Principal

Inappropriate use of Social Media

This week, Mr Byrne, Mr Simpson, Year Coordinators and I have spent countless hours getting to the bottom of some inappropriate and negative interactions on social media.

To date, all of the interactions have happened at home, after school, in the holidays and over the weekends where it is clear that students are not being supervised adequately.

It would be easy to ignore parents’ requests for assistance as they are interactions happening under parental supervision however, the hurt, humiliation and embarrassment spills into the College.

Disgusting, unfounded rumours are spread; victims are isolated; valuable learning time is wasted because of the high anxiety and hurt caused by ill considered and vile social media posts.

The Benefits of Social Media

Before I dive into the dangers social media has for teens, we recognise that these platforms can also offer immense benefits when used appropriately. Here are just a few:

It strengthens friendships and relationships. Networking sites can offer a sense of belonging and genuine support as teens connect with others around shared interests, challenges, passions, causes, and/or communities.
Social media can help teens express themselves creatively. We are living in one of the most innovative and creative times in human history. Social media provides amazing platforms for collaborating on and sharing creativity.
Using social media improves teens’ digital literacy, a required skill for almost any job today.
Collaborative learning – classroom discussion groups, YouTube tutorials, and online learning libraries provide teens with greater access to knowledge than ever before. From music to photography, from math to engineering, teens can learn almost anything they want.
Autonomy and Mastery – social media provides an outlet that allows them autonomy to demonstrate mastery and competency to their circle of influence.

Immediate Dangers of Social Media

Here are some of the potential dangers your teenager may be exposed to while using various social media channels:

Exposure to inappropriate, upsetting, or adult-themed content.

Of course, you don’t want your teenager exposed to adult-themed or pornographic material. The danger with social media is that your child can be sent this material by strangers or by trusted sources. They may still be at risk even when your child’s social networking sites are restricted to only known friends, or when their profiles are set private.

At least one in four teens are receiving sexually explicit texts and emails, and at least one in seven are sending sexts. More than one in ten teens are forwarding these sexts without consent, the study found. And roughly one in twelve teens have had sexts they sent shared without their permission. (Reuters Health, Feb. 2018)

Teens practicing questionable judgment.

The prefrontal cortex (the part of the brain responsible for good judgment) is still not fully developed in teenagers. Poor judgment combined with easy access to a global audience can result in some scary situations:

Oversharing in inappropriate and risky ways.

Even being emotionally vulnerable with the wrong person can have devastating outcomes to someone who struggles with low self-worth or depression. We lose control over the information we share online.

Impulsivity and personal health risks.

One in five teens report says they check notifications while driving at least sometimes. Then the latest ‘social media challenges’ may have your teen eating a tide pod, covering themselves in flammable liquid and setting themselves on fire in front of a video camera, or engaging in other risky activities.

Cyberbullying

In one study I read from the United States, 59% of US teens have been bullied or harassed online with more youth experiencing bullying on Instagram than any other platform. And one in five young people having skipped school because they were victims of cyberbullying. Cyberbullying has been linked to teen depression and can even result in increased vulnerability and depression into adulthood. It’s important to emphasise that your teen can talk to you if they feel they’re being bullied. On the other side of the coin, they should ask themselves, “could this hurt someone’s feelings?” before posting something. If it’s questionable, they shouldn’t post.

Strangers

Today, we hope that everyone knows that not everyone is who they say they are online. There are sexual predators, scammers, identity thieves, and hackers who exploit social media to trick unsuspecting users. Your 13-year-old daughter may be speaking with someone who claims to be a 13-year-old girl, but who is, in reality, an adult male. This is a lot easier to fake online than it is face-to-face, so your daughter or son may develop trust for a person online who they would be wary of in person. It’s important that teens don’t mention things online that will allow online predators to find them. Things like the name of the city where they live or the school they attend.

Erosion of personal privacy

“Privacy equals control, and when a child posts a picture or a comment, they need to remember that they’re transferring control of that thought, feeling, special moment or image to all of the people that they are sharing it with, and there’s nothing to stop followers and friends from sharing it with others or even turning it into an embarrassing meme.” – Lori Getz, The Tech Savvy User’s Guide to the Digital World.

Distorted Perception of “What is Healthy” in Relationships

People tend to share their relationship’s “highlight reel” on social media and rarely let people see the sad, hard, or heartbreaking moments. This constant exposure to only one side of relationships can distort your teen’s perception of what is healthy. Here are some patterns to watch for:

Constantly Comparing - By constantly comparing their relationships to all the ‘ideal’ relationships your teen sees online, it can be easy to have a distorted understanding of what relationships are supposed to be like. Relationships are messy and hard, and often uneventful. Not many people in real relationships can spend 30 weeks a year travelling the world taking beautiful photos along the way.
Validation and Enmeshment - Social media trains teenagers to put their worth in a continuous stream of external validation. Without having a strong system of internal validation, your teen may expect relationships to fill that void and can easily become dependent and enmeshed. Teens often don’t have the skills to become independent or interdependent in relationships.
Instant Gratification - Relationships are hard work. Unfortunately, today’s online social interactions set up expectations of instant gratification. Why work through a hard patch in a relationship with your next relationship is just a right swipe away?
Becoming Oversexualised - Young teenagers quickly discover that their sexuality can be used for attention, and social media gives them a wider audience for that attention. Unfortunately, they often do not have the maturity to self-regulate. This often leads teens to base their self-worth on how they look. This objectification can cause eating disorders and other serious mental health issues.
Lack of Sleep - One in ten teenagers report always using social media overnight between midnight and 6:00 AM. Sleep deprivation and sleep disturbances are directly linked to loneliness and depression during adolescence.
Wasting Time - When used in moderation, social media can be beneficial. Unfortunately, 44% of teenagers spend more than three hours a day on social media. If your teen cut their social media use in half, what could they accomplish? Do they have any dreams that they aren’t working towards? Could they be developing a hobby, interest, or passion that would contribute to their overall life satisfaction?
Toxic Culture - The concepts of radical candour, speaking my truth, challenging preconceived notions, taken too far turn into just being mean. It is quite common to encounter people with a mob mentality on Reddit, 4Chan, and pro-ana sites. Without proper guidance on how to navigate these cultures, your child may become desensitized to bullying, sexism, and hate speech.

My plea to parents/carers is to develop a Family Social Media Plan:

Agree on appropriate times of day; turn off electronics one hour before bed.
Devices should not be left in bedrooms overnight. They should be switched off and under parental management until the morning.
Set time limits for recreational screen time, no more than two hours a day.
Be intentional with your social networking and have a purpose EVERY time you check your social media accounts (I want to see how Brian is doing, or I want to see the photos Jodi posted from her vacation, I’m going to check the updates from my study group, etc.)
Periodically take longer breaks from technology to reduce stimulation tolerance. While Dopamine fasting is a recent craze in the tech world, “fasts” from technology have been praised for decades.
Ask to see the interactions they are having. Like me, you may be shocked by what you read and who they are interacting with. The accept invitations from people they do not know, which is a real worry.

In 2014, Pope Francis described the internet as a “gift from God,” hailing its ability to foster dialogue among disparate groups, though he acknowledged that the speed of social media can make it difficult for users to engage in self-reflection. But he’s also warned that the abundance of data and digital stimulation we all consume each day can amount to a kind of “mental pollution” that harms our relationships and shields us from the real pain and joy that comes with human interaction.

“Don't Raise your Voice: Improve your Argument” (Desmond Tutu)

This oft used phrase describes why debating is such a wonderful activity for young people to be involved in. We have simply had a wonderful season this year resulting in two of our teams reaching the grand final last Friday night at OLMC Parramatta. Mrs Lombardo has written previously about the large number of teams who made it to Quarter and Semi Finals. We are all very proud of them.

On Friday night, it was 10 A versus 10 B! The most amazing feat. Congratulations to the 10 A Team (Joel Halifax, Thomas Coorey and Luke Sultana) who narrowly defeated the 10 B Team (Luke Bromfield, Jeremy Simonetto and Daniel De Pasquale) who debated the topic ‘That sport has too great an impact on Australians’ lives’. The 10 A team was the Affirmative Team and the 10 B the Negative team. They were well coached and knowledgeable in current affairs and geo-political issues. I would encourage more boys to give this activity a go in 2023.

In general, the benefits of debate include:

Gaining broad, multi-faceted knowledge cutting across several disciplines outside the learner’s normal academic subjects
Increasing learners’ confidence, poise, and self-esteem
Providing an engaging, active, learner-centred activity
Improving rigorous higher order and critical thinking skills
Enhancing the ability to structure and organise thoughts
Enhancing learners’ analytical, research and note-taking kills
Improving learners’ ability to form balanced, informed arguments and to use reasoning and evidence
Developing effective speech composition and delivery.
Encouraging teamwork.

Government Funding of Catholic Schools and School Fees

For nearly 95 years, St Patrick’s College, Strathfield has provided a high-quality Catholic Education in the Edmund Rice Tradition. The College has focused on academic excellence, quality teaching and learning, student wellbeing, the faith and social formation of young men, provision of a diverse and inclusive Co-curricular Program, development of a strong and vibrant St Patrick’s College family and the provision of quality, appropriate learning environments.

Funding sources for schools are generally limited to government funding and tuition fees, with some additional income derived from other sources such as foundations, sponsorship and donations. Government funding has traditionally accounted for approximately 38% of the College’s total income. With the rise in the CPI and the impending increase to teachers’ wages (the current offer of 4% has been rejected), the College will need to examine how other funding sources, including tuition fees, need to be adjusted.

The College, over many years, has endeavoured to keep school fees at a reasonable level. If you compare our fees to other independent schools across Sydney, you will find we are very good value. We are very aware that our families work hard to provide an opportunity for their sons to attend St Patrick’s College. The College also has a long tradition of providing support for families when, for a range of reasons, their financial circumstances change. This support has never been more visible than during 2020 and 2021 when COVID-19 impacted many families across the St Patrick’s community.

In 2021 and 2022, the College was able to raise school fees minimally (5% in 2022) and still deliver the quality of education you would expect, maintain its plant and facilities and embark on an exciting building project with the Scientia Building.

Next week, you will receive a request from the College to respond to a survey that will take about 10 minutes to complete. This survey is designed to explore your opinions and capacity to service your tuition fee commitments from 2023 and beyond. It is a significant challenge to balance affordability and the high-quality educational offerings for which St Patrick’s College, Strathfield is known. Your input via this survey will greatly assist the College in gathering important data from families so that informed, equitable and genuine decisions may be made by the College in relation to tuition fees. Your answers are confidential, and your anonymity is guaranteed. The data from this research will be reported only in the aggregate.

I thank you for your ongoing support of the College and importantly, of your sons. As the St Patrick’s College family, we will successfully navigate the challenges that lie ahead, and St Patrick’s College, Strathfield will continue to provide a quality Catholic Education in the Edmund Rice Tradition.

Welcome to our new Director of Business Services

This week, we warmly welcomed Ms Bernadette Arraj to the College community (replacing Mr Chacon).

Bernadette is a commercially astute, change-focused, Finance Analyst with a strong track record of driving and delivering financial management and process efficiency that supports exceptional business performance. She is a highly motivated, innovative, and solution-focused team player who is well-versed in leading IT transformation that improves system effectiveness and user experience. A hands-on people leader and strong communicator who inspires high-performing teams and cross-functional stakeholders to deliver exceptional results.

In Memoriam

We keep Jacob Faker (Year 12) in our prayers on the loss of his beloved grandmother, Mansoura Fakhr, last week.

We pray for the repose of her soul and all the souls of the faithfully departed.

Requiescat in Pace.

Dr Vittoria Lavorato

Principal

SPC boys can do anything!

**except divide by zero