Online safety
Overview
The purpose of this curriculum connection is twofold. It is designed to:
- guide teachers to identify content in the Australian Curriculum that supports the teaching and learning of online safety
- connect teachers to a range of interdisciplinary resources that have been developed to support the teaching and learning of online safety.
Online safety is a broad concept that concerns minimising risks online from a range of negative influences including inappropriate social behaviours, abuse, harmful content, inappropriate contact, identity theft and breaches of privacy.
The eSafety Commissioner supports an approach that broadens the provision of online safety education so that it is empowering, builds resilience and effects positive culture change, while also promoting the development of respectful relationships and safe and appropriate long-term behaviours.
This curriculum connection provides information and resources so that educators can create and/or support online safety teaching and learning programs tailored to address the needs of their school.
Australian Curriculum content can be viewed using the most relevant pathway:
- year level
- learning area
- general capabilities.
Five interrelated dimensions of online safety can be viewed by year level, learning area and general capabilities:
- values, rights and responsibilities
- wellbeing
- respectful relationships
- digital media literacy
- informed and safe use of information and devices.
See Dimensions tab for more detail.
An overview of online safety in learning areas
For all year levels, online safety is explicit in Health and Physical Education, Digital Technologies, English and The Arts – Media Arts. In the primary years, it is easier to address online safety holistically through planning and programming. As students move into the secondary years, the opportunities present themselves in a diverse range of learning areas such as History, Geography, Civics and Citizenship, Economics and Business and Work Studies.
An overview of online safety in general capabilities
The online safety curriculum connection provides a framework for all young Australians to understand their digital environments and relationships and be discerning in managing challenging situations.
The curriculum connection provides rich opportunities to address aspects of a range of general capabilities, with a particular emphasis on ICT Capability, Personal and Social Capability, and Ethical Understanding. Depending on their choice of activities, teachers may find further opportunities to incorporate the explicit teaching and assessment of the general capabilities.
In the Australian Curriculum, the general capabilities encompass the knowledge, skills, behaviours and dispositions that will help students to live and work successfully in the 21st century.
Online engagement provides Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander students with the opportunity to explore and strengthen connections between identity and the key concepts of People, Culture and Country/Place. It is critical to be aware that online technologies have the potential to be used to overstep social and cultural authority. By promoting online safety, Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander students can use online interactions to connect with language, strengthen family/kinships, and recognise cultural diversity. By exploring how Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander groups express their particular identities, students may develop an understanding about how group belonging can influence the perceptions of others, and how specific aspects of culture impact the use of technology.
Other website links
Know your mob https://www.esafety.gov.au/key-issues/tailored-advice/aboriginal-and-torres-strait-islander-peoples
Be Deadly Online https://www.esafety.gov.au/educators/classroom-resources/be-deadly-online/student-community-home
Your online journey https://www.esafety.gov.au/key-issues/tailored-advice/aboriginal-and-torres-strait-islander-peoples/your-online-journey
Increasingly, children and young people learn and socialise using online resources. Many students with special educational needs use digital technologies to provide and enhance educational support.
It is critical to be aware of the risks and issues that all students, including students with special needs, may face online. Students with special educational, social and emotional needs may require extra support to recognise inappropriate and/or threatening behaviour. Some children with special needs may need additional support and strategies to read social cues, make judgements, and manage their online presence.
The relationship between the three dimensions of the Australian Curriculum (learning areas, general capabilities and cross-curriculum priorities) – provides teachers with the flexibility to cater for student diversity through personalised learning.
Information to support the diverse learning needs of students can be found on the Australian Curriculum website https://www.australiancurriculum.edu.au/resources/student-diversity/
Other website links
Consent and sexting videos for young teens http://www.murraymalleelegal.com.au/Resources/Consent-and-Sexting-resources.aspx
A guide for staying safe online - Easy Read version https://www.thinkuknow.org.au/sites/default/files/2019-03/2864%20-%20AFP%20-%20A%20Guide%20to%20Staying%20Safe%20Online%20-%20FA%20accessible_0.pdf
Being safe online - Easy English | eSafety Commissioner
eSafety has produced this booklet to provide advice about being safe online, in simple everyday language supported by images. This booklet will enable students or adults who may require extra support, to access and understand advice on how to manage online challenges https://www.esafety.gov.au/educators/classroom-resources/being-safe-online-easy-english
Key resources:
eSafety Commissioner https://www.esafety.gov.au/education-resources
eSafety Commissioner - The eSafety Guide https://www.esafety.gov.au/key-issues/esafety-guide
Student Wellbeing Hub https://studentwellbeinghub.edu.au/educators/
Bullying. No way! https://bullyingnoway.gov.au/resources
Digital Technologies Hub https://www.digitaltechnologieshub.edu.au/search#/site-search?pageNumber=1&keyword=online%20safety
Additional resources:
Alannah & Madeline Foundation https://www.amf.org.au/what-we-do/
Daniel Morcombe Foundation https://danielmorcombefoundation.com.au/keeping-kids-safe-resources/
Headspace https://headspace.org.au/schools/headspace-in-schools/
Headspace: Yarn Safe https://headspace.org.au/yarn-safe/
Keep Our Mob Safe Online https://www.sbs.com.au/language/english/audio/keep-our-mob-safe-online
Kids Helpline
Kids (5-12): https://kidshelpline.com.au/kids/issues
Teens (13-17): https://kidshelpline.com.au/teens
Young Adults (18-25): https://kidshelpline.com.au/young-adults
NetSmartz (US site) https://www.missingkids.org/NetSmartz
Raising Children https://raisingchildren.net.au/
Stars Foundation: Improving Health and Education for Indigenous girls https://starsfoundation.org.au/
Thinkuknow http://www.thinkuknow.org.au/
Cyber Savvy https://cybersavvy.telethonkids.org.au/
State and territory education sector resources:
ACT Government Education: Being Safe Online https://www.education.act.gov.au/support-for-our-students/student-health-and-wellbeing/being-safe-online
Northern Territory Government: Health and Wellbeing of Students https://nt.gov.au/learning/primary-and-secondary-students/health-and-wellbeing-of-students/bullying-cyberbullying-and-cybersafety
New South Wales Department of Education: Digital Citizenship https://www.digitalcitizenship.nsw.edu.au/teachers-articles#tabs-2
Queensland Government State Schools: Cybersafety in Schools https://www.qld.gov.au/education/schools/health/cybersafety/cybersafety-qss
Queensland Catholic Education Commission: Student Safety & Wellbeing https://qcec.catholic.edu.au/our-schools/student-safety/
South Australian Department of Education: Cyber-Safety, Bullying and Harassment https://www.education.sa.gov.au/supporting-students/health-e-safety-and-wellbeing/cyber-safety-bullying-and-harassment
Tasmanian Department of Education: Online Safety https://www.education.tas.gov.au/parents-carers/parent-fact-sheets/online-safety/
Victoria Education and Training: Schools and Cybersafety https://www.education.vic.gov.au/about/programs/bullystoppers/Pages/princyber.aspx
Western Australia Department of Education: Cyber Safety https://www.education.wa.edu.au/cyber-safety
Documents and reports:
eSafety Commissioner: Research library https://www.esafety.gov.au/about-the-office/research-library
Benefits of Social Networking Services https://www.uws.edu.au/__data/assets/pdf_file/0003/476337/The-Benefits-of-Social-Networking-Services.pdf
Cultural safety for Aboriginal Children https://www.cam.org.au/Portals/0/2016/documents/06092016153629-0001.pdf
Cyber safety in Remote Aboriginal Communities https://apo.org.au/node/172076
Early Childhood Australia: Digital Policy Statement http://www.earlychildhoodaustralia.org.au/wp-content/uploads/2018/10/Digital-policy-statement.pdf
Education for a Connected World Framework https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/education-for-a-connected-world