Educators join SA’s first ‘Digital Life Skills Summit’ to improve online safety

Teenagers today are regularly exposed to news stories such as the Ukraine war or local crimes, changing app settings and privacy concerns, cyberhacks and gaming fraud,“ says MySociaLife founder Dean McCoubrey.

To inform schools of this reality, the social media educators have announced a first for South Africa – The MySociaLife ‘Digital Life Skills Summit for Schools’ – equipping teachers with the knowledge and skills they need to keep their students safer online.

Taking place on Thursday, February 16, the 2-hour mini-summit will share five presentations on where students and schools currently find themselves, and how they can chart a new path towards “digital citizenship”.

Insights will also stem from two GenZ speakers.

Educators will be provided with real insights on how not to get left behind which ultimately risks a school’s reputation. Teachers will learn how to shape a more aware digital culture that presents the spectrum of challenges that come with an explosive world of learning, messaging and communication, browsing, gaming and entertainment.

Children are being exposed to more and more online, post-Covid. Recently, a video of a minor having sex with a female SA police officer was circulating on social media.

While the Film and Publication Board (FBP) has announced it is trying to take the video down, it has already entered schools through the phones of many children, exposing them to child pornography.

MySociaLife is pioneering online safety and digital life skills education around South Africa, partnering with schools and presenting world-class, hyper-relevant programmes to students from Grade 4 to Grade 11.

“The great obstacle is getting kids to relate and buy in. We recently launched a world-first social media current affairs show, called OneLife, that’s specifically designed to help teens successfully navigate the digital world they live in. What’s OneLife’s secret? An incredible GenZ team of six individuals under the age of 23 that creates and presents the content on screen.”

The Digital Life Skills Summit on February 16 is free for all life orientation teachers.

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