Adam Coulls
Further to our post regarding TikTok the Department for Education posted the below on their Facebook page;
๐จ ๐๐ฑ๐ฑ๐ฟ๐ฒ๐๐๐ถ๐ป๐ด ๐ฟ๐ฒ๐ฐ๐ฒ๐ป๐ ๐๐ฎ๐ฟ๐ป๐ถ๐ป๐ด๐ ๐ฎ๐ฏ๐ผ๐๐ ๐ง๐ถ๐ธ ๐ง๐ผ๐ธ ๐ฎ๐ป๐ฑ ๐๐ผ๐ฐ๐ถ๐ฎ๐น ๐บ๐ฒ๐ฑ๐ถ๐ฎ. ๐จ
A lot of warnings have been issued for children to stay off social media, specifically Tik Tok, due to a graphic self harm video thatโs circulating.
While we do recommend that parents monitor their children or keep them off the platform, it’s a band-aid solution for a long-term issue due to the fact that distressing videos constantly circulate online.
Instead we would like to encourage all parents and guardians to ๐ฟ๐ฒ๐ฎ๐ฑ ๐๐ต๐ฒ ๐ณ๐ผ๐น๐น๐ผ๐๐ถ๐ป๐ด ๐๐ถ๐ฝ๐ ๐๐ผ ๐ต๐ฒ๐น๐ฝ ๐ธ๐ฒ๐ฒ๐ฝ ๐ฐ๐ต๐ถ๐น๐ฑ๐ฟ๐ฒ๐ป ๐๐ฎ๐ณ๐ฒ ๐ผ๐ป๐น๐ถ๐ป๐ฒ ๐ณ๐ผ๐ฟ ๐๐ต๐ฒ ๐น๐ผ๐ป๐ด-๐ต๐ฎ๐๐น:
1๏ธโฃ ๐ง๐ฎ๐น๐ธ ๐๐ผ ๐๐ผ๐๐ฟ ๐ฐ๐ต๐ถ๐น๐ฑ ๐ฎ๐ฏ๐ผ๐๐ ๐๐ผ๐ฐ๐ถ๐ฎ๐น ๐บ๐ฒ๐ฑ๐ถ๐ฎ. Understand that they will most likely use it, whether you understand the appeal or not. Ask them what apps they use, find out why they like those apps. Start a dialogue so you can start understanding why itโs important to them. The more you understand about it, the more you can stay across it.
2๏ธโฃ ๐ง๐ฎ๐น๐ธ ๐๐ผ ๐๐ผ๐๐ฟ ๐ฐ๐ต๐ถ๐น๐ฑ ๐ฎ๐ฏ๐ผ๐๐ ๐๐ฎ๐ณ๐ฒ๐๐ ๐๐ฒ๐๐๐ถ๐ป๐ด๐. If you know what apps theyโre using, help them make their profile as secure as possible, whether itโs TikTok, Facebook, Instagram, Snapchat, Twitch or Reddit (the list is endless). You can do this with the help of this eSafety Commissioner guide: www.esafety.gov.au/key-issues/esafety-guide
3๏ธโฃ ๐๐ป๐ฐ๐ผ๐๐ฟ๐ฎ๐ด๐ฒ ๐๐ผ๐๐ฟ ๐ฐ๐ต๐ถ๐น๐ฑ ๐๐ผ ๐๐ฎ๐น๐ธ ๐๐ผ ๐๐ผ๐ ๐ถ๐ณ ๐๐ต๐ฒ๐ ๐๐ฒ๐ฒ ๐๐ผ๐บ๐ฒ๐๐ต๐ถ๐ป๐ด ๐ฑ๐ถ๐๐๐ฟ๐ฒ๐๐๐ถ๐ป๐ด ๐ผ๐ป๐น๐ถ๐ป๐ฒ. Be open and willing to listen. Make them aware of Kids Helpline Official (1800 55 1800), Beyond Blue (1300 22 4636), headspace (headspace.org.au) and Lifeline (13 11 14) so they know they have a place to contact if they donโt feel comfortable approaching you.
4๏ธโฃ ๐๐ป๐ผ๐ ๐๐ต๐ฒ ๐๐ฟ๐ถ๐ฐ๐ธ๐. Kids often create a social media profile that they make visible to you, but keep their actual profile under a fake name hidden from you. Again, this is why we encourage you to talk to your child openly and honestly.
5๏ธโฃ ๐จ๐๐ฒ ๐ฎ๐น๐๐ฒ๐ฟ๐ป๐ฎ๐๐ถ๐๐ฒ๐. If your child watches YouTube videos, please be aware there’s no guarantee that this content will be safe for kids. People can easily edit distressing videos for kids that slip through the filters. If you can’t monitor your child on YouTube then let them watch Netflix kids instead as it has stronger filters. SBS and ABC iview are both free alternatives for childrenโs online content.
โน๏ธ The Office of the eSafety Commissioner is a great resource for parents, guardians and kids: www.esafety.gov.au