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Resource Education Toolkit CO:RE at EUN Published: 11 Dec 2022

What can schools do to help children to be better prepared to cope with online risks?

This education toolkit resource discusses what online risks are and how they can be classified based on the 4Cs of online risks classification by Livingstone & Stoilova [1].

Although many parents, educators and care givers worry that their children might experience online risks, many feel powerless or unable to help children positively cope with them. Below we provide some ideas to support schools be better prepared to tackle online risks.

  • Children are agents of change. Educators can help children by stimulating the development of emotional, social, and cognitive skills, as well as digital literacy [2]. Possessing adequate skills can help children be better prepared to tackle online risks, and to maximise online opportunities [3].

  • Keep up to date with your students’ digital lives. This will help teachers and other school staff timely identify potential online risks and act upon them. If possible, follow training courses that can help you stay up to date, for instance, the free online courses offered by the European Schoolnet Academy [3].

  • Children rarely turn to teachers for support when they are upset by something they experienced online [4]. You can help revert this trend if you offer your students plenty of opportunities to share their digital experiences, including the less pleasant ones, with you. Children are more likely to disclose to an adult if they know for sure that the adult will not judge them and that the trusted people will treat their information as confidential [5].

  • Embed topics such as online safety in the wider curriculum [6]. For instance, discuss cyberbullying in the school prevention initiatives that focus on related offline issues, such as offline bullying or school violence prevention.   

  • Make sure to include the whole school in promoting digital literacy and online safety and include clear protocols to deal with problematic situations such as school-related online bullying or harassment [7]. Involve teachers and school management, the students, but also their families. In some cases, it may also be relevant to invite experts for advice or training, such as your local Safer Internet Centre or the police [3].

  • Involve your students in the development of online safety activities [3]. For instance, create a code of conduct together where rules about positive and unacceptable online behaviour are specified [3,8].

  • Communicate advice and information on online safety on channels that resonate with children and young people and give children a voice in these channels [9].

  • Peer-to-peer learning activities are advisable for online safety education, as young learners can be less aware of risks, and older learners, by being more experienced, can offer support and guidance [3].

  • As school or class, get involved in initiatives that raise awareness on online risks and online safety, such as the Safer Internet Day.

How can schools deal with incidents of online risks at school?

  • Countries in Europe have dedicated centers to work towards a safer internet for children, named Safer Internet Centers. These centers provide helplines which offer advice and support to young people, carers and educators in responding to online risks. Educators should have the numbers of support helplines and other relevant organisations such as hotlines ready to use and be aware that sometimes the police should be contacted if the children are subject to threats, potential crimes, or other types of serious incidents [9].

  • School staff should always aim to help their students when online incidents happen, even if they happen outside of the school. Staff should be guided by what is best for the students, considering children’s rights, but also the child’s feelings about the situation [22]. 

  • Make sure to include parents in online safety activities to raise awareness amongst parents as well as their children [13]. A way to raise parents’ education on online experiences of their children is to have their children showcase their online safety activities and projects at home as well as during school events [13].

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Helpful resources

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  1. image/svg+xml art designer at PLoS, modified by Wikipedia users Nina, Beao, JakobVoss, and AnonMoos Open Access logo, converted into svg, designed by PLoS. This version with transparent background. http://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Open_Access_logo_PLoS_white.svg art designer at PLoS, modified by Wikipedia users Nina, Beao, JakobVoss, and AnonMoos http://www.plos.org/ Livingstone, S., & Stoilova, M. (2021). The 4Cs: Classifying Online Risk to Children. (CO:RE Short Report Series on Key Topics). Hamburg: Leibniz-Institut für Medienforschung | Hans-Bredow-Institut (HBI); CO:RE - Children Online: Research and Evidence. https://doi.org/10.21241/ssoar.71817

  2. Asam & Katz, 2018 as in M. O’Reilly, N. Dogra, D.T. Levine, V. Donoso. (2021). Digital media and child and adolescent mental health: A practical guide to understanding the evidence. Sage. https://uk.sagepub.com/en-gb/eur/digital-media-and-child-and-adolescent-mental-health/book270318

  3. image/svg+xml art designer at PLoS, modified by Wikipedia users Nina, Beao, JakobVoss, and AnonMoos Open Access logo, converted into svg, designed by PLoS. This version with transparent background. http://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Open_Access_logo_PLoS_white.svg art designer at PLoS, modified by Wikipedia users Nina, Beao, JakobVoss, and AnonMoos http://www.plos.org/ Donoso, V. (2019). Not concerned about eSafety at your school? Here’s why you should be! http://www.eun.org/news/detail?articleId=4214470

  4. image/svg+xml art designer at PLoS, modified by Wikipedia users Nina, Beao, JakobVoss, and AnonMoos Open Access logo, converted into svg, designed by PLoS. This version with transparent background. http://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Open_Access_logo_PLoS_white.svg art designer at PLoS, modified by Wikipedia users Nina, Beao, JakobVoss, and AnonMoos http://www.plos.org/ Stoilova, M., & Livingstone S. (2020, May, 18). Children’s online safety: what is the best approach? Key findings from recent research. https://www.itu.int/hub/2020/05/childrens-online-safety-what-is-the-best-approach-key-findings-from-recent-research/

  5. image/svg+xml art designer at PLoS, modified by Wikipedia users Nina, Beao, JakobVoss, and AnonMoos Open Access logo, converted into svg, designed by PLoS. This version with transparent background. http://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Open_Access_logo_PLoS_white.svg art designer at PLoS, modified by Wikipedia users Nina, Beao, JakobVoss, and AnonMoos http://www.plos.org/ ECPAT International & UNICEF Office of Research – Innocenti (2022). Children’s Disclosures of Online Sexual Exploitation and Abuse. Disrupting Harm Data Insight 2. Global Partnership to End Violence Against Children. https://www.end-violence.org/sites/default/files/2022-05/DH-data-insight-2_FinalB%282%29.pdf

  6. image/svg+xml art designer at PLoS, modified by Wikipedia users Nina, Beao, JakobVoss, and AnonMoos Open Access logo, converted into svg, designed by PLoS. This version with transparent background. http://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Open_Access_logo_PLoS_white.svg art designer at PLoS, modified by Wikipedia users Nina, Beao, JakobVoss, and AnonMoos http://www.plos.org/ O’Neill, B., & Staksrud, E. (2014). Final recommendations for policy. London: EU Kids Online, LSE. https://ecpat.be/wp-content/uploads/2014/10/D64Policy.pdf

  7. image/svg+xml art designer at PLoS, modified by Wikipedia users Nina, Beao, JakobVoss, and AnonMoos Open Access logo, converted into svg, designed by PLoS. This version with transparent background. http://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Open_Access_logo_PLoS_white.svg art designer at PLoS, modified by Wikipedia users Nina, Beao, JakobVoss, and AnonMoos http://www.plos.org/ eSafety Toolkit for Schools. https://www.esafety.gov.au/educators/toolkit-for-schools/prepare. 

  8. Young Minds, 2016 as in O’Reilly, M., Dogra, N., Levine, D., & Donoso, V. (2021). Digital media and child and adolescent mental health: A practical guide to understanding the evidence. Sage. https://uk.sagepub.com/en-gb/eur/digital-media-and-child-and-adolescent-mental-health/book270318

  9. image/svg+xml art designer at PLoS, modified by Wikipedia users Nina, Beao, JakobVoss, and AnonMoos Open Access logo, converted into svg, designed by PLoS. This version with transparent background. http://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Open_Access_logo_PLoS_white.svg art designer at PLoS, modified by Wikipedia users Nina, Beao, JakobVoss, and AnonMoos http://www.plos.org/ UNICEF (April, 2020). COVID-19 and its implications for protecting children online. https://www.unicef.org/documents/covid-19-and-implications-protecting-children-online

  10. O’Neill, B. & Dinh, T. (2018). The Better Internet for Kids policy map: Implementing the European Strategy for a Better Internet for Children in European member states. www.betterinternetforkids.eu/documents/167024/2637346/BIK+Map+report+-+Final+-+March+2018/a858ae53-971f-4dce-829c5a02af9287f7

  11. image/svg+xml art designer at PLoS, modified by Wikipedia users Nina, Beao, JakobVoss, and AnonMoos Open Access logo, converted into svg, designed by PLoS. This version with transparent background. http://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Open_Access_logo_PLoS_white.svg art designer at PLoS, modified by Wikipedia users Nina, Beao, JakobVoss, and AnonMoos http://www.plos.org/ European Commission. https://digital-strategy.ec.europa.eu/en/policies/safer-internet-centres

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