From Safe Online

The pandemic has meant kids are spending more time online which has increased both cyber abuse and sexual exploitation online.

• Globally, 60% of children ages 8-12 have or are suffering from cyberbullying,

• and according to cbyertip.ca, reports of online sexual exploitation of youth increased in Canada by 81%, in just the first three months of the pandemic.

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Merlyn Horton is CEO of SafeOnline Education Associates. She has published policy documents for provincial government ministries, presented to international conferences and been featured on major media outlets.

 

Her knowledge of online environments and the dynamics of online communities as they pertain to youth and children is unparalleled. Since 2002, when she founded the  Safe Online Outreach Society, (SOLOS), the bulk of Horton’s work has been the research, development and delivery of internet safety presentations to students and parents. 

The PAC hosted an online session with Deborah MacNamara, a Clinical Counsellor and Developmentalist, on Faculty at the Neufeld Institute and Director of Kid’s Best Bet, a counselling centre for families. She is also a best-selling author.

 

About the Session: “The digital world is here to stay, changing our society in a way that has far-reaching consequences for our children. What are the implications for raising children? How do we harness the spectacular connecting potential and yet avoid the pitfalls of attachment technology gone awry? How do we prepare them to live in this new world and yet preserve what is required for healthy development to take place?

 

We have followed our children into the digital world and yet for their sakes as well as ours, need to restore our lead in order to avoid the insidious dangers that live in the shadows of this potent technology. We will consider the digital revolution through the lens of developmental science, committed to helping adults help children reach their full human potential.”

Each year, students in all elementary grades throughout BC receive instruction in sexual health education. This information is included in the Physical and Health Education program mandated for all BC students by the Ministry for Education.

 

From time to time, schools bring in experts in the field to address this topic with the school community. We were excited to bring Dr Brandy Wiebe of Saleema Noon Sexual Health Educators to work with students in Kindergarten to Grade 7. In addition, all parents had access to Saleema’s online learning platform, Body Science Online, for 30 days so they can see exactly what their children will learn in class.

 

In their Body Science presentations, Saleema Noon and her team of educators work with children of all ages, teaching them about healthy bodies and healthy sexuality in ways they find non-threatening and entertaining. In their own language, children learn about how their bodies change, and what those changes mean.