3 Ways to Improve E-Safety for Your Pupils at Home
Fri 11 September, 2020
The online world has never been more open, more vibrant and more important. If lockdown has shown us anything it is the undeniable power of the internet and technology.
This also means that E-Safety is even more important to parents, teachers and pupils. Many of your current pupils are likely to experience remote working in the future, either through distance learning higher education or through remote working roles. Therefore, it is imperative that we give our children the tools to remain safe online.
Today children are constantly surrounded by technology, from their smartphones to the Alexa their parents just bought, technology is so interwoven in our modern lives that both parents and teachers need to be well informed and highly vigilant.
SAFETY AT HOME
E-safety isn’t just about what happens at school. Children are just as at risk at home, if not more so.
It is important to provide support and education to parents as well as pupils. Many parents are not internet natives and are unlikely to have had the same training on E-safety that pupils and teachers have had. Engaging parents in the learning process is key to the success of a "Safety at Home" program.
The current situation is a great opportunity to offer parents additional support and resources regarding E-safety. This can be done through whichever online portal your school has been using for remote teaching.
Giving pupils and parents a joint project on E-safety to be completed over the summer can be a useful way to engage and inform parents in a fun and interactive way.
Our e-safety package also engages and educates parents so that they can reinforce the safety message at home.
INTERNET BULLYING & ABUSIVE BEHAVIOUR MONITORING
Cyberbullying is unfortunately a common incident in schools, and it is only increasing with advancements in technology.
Preventing cyberbullying from happening on school devices can be useful in reducing the incidences within your school. School devices can offer pupils some anonymity when sending abusive messages or content to other students. However, by implementing an abusive behaviour monitoring system, if a child puts themselves or others at risk through bullying, swearing or abuse, you will be alerted to the situation and who is involved.
It is also important to consider the impact of cyberbullying in the home environment. The first stage in combating this is to provide students with a private and confidential support service where they can talk about their experience.
A school counsellor can offer an outlet for students, which can then help to improve and inform school policies on cyberbullying while also offering the affected pupil support.
Additionally, providing education to parents on how to identify and deal with cyberbullying can help to reduce the impact within your school. Parents should be educated on both spotting and engaging with their child about cyberbullying, and the school’s process for dealing with the situation. This way, parents and teachers can work together to protect children and prevent bullying.
SUPPORT MATERIALS
Offering parents and pupils access to a wide range of support materials can make a huge impact in tackling E-safety in the home.
From offering handy guides on common concerns to video content with instruction on how to check privacy settings. By giving parents the tools to understand and learn about E-safety, they can be better informed to support the school in protecting their child online.
We support our e-safety services with a variety of materials including an advice website, regular updates and emails. All of these resources provide you with the means to support your pupils and help them to understand the dangers of the Internet.