The spotlight was on CyberSafety this morning when Senior Constable Rob from Queensland Police visited MIC to run an information session for our Senior Phase students (Years 10-12).
After watching a short video called ‘Tagged,‘ produced by the Australian Communications and Media Authority’s Cybersmart program, students participated in a lively discussion around the ethical and legal implications of going online. Exploring issues like the widespread impact of cyberbullying, how internet users can manage their digital reputation and how online interactions may have real-life consequences, students also learnt about the the legal implications of filming fights and taking and forwarding inappropriate images.
Constable Rob said the session aims to encourage teenagers to adopt positive online behaviours that will continue into adulthood.
“I deal with children every day who make mistakes and part of my job is to visit schools to try to stop children getting into trouble,” he said.
“You will still make mistakes,” Constable Rob told the students.
“But if you stop and think about how you treat people face-to-face versus online, hopefully you will take the opportunity to make someone feel better, rather than worse.
“And if you do make mistakes, hopefully you will learn how to move on from that so it doesn’t stay with you.”
Constable Rob rounded out the session with a brief discussion on road safety, where students were surprised to learn that the least safe drivers on the road are males aged 18-25 – while the safest are L-plate learner drivers.
Year 10 student Sandy said she found the session very informative.
“I was shocked to hear how much cyberbullying is actually happening out there. I don’t see it at all, but it’s shocking how much it is going on.”
Year 12 student, Tyler, described the session as ‘constructive’.
“I already knew a lot about going online, but it was a great refresher,” he said.
Fellow Year 12 student, Stuart, said he found the statistics around learner drivers to be most interesting.
“I’m a learner driver myself so it was great to hear we are the safest drivers on road!” he said.
A big thank you to Constable Rob and Queensland Police for allowing him to take time out of his busy schedule to come and speak to our students about this important issue. We are sure it made a big impact on our students.
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