The End of The Innocence (Don Henley, former member of the rock band the ‘Eagles’)
I like to think I’m optimistic about life and that I see the good in others. That most people make choices that don’t intentionally harm or hinder, and ridiculously, that my moral compass is shared by everyone else on the planet! I want to believe that online service providers and companies selling a product/idea/social platform or information, have our best interests at heart and that they don’t hide their ‘but’ statements in the fine print pages of lengthy terms and conditions. So, I guess it’s only when you are slapped in the face by reports, research or statistics not readily available or easy to find, that you realise many things are not as they seem. It is difficult to fathom how on earth we expect our kids to navigate the online space when we as adults aren’t even aware of what we don’t know.
This happened to me several weeks ago when Kaylene Kerr, an amazing WA woman, who specialises in e-safety, digital wellness and all things impacting our kids’ online experiences, spoke with our Year 5 and 6 students, and then to a small group of parents and staff. Kaylene is at the forefront of protecting our children from harm online and helping decision makers in high places understand what’s happening to our kids and why.
While I pride myself on keeping up with research in relation to education, health and wellbeing as it impacts learning and our students, Kaylene’s latest array of online statistics had me in a spin, and grateful that my kids are older and on the other side of much of what she talked about.
I have to say I was most surprised by the information Kaylene discussed regarding pornography. It’s not a matter of ‘if’ children will see pornography online but ‘when’, and the ‘when’ is getting earlier and earlier in children’s lives. In Australia, the age of first exposure is reported as being between eight and 10, with pre- pubescent exposure to pornography being particularly problematic.
I think most of us are largely unaware of the nature and prevalence of online pornography. This is concerning given we know exposure and access to pornography can have a negative impact on children’s health, well-being and safety. And I’m sure many of us are unaware of how readily available pornography is. Pornography is the primary, and in many cases, the only education children and young people receive about relationships and sexuality.
Concerningly, a significant portion of pornography children view either accidentally or intentionally contains violent images and themes. Research has found exposure to pornography can result in; children displaying harmful and problematic sexual behaviours, child-on-child sexual abuse, sexual aggression and violence, sexism, objectification, risky sexual behaviours and poor mental health and wellbeing.
Studies also suggest frequent viewing of pornography may reinforce harmful gender stereotypes, contribute to young men forming unhealthy and sexist views of women and sex, condoning violence against women and developing sexually coercive behaviours.
In my opinion, and those of many others, a first step towards protecting your child’s wellbeing would be to ensure that smart phones and iPads are not kept in children’s bedrooms overnight. The deliberately programmed addictiveness of these devices is too irresistible for children, regardless of how old they are. We as adults can attest to our own doom scrolling on social media for extended periods of time! When Kaylene asked our students who still has a device in their bedroom overnight, a significant number of students raised their hands.
But it wasn’t all doom and gloom from Kaylene. I particularly loved her digital wellness messages. While she advocates for students’ mental health, the importance of sleep, conversations between parents and their children, spending time with your child and ‘green’ time in nature, she also understands parents need to balance technology use against the ‘will of the people’, our kids. She doesn’t advocate for no screen time, except for under 2 years old; she advocates for supervised and moderated screen time with lots of conversations, upskilling parents with the latest information and making sure parents know the preferred online options to ensure their child’s wellbeing is protected.
I feel like this space of digital wellness links really nicely to our school’s moral purpose, our student engagement practices, our phasing out of the one-to-one program and our understanding of play and being outside in nature. Perhaps it’s a focus area for us and the school community in our next Business Plan starting in 2027, given the high percentage of children in the primary school age bracket, that are already accessing brain altering images. If there is any community that can ‘be the change’ for our kids in the digital wellness space, it’s South Padbury.
Still Want to Know More? Check Out These Resources
About | eSafeKids | Kayelene Kerr
Screen time and children – ACT Government
The Natural Advantage by Dr Jenny Brockis
Impact of children’s access to porn online | eSafety Commissioner