Next Wednesday, December 3, Selva Orejón, Executive Director of onBRANDING, and Zenaida Aguilar, from the child, youth, and family psychology department at the Carl Rogers Institute, will give an online talk at the British school OAK House School. During the video conference, we will discuss how we can promote responsible device use among children and adolescents, avoiding addictions and the risks they are exposed to.
One of the pillars of onBRANDING’s Corporate Social Responsibility is supporting minors with issues related to Cybersecurity, cyber risks, online harassment, and device use. Schools are a clear priority for us, due to the vulnerability of their members and their lack of awareness of the dangers of the digital environment for children and adolescents.
How to Promote Responsible Device Use?
Currently, the use of screens and devices has a high impact on family units, social life, and the school environment. We identify three main problems regarding the lack of responsible device use:
- The conflict generated in homes over device screen time.
- The growing concern that children and adolescents may fall into addiction.
- Risks and cyber risks involved in unlimited access to content and unwanted contacts that may occur on social media.
Parents and teachers must know how to prevent all these risks and how to act if the situation gets out of control. To this end, we will use a dual perspective that encompasses the following content.
From a psychological perspective:
- Why do our children develop addiction to ICT use?
- How can we detect an addiction at home?
- We focus on our children, but would we be able to detect an addiction or overuse in ourselves?
- What attitude and behavior should parents adopt?
- How can we promote responsible use of ICT?
- When will it be necessary to seek professional help?
From a Cybersecurity perspective:
- What do we know about our children’s digital identity?
- We compete for their attention and the time they spend in front of a screen, but besides complaining, do we know who they follow, what they gain from it, and why they do it? Who are their idols, what are they like, and why?
- Do we know who follows our children on social media and in video game chats?
- And would they know how to differentiate a friend from an acquaintance, from a “Play” friend?
- What is an Instagram photo or video bomb and what risks does it hide?
- What are the dangerous trends currently occurring on social media and video games?
- What dangers are hidden on TikTok, the trending social network?
During next Wednesday’s session, Selva and Zenaida will shed light on the problems arising from responsible device use, with the aim of promoting conscious use of new technologies by children and adolescents, and raising awareness about the dangers they are exposed to in the digital environment.
If you are a teacher or have minor children, and would like us to hold a talk or activity at your school, write to us and we will get in touch with you.
If you want to learn more about minors and technology, we share this conversation between Selva and Zenaida, in which they discuss the most important points to address from a family perspective regarding technology use and the prevention of abuse or cyber risks:
