Renewed focus on online safety
New research from eSafety confirms the importance of online safety support for Australian families. The COVID-19 impact on Australian adults’ online activities and attitudes report found there has been a significant increase in online activity.
It also found that during COVID-19 parents were twice as likely to rely on the internet for key activities – and three times as likely to find using the internet stressful.
The federal government announced a further $10m in funding for eSafety Commissioner on June 28.
Minister for Communications, Cyber Safety and the Arts, the Hon Paul Fletcher MP, said: 'This funding will help eSafety continue the important work it does educating people – from young children all the way up to older Australians – equipping them with practical tips on how to stay safe online.
“eSafety does a remarkable job developing world-leading educational resources for parents. I’m very pleased that the funding announced today will, amongst other things, mean eSafety can continue to deliver its successful Early Years program, which helps young children navigate the web safely from their earliest interactions online.'
New online safety education framework
The Office of the eSafety Commissioner has also developed a new framework for online safety education in Australian schools, from K-12, following research into identified gaps in current provision.
The eSafety commissioner, Julie Inman Grant, explains in her blog: 'It is timely to reflect on the importance of online safety education and the lessons learnt from our recent time in lockdown — particularly around 21st century education. Lockdown saw schools pivot in a remarkable, and remarkably rapid, manner, changing the classroom model to 100% tech-supported remote learning in a matter of weeks.
'In moving national education online, schools faced significant challenges — including how to transition daily classroom activities while protecting students and the school community from online dangers. Online safety issues were paramount, ranging from how to engage with students, to limits for time online and the best tools to prevent or respond to incidents.
'COVID-19 has clarified just how important it is for schools to have defined strategies that they can use to prevent and respond to online harms — especially in the most challenging circumstances. Emerging from these uncertain times, what’s clear is that educators need comprehensive frameworks and guidance to enable them to make informed, and positive, decisions for students and broader school communities.'
Key findings from the e-Safety Online Safety Education report:
- Several online safety education frameworks exist but none are comprehensive enough to be adopted as a national standard.
- There is a need for greater efforts to improve the quality of educational programs for children.
- A sound online safety education framework should cover the full range of potential issues, risks and harms that children may encounter, as well as consider the issues of greatest parental concern.
- The framework should be based on concepts found in digital citizenship and social and emotional learning programs, augmented with content addressing common risk and protective factors. This would be underpinned by evidence, guided by principles of effective prevention and delivered in supportive school systems with strong partnerships with other agencies.
- Online safety initiatives, both in Australia and internationally, must be assessed for their effectiveness. This is needed as high-quality prevention initiatives must be underpinned by recent, rigorous and reliable process and outcome evaluations.