The eSafety Commissioner has launched the first-ever national online safety education framework for Australian schools and teachers, helping educators equip young people with the necessary skills to navigate the online world safely.

eSafety has developed the Best Practice Framework for Online Safety Education, along with a suite of support materials in consultation with over 80 education authorities, organisations and expert individuals.

eSafety Commissioner Julie Inman Grant said the Framework has been designed to guide and assist educators to help young people deal with growing and ever-changing risks associated with being online and lead to meaningful behavioural change.

“Educators and parents alike need to understand that not all online safety education content and approaches are created equal. This Framework helps to ensure we are providing educators with guidance on online safety programs that work,” she said.

“Now, more than ever, we need to ensure that young Australians are consistently being armed with the resilience and critical reasoning skills they need to discern online fact from fiction, to effectively respond to abuse and unwanted contact and to ultimately, manage online conflict.”

The comprehensive Framework, designed to address the needs of every student, at every year level, provides guidance on:

• Students’ rights and responsibilities in a digital age
• Resilience building
• Current and emerging risks
• Help-seeking; how to obtain guidance and support
• Professional learning and capacity building for schools and their staff.

Educators are encouraged to read through this valuable new resource:
www.esafety.gov.au/educators/best-practice-framework