half-way mark of Term 2, I have taken some time to reflect on the many activities that the students [and their teachers] have been engaged in at the end of April. I congratulate the 95 Year 12 boys who were recognised for attaining an SAA of 4.50 and above in their Semester 1 Report; this complemented the academic awards that were presented at the first Senior Assembly. Year 11 have completed their first Assessment Block in Stage 6, and many have been involved in Work Placement activities. Similarly, Year 10 have undertaken their Minimum Standards and Academic Attainment testing.
In recognition of Reconciliation Week, students will be engaged in activities during PCLs on Friday and I take this opportunity to wish all the best to the students, especially those in Years 9-12 involved in the Alex in Wonderland production this week.
With many of the cohorts undertaking assessment tasks it is important that students regularly check their Assessment Calendar, ensuring that they are using their Planners and managing time efficiently.
New Cybersafety Data
For some time now I have subscribed to cybersafety expert Kirra Pendergast’s website. I share with you some of the disturbing details she recently posted about the issue of sextortion. I encourage parents and carers to have a discussion with their sons about this ongoing problem within our online world: “Research just released by the Australian Institute of Criminology in partnership with eSafety confirms what many of us have long feared: more than 1 in 10 Australian adolescents aged 16–18 have been victims of sexual extortion. That number is not hypothetical. It's not hysterical. It's measured. It comes from a landmark survey of nearly 2,000 teenagers who bravely shared their digital lives. And what they told us was confronting:
57.7% of victims were under 16 when it happened.
1 in 3 experienced it more than once.
41.4% were threatened with fake, digitally manipulated images.
64.6% were targeted by strangers online.
Boys were more likely than girls to be extorted—often for money—and significantly less likely to seek help.
This is not a “cybersafety” issue tucked into a Year 9 homeroom class. This is a full-blown crisis in psychological safety, criminal exploitation, and digital culture.
Predators follow a simple script, and they weaponise fear. They create shame spirals. And they count on silence from students too scared to speak, from parents/carers unsure how to respond, and from schools unequipped to intervene with confidence.
What Needs to Happen Next... Hardwire the Safety Sequence
Every student, every year, should know this phrase like a CPR drill:
Collect evidence. Block. Don’t pay. Disclose without fear – you are not going to be in trouble.
This is the counterattack. It breaks the predator’s grip. It replaces secrecy with action.
Target Boys with Truth, Not Shame
The research tells us that:
41.5% of boys surveyed had been targeted in the past year.
They are 74% more likely to be abused by a stranger.
They are often threatened with financial blackmail not just image demands.
Change the Script at Home and in School
Forget scare tactics. We need compassion, clarity, and repetition. Every child should hear:
“If anyone threatens you, it’s not your fault.”
“You are not in trouble.”
“We will handle this together.”
Sexual extortion isn’t a phase of growing up online. It is abuse, manipulation, and in far too many cases, it leads to long-term trauma or suicide. This is preventable. But only if we stop treating this like a niche concern or a one-off conversation. Safety is not a subject. It’s a system.
Source: 1 in 10 Teens Are Being Blackmailed for Nudes Before They Turn 16.
[accessed 26/5/25].
Robert Simpson
Director of Senior School