Google has teamed up with The Alannah and Madeline Foundation to provide an eSmart Digital Licence to every grade six student in Australia, an initiative that aims to educate children on web safety.
A $1.2 million grant from Google is going towards offering this licence free-of-charge to 300,000 school children in Australia.
“The Alannah and Madeline Foundation’s mission hasn’t changed, but the technology that our children use has,” Maile Carnegie, Managing Director of Google Australia & New Zealand, wrote on the official Google Australia Blog.
“Today every classroom has computers, and children often bring tablets and smartphones to school. This would have seemed unimaginably futuristic when the foundation first began. The internet expands the scope for children to explore and learn, but it also compels us to teach them new responsibilities and new ways to stay safe.”
The online-based initiative will see children complete eight learning modules, which aim to evaluate their understanding of cybersafety and give them the skills needed to interact with others online. Each module takes around 15 minutes to complete, which makes it perfect for students to use with teachers in the classroom.
Dr. Judith Slocombe, CEO of The Alannah and Madeline Foundation, said the initiative will create a dialogue between children and their parents, guardians and teachers about online safety issues.
“It is so important for adults to have regular conversations about what’s going on in their child’s online world,” Dr. Slocombe said.
“We know that almost nine in every ten 10-11 year olds say parents are their first port of call when they have an online safety issue. However, many parents feel ill-equipped to advise their children and say they need support.”
The Abbott Government, which committed $10 million towards tackling cyberbullying, is supporting the Digital License program.
“With one in five young Australians found to be victims of cyberbullying each year, we must do more to keep children safe online,” Paul Fletcher MP, Parliamentary Secretary to the Minister for Communications, said.
“Non-Government Organisations and technology companies play a very important role in this area, and I commend The Alannah and Madeline Foundation and Google for their work on the Digital Licence – an initiative which will help keep kids safe online.”
Grade 6 teachers can sign up for the free digital licences at: www.digitallicence.com.au.
