Entries Tagged 'technology' ↓

At the centre of popular culture lies popular (pop) music, it has always been the music of the next generation, as young people come into their own they begin to express themselves through their clothes, interests, friends and music.

In modern times, the mass media has become a major instrument for the spread and dissemination of popular-culture to young people.

In Cultural Theory and Popular Culture, John Storey equates pop culture with Mass Culture. This is seen as a commercial culture, mass produced for mass consumption. This definition can also be applied to today’s music industry and the phenomenon that encompasses it.

Popular music is present almost everywhere, and it is easily available through the radio, ipods, the Internet, and new technologies, allowing adolescents to hear it in diverse settings and situations, alone or shared with friends. They use music in their process of identity formation, and their music preference gives them a means to achieve group identity and integration into the youth culture.

Much of the music today no longer has sexual innuendos where the imagination joins the dots. Today the lyrics are graphic and vulgar, this is seen in songs by artists like Lady Gaga “I’m educated in sex, yes … I wanna take a ride on your disco stick”, or Katy Perry with “Sex on a beach. We get sand in our stilettos. We freak and we’re cheap”.

The content of pop music is highly sexualised and seems to know no bounds. Music by R ‘n’ B singer Rihanna is considered by some experts in the music industry to be soft porn.

Music producer Mike Stock (part of Stock, Aiken and Waterman) thinks children are at risk from the pop stars who peddle porn. He has condemned raunchy clips as “sexualising” children.

“The music industry has gone too far,” he said, “99% of the charts is R ‘n’ B music and 99% of that is soft pornography.

“Kids are being forced to grow up too young. Look at the videos, I wouldn’t necessarily want my young kids to watch them. It’s not about me being old fashioned. It’s about keeping values that are important in the modern world. These days you can’t watch modern stars like Britney Spears or Lady Gaga with a two-year-old.”

Research has found that nearly 42% of songs contain very explicitly sexual language. Lyrics revolve around topics such as sexual promiscuity, rape, death, homicide, suicide, and substance abuse. Rap music in particular often carries messages of violence, racism, homophobia and hatred towards women as well as drug, tobacco, and alcohol use – all of which are glorified.

Generation Next speaker and adolescent psychologist Dr Michael Carr-Gregg said the classification system needed to be toughed to stop the “skankification of this generation”.

“Mike Stock is right – it’s amazing that the Senate inquiry a few years ago actually recommended that the TV stations review the classifications, but when they redid their Code they didn’t change a single word,” he said.

Kids Free 2B Kids director Julie Gale said research has found sexualised video clips can impact on children’s self-esteem after just ten minutes exposure.

“The recommendation of the Senate inquiry two years ago should be followed through, they should not be in children’s prime viewing hours,” she said.

The Senate’s report Sexualisation of children in the contemporary media, published in June 2008 recommended that broadcasters review their classification of music videos specifically with regard to sexualising imagery.

Australian recording artist Kate Ceberano has also said artists needed to take more responsibility, “Artists need to be responsible for how they use sex to sell their products. There’s a fine line between beauty and hard core.”

In November 2009 the American Academy of Pediatrics issued a policy statement on the “Impact of Music, Lyrics, and Music Videos on Children and Youth”

Research by the AAP showed that popular music effects schoolwork, social interactions, mood and affect, and particularly behaviour. Exposure to violence, sexual messages, sexual stereotypes, and use of substances of abuse in music videos might produce significant changes in behaviours and attitudes of young viewers.

It is estimated that over 60% of young people watch music videos on a regular basis, with 7% of these watching them before they go to school.

In studies performed to assess the reactions of adolescent boys exposed to violent rap music videos or sexist videos, participants reported an increased probability that they would engage in violence, a greater acceptance of the use of violence, and a greater acceptance of the use of violence against women than did participants who were not exposed to these videos. Researchers also found an association between music-video–watching and promiscuous sexual behaviours.

The American Academy for Pediatrics recommended that the music-video industry produce videos with more positive themes about relationships, racial harmony, drug avoidance, nonviolent conflict resolution, sexual abstinence, pregnancy prevention, and avoidance of promiscuity.

Writer Helen Splarn. Editor Dr Ramesh Manocha.

Source: American Academy of Pediatrics. They Sydney Morning Herald

Cyber Safety expert Susan McLean describes cyber-bulllying in the following terms:

“cyber-bullying can be described as any harassment, insults and humiliation that occurs through the electronic mediums such as email, mobile phones, social networking sites, instant messaging programs, chat rooms, web sites and through the playing of online games.”

What you can do to help a child who is being cyber bullied.

• Do not get angry with your child – remember they are the victim and it is someone else doing the wrong thing.
• Praise them for coming to you – this is a big step as most children are frightened to tell a parent about cyber-bullying.
• Save and store the emails, chat logs or SMS’s in case of police investigation.
• Help your child to block and delete the bully from all contact lists.
• Do not respond to nasty emails, chats, SMS’s or comments – this is what the bully wants so ignore them. (They will need your help to do this)
• Use the ‘report abuse’ button which all websites/applications have. Tell them the problems you are having and they are obligated to investigate.
• Have some ‘down time’ without computer or mobile (do not do this as punishment, rather as some peaceful time where they are not being bothered)
• If unwanted contact continues, consider deleting emails, msn, hotmail etc and start a new account. Only give your details to a small list of trusted friends.
• Get a new phone number if being harassed on your phone. Report the problem to your phone company and insist on a new number for free.
• Inform your child’s school. It is important that they know what is going on so that they can monitor any issues at school, and
• If ongoing report to the police. Each state has laws that prohibit online bullying and stalking. You don’t have to put up with it.

For more information go to Cybersafetysolutions.

Writer Helen Splarn. Editor Dr Ramesh Manocha.
Source: Susan McLean – Cybersafetysolutions

Go into any young person’s bedroom now-a-days and you will find an assortment of electronic media scattered around the room. Many of these devises will be in operation simultaneously; the computer is on, the internet is connected, the iPod is playing, messages are being sent and received via the mobile phone and the TV is quietly playing away, just in case anyone glances over at it.

From their rooms teenagers are connected not only to friends but also to global networks through internet access, from the central hub of their bedrooms they conduct their social life, often well into the night.

A recent study “Electronic Media use and sleep in school-aged children and adolescents: a review” published in the journal Sleep Medicine by sleep medicine researchers at Flinders University in Adelaide has concluded that young people who have access to electronic media such as televisions, computers, internet, games and mobile phones in their bedrooms are putting their behavioral development at risk.

The research showed that the main reason for this seems to be because of the lack of sleep they get due to the fact that they continue to use these devises even after ‘lights out’. For some children this can delay sleep time by several hours, usually without their parent’s knowledge. Much of the action begins after 9pm and this means a shorter total sleep time. New media has now been linked to reduced time in bed and to sleep disturbances.

Dr Michael Gradisar, of Flinders University, noted that recent comparable studies in the US found that adolescents frequently used mass communication late into the night. 55% of US adolescents access the internet and 24% play computer games after 9 pm, while 30% of adolescents reported text messaging.

The American Academy of Paediatrics has suggested that children’s bedrooms ought to be “electronic media-free” rooms.

“Health and wellbeing of young Australians” published in March 2010 by the Australian Institute of Health and Welfare estimated that adolescents need about 9 hours sleep each night. The report went on to say that “Sleep disorders and sleep deprivation have an impact on the health and wellbeing outcomes of young people by reducing their capacity to undertake normal everyday activities.” Thinking, emotional balance and behaviour are all affected by chronic sleep deprivation (Carpenter 2001) with the result being poor school grades and impaired social skills.

The publication went onto say that “communication technology, including TV, internet, newspaper and other media have shown to have an impact on young people and how they review themselves and their community and to inform their views on global issues. Young users are increasingly turning to the internet as a source of information, communication, socialising and entertainment (Gigli 2004).”

Another study conducted in Belgium by J. Van den Bulck (SLEEP 2007;30(9):1220-1223.)* looked at 1,656 children with an average of 13.7 years and found that “Mobile phone use after lights out is very prevalent among adolescents. Its use is related to increased levels of tiredness. There is no safe dose and no safe time for using the mobile phone for text messaging or for calling after lights out.”

The use of mobile phones, after parents have ensured that all other electronic media has been switched off, seems to be common place. The sending and receiving of SMS’s and practices such as “ringing” (interrupting the call before it is answered – which is a way of telling that person “I was thinking of you), “bombing” ( the number of times the phone rings signals what the caller is trying to convey) and sending “chain messages” to a number of friends, are nightly occurrences.

Many adolescents would have their parents believe that they need an array of electronic media as “sleep aids” and that these gadgets and applications help them to unwind and relax in preparation for sleep. However, research shoes that even as they sleep the interaction between media and sleep does not stop. Playing computer games has been shown to shorten REM sleep in adults and many adolescents report dreaming about what they saw on TV or in a computer game.

The Flinders University research team wants their findings to be used in developing guidelines on electronic media use by children, given that sleep is important for learning and memory, as well as having implications for emotional regulation and behaviour.

The researchers go onto say that lack of sleep and poor sleep quality have also been linked to lapses in memory, concentration, and poor academic performance.

“Considering the evidence to date … parents should be informed that simply having electronic media devices in the bedroom can negatively affect their children’s sleep,” they conclude.

Writer Helen Splarn. Editor Dr Ramesh Manocha.

Source: SLEEP 2007;30(9):1220-1223.

*The data used in this analysis were gathered by the Leuven School for Mass Communication Research with support from the Fund for Scientific Research (Flanders) and the Ministry of Welfare of the Flemish Government of Belgium.

headspace is supporting this series of national seminars relating to the health and wellbeing of young people.

The next Mental Health and Wellbeing of Young People 2010 Seminar will be held in Sydney on Friday September 10, 2010

WHAT: Topics this year include major and current issues

• Cyber-bullying
• Drugs and Alcohol
• Body Image & Eating Disorders
• Teen Depression
• Resilience
• Sexualisation, Consumerism, the Media and Mental health

Feedback from our previous event:
• ”It was very insightful. I got such a lot out of hearing from the wonderful line up of speakers you organised for us. I congratulate you on putting such a powerful line-up and message together.”
• “Thank you again for organising such a great event- it was a wonderful success and hopefully the start of many more in the future!”
• “Congratulations and thank you on a well informed and planned conference. My colleague and I loved it. I know next year I would like to send my middle years staff.”
• “The day was a very valuable one and I know that there will be more teachers from our school attending the next one.”
• “The conference speakers were engaging and stimulating and to be honest I have thought of little else since…! It was extremely uplifting to listen to people who love what they do, who are passionate about young people, passionate about their area of expertise and who are generous enough to share their knowledge, insights and understanding to improve the lives of others. Congratulations to everyone involved, I for one have been moved into action and inspired to act!”
• “Thanks once again for such a wonderful conference. I got so much out of it. I plan to use much of the info I gained on the day on a whole school basis. It’s great to have practical info that can be adapted to a school setting.”
• “It was a terrific seminar and every speaker was dynamic and to the point, well worth having a second one. I will share the details with colleagues.”
• “It was wonderful to learn in such a funny and stimulating way. The power of humour…! I will tell all colleagues about what a great professional event it was and how they can possibly get to the next one.”
• “Thank you for your vision, passion and dedication for the wellbeing of young people.”
•  “It was a terrific seminar and every speaker was dynamic and to the point, well worth having a second one. I will share the details with colleagues.”
• “Again thank you for a wondrous seminar.”
• “I will promote the next conference for you, as last week was fantastic!”
• “Thanks for putting on a great conference.”
•  “Thank you so much for your part in organising the wonderful event…..It was inspiring to hear such a collection of speakers on the one program, all most informative and entertaining. I …. shall be passing on the information to others.”
•  “The event WAS wonderful and I am happy to see that you are hosting another so soon.”

 
95% of the delegates felt that the seminar was definitely worth attending

Australia’s leading experts in one event:
• Michael Carr-Gregg, Adolescent Psychologist and Beyondblue Ambassador
• Dr Sloane Madden, Expert in Body Image and Eating Disorders, The Children’s Hospital, Westmead
• Paul Dillon, Drug and Alcohol Research and Training
• Susan McLean, Cyber safety Expert
• Lyn Worsely, Psychologist, Developer of The Resilience Doughnut
• Evelyn Field, Psychologist, Author of Bully blocking, National Centre Against Bullying
• Dr Ramesh Manocha, GP, Mental Health Researcher, University of Sydney

For Education, Health and Welfare Professionals:

“The Mental Health and Wellbeing of Young People 2010″.
Date: Friday, September 10, 2010
Venue: Mathews Lecture Theatre, University of New South Wales, Randwick, Sydney
Time: 9am-5pm

To look at the full programme, download the brochure or register go to Generation Next

Or phone 1300 797 794

Editor Dr Ramesh Manocha

We read the story – about an 11 year old girl in the US, Jessi Slaughter, who received a tirade of threats after posting a video of herself on YouTube.

We saw the pictures – the freeze frame of what looked like a traumatised child in her bedroom in floods of tears.
 
On the surface it looked like she was the victim of yet another case of cyber-bullying led by a group of ‘trollers’ – people who use the internet to deliberately provoke reactions by baiting their victims.

“How can we let this happen to an innocent young child?” we all said!

Jessi’s post is at Watch Haters… Piercing… StickyDrama =D here see all 4 minutes and 36 seconds of her rant – but be warned despite the fact Jessi is only 11 years old, the language is extremely graphic.

She has an attitude which is way beyond her years and completely defies logic or a sense of reality. She tells her ‘haters’ to “suck her nonexistent p…s. Suck it and get AIDS and die,” and ends her video post with “it’s a big f*** to all those haters, OK”.

It seems that her actions invited negative attention and provoked a backlash. Perhaps she was not aware that posting a video, filled with expletives, onto the internet would create such commotion. It reinforces the importance of parental supervision regarding teenage activities on the net, it also highlights the need for education about the harmful effects of new media in school as well.

Leading adolescent psychologist, Generation Next speaker and author of “Real Wired Child” Dr Michael Carr-Gregg, points out that “parents need to understand that there are potential dangers in life not just in the technology but also in young people’s inability to always predict the consequences of their actions.”

The American Academy of Pediatrics, Committee on Public Education and Media Education states that “the American Academy of Pediatrics recognizes that exposure to mass media (i.e., television, movies, video and computer games, the Internet, music lyrics and videos, newspapers, magazines, books, advertising, etc) presents both health risks and benefits for children and adolescents.”

They feel that educating both young people and parents is very important and that “media education has the potential to reduce the harmful effects of media. By understanding and supporting media education, pediatricians can play an important role in reducing the risk of exposure to mass media for children and adolescents.” (American Academy of Pediatrics Committee on Public Education. Media Education. Pediatrics. 1999;104:341–3).       

Her behaviour seemed aggressive and quite bizarre; being under the impression that she was some kind of celebrity with fans.

“You hater bitches, you’re just jealous of me because I’m more pretty than you. More people like me, I have more fans, yeh and all that shit” I’m perfect and you’re not. No one can be this pretty with no make-up on… Just stop hating on me. I’m just a normal girl who’s perfect in every way.” 

So where were her parents in all this and why were they not aware of their daughter’s behaviour? Her mother said she doesn’t use the computer and hasn’t seen the clip, while her father added to the furore by posting a rant of his own.

Dr Helen McGrath – a contributor to the Commonwealth Government’s Cyber-safety Joint Committee commented that it was unrealistic to expect parents to keep an eye on their children 24/7 and that the burden lay with schools to give young people the tools to look after themselves.

“It really comes back down to making sure they understand what they’re getting into,” she said.

However Professor Matt Warren, the head of Deakin University’s School of Information Systems said a “child isn’t ethically aware of what they’re doing,” they are too young to understand the implications of what they are “getting into”.

He added “parents will be concerned about their child going out all hours, but they don’t care about them staying on the internet all hours.”

If ever parents needed a reason to censor their children’s internet activities, Jessi Slaughter is it. 

Cyber bullying is a real concern and for more information you can access either:

Cybersmart   or  Cybersafetysolutions

Writer Helen Splarn. Editor Dr Ramesh Manocha.
Source: news.com

4% of adult Australians play the pokies each week
$6 billion spent on pokies each year

The growing trend in ‘redemption games’ that are now filling children’s games arcades are setting them on the rocky road to gambling.

They are called ‘redemption games’ because young people play for tickets or prizes, including cameras and TVs. They use electronic claws to grasp at a pile of goodies, spin a wheel, or use a button to line up blocks and win.

Many of the games now even mimic poker machines and the increasing popularity of computer games and gaming consoles at home has further fuelled their popularity.

Many arcades are strategically placed in clubs near the pokies where their parents are playing. So while mum and dad are gambling away at the big poker machines (it accounts for almost two thirds of the $19 billion dollars Australians “spend” on gambling each year), the kids are learning how to gamble at the games arcade.

The Productivity Commission’s report into gambling which was published in June highlights the significant social cost of gambling, estimated to be at least $4.7 billion. More than 75% of Australians with gambling problems spend most of their money on poker machines. A survey conducted by the Victorian government found that 6,000 pokie playing Victorians admitted that their gambling had led them to do something against the law.

The Productivity Commission’s report confirmed the view that ”minors should not … be exposed to gambling areas within venues”.

The report also acknowledged that “there is strong evidence that gambling can have adverse health, emotional and financial impacts on many more people than those categorised as ‘problem gamblers’. As is the case in policies addressing harm from alcohol consumption, policy also needs to address these wider impacts”.

Independent Senator, Mr Nick Xenophon thinks these games should be reclassified as gaming machines. He said the federal government should bring in new laws; ”legislation needs to change because these machines are a training ground for pokies. It puts kids at risk.”

”While mum and dad are playing pokies inside, the kids are getting trained on redemption [arcade] games just a few metres away. The connection is insidious and it is totally cynical,” he said.

Activist and founder of PokieAct.org Paul Bendat said all children’s games should be banned from pokies venues. ”I stand for children not being in pokies venues at all because gambling is an adult form of harmful entertainment,” he said.

Mr Bendat believes that there is an Australia wide assault on our children, they are being lured into pokie pubs and exposed to gambling on the poker machines.

One person commented that “I would never let my children near pokies as I’ve seen what they can do families. After many years of seeing my husband’s nieces and nephews around pokies, they now also think nothing of sinking a few hundred (dollars) when we go out for lunch at a club”.

These sentiments are echoed by Charles Livingstone, an electronic gaming expert at Monash University, who feels that the arcade games both indoctrinate kids into gambling while making them feel it is a normal part of life, and  lure them with their parents into the pokie venues.

Dr Livingstone said Australia had ”one of the world’s most liberal gambling regulatory regimes”, which had led to a significant increase in the number of pubs and gaming venues offering children’s activities in recent years. A University of Adelaide study released last year surveyed more than 2,500 teenagers and found pathological gamblers were significantly more likely to play video and arcade games.

David Curry, a spokesman for Australian Leisure and Hospitality Group,  said “we operate family venues with a variety of entertainment opportunities for children included within that,”  he seemed unable to appreciate that games had the potential to teach children to gamble, or encourage them to gamble as they grew older.

It seems the government has a dilemma on its hands. The problem is that the Productivity Commission’s recommendations are trying to reduce the harm associated with gambling, while preserving its benefits.

This seems to be a contradiction of terms. How can something which has proven to be both addictive and harmful to the individual have any ‘benefits’? perhaps the government is referring to financial ‘benefits’ which the clubs no doubt enjoy or the revenue collected by the government which is certainly a benefit the government would not like to forego.

Writer Helen Splarn. Editor Dr Ramesh Manocha.

Source: pokieact – make pokie places kid free.  Productivity Commission’s report into gambling.

• 10% of computer users are addicted to games
• Computer game addictions lead to mental health issues

More and more teenagers are immersing themselves in a virtual world. Leaving reality behind them they are becoming increasingly  addicted to computer games.

This has led to some medical facilities offering full time treatment to young people who show signs of the condition known as “pathological internet use”.

One such facility is Sydney’s Rivendell Adolescent Unit at Concord where computer game addiction expert and psychiatrist, Dr Philip Tam said “It’s not just computer addiction – there are other problems. There are issues of depression, of social anxiety, family problems”.

“The computer is almost like an escape. That’s why you might call it the Facebook Generation.”  For them “going on Facebook is far more fun often than sitting with your own family.”

“Most kids with these problems don’t come anywhere near a psychiatrist – they just run into problems at school,” Dr Tam said. “This is likely to continue to grow inexorably and in ways we cannot yet imagine”.

“These are tricky and complex cases and the people themselves often don’t see it as a problem. Its families and the teachers who see the problem.”

Dr Philip Tam said: “They can’t stop playing. The longest I’ve had is a teenage schoolboy playing 37 hours non-stop with only toilet breaks”.

Research shows that the use of computers at an early age actually encourages a short attention span, which leads to problems later on in the classroom and when dealing with real life face to face situations.

Many young people of this generation seem ill equipped and unwilling to attempt new skills and experiences in the world of reality. They do not have the essential skills of ‘resilience’ needed to overcome and solve situations that arise in everyday face to face life.

Clinical Psychologist, author of “From Surviving to Thriving” and Generation Next speaker, Andrew Fuller describes resilience as “the happy knack of being able to bungy jump through the pitfalls of life – to rise above adversity and obstacles. It is the strongest antidote we know of for self-harm, depression and drug abuse and it’s built on our sense of belonging. ”

Mr Fuller suggests 10 ways to help develop resilience in young people:

1. Promote belonging
2. Have some mooch (unstructured time at home together) time
3. Rediscover some family rituals
4. Encourage Spontaneity and curiosity
5. Love kids for their differences
6. Parents take control and responsibility
7. Be consistent
8. Teach them the skills of self-esteem
9. Know how to argue and resolve disputes fairly
10. Parents should be predictable

It’s not just teenager boys who are suffering from computer addiction. Teenage girls are also at risk. Many girls are becoming withdrawn and shy away from face to face interaction. They shut out their families, friends and teachers.

“There are children dying from this . . . 17-year-olds committing suicide – I have been to a funeral,” said the mother of an 18 year old girl.

“They become isolated and then depressed, suffer from a lack of motivation, don’t socialise or get a job. It’s not just boys. Girls are sitting in front of the computer all night playing these games against others.”

This comes at a time when leading UK expert Dr Aric Sigman has found that exposing children to Information and Communication Technology (ICT) before the age of 9 years old  can actually be detrimental to their development by “subverting the development of children’s cognitive skills”.

Writer Helen Splarn. Editor Dr Ramesh Manocha. 
Source: Daily Telegraph

Dr Aric Sigman, psychologist and author of Remotely Controlled: How Television is Damaging Our Lives and The Spoilt Generation is concerned that exposing children as young as 22 months to computers and Information and Communication Technology (ICT) actually impinges on their development rather than aids it because it is “subverting the development of children’s cognitive skills”.

Based the UK, Dr Sigman recently addressed a childcare conference, telling them “there is evidence to show that introducing information and communication technology (ICT) in the early years actually subverts the very skills that government ministers said they want children to develop, such as the ability to pay attention for sustained periods.”

In Australia it is almost a year since the Rudd government made laptops available to Australian school children. During that time there has been growing concern that their use is distracting students and making them under perform in exams.

Helen Walton from the NSW Federation of Parents and Citizen’s Association said “anything that offers children the opportunity to be distracted, they will be”.

Many young people already suffer from a poor attention span which in turn makes it difficult for them to listen to a teacher or follow through on even the simplest of tasks. It is feared that exposure to computers will be harmful to young children’s under developed brains.

“The big problems we are seeing now with children who do not read, or who find it difficult to pay attention to the teacher, or to communicate, are down to attention damage that we are finding in all age groups.”

Dr Sigman suggests that computers should “be introduced and used judiciously at much later ages – ideally at least age nine – or it can subvert the development of the cognitive skills and curiosity it was intended to foster and enhance,”

By the age of nine years old, computers can be used very effectively to help children’s learning, social development and health. A number of studies in the US show that age-appropriate software can help language development.

Writer Helen Splarn. Editor Dr Ramesh Manocha
Source: The (London) Sunday Telegraph.  Dr Aric Sigman

• Victorian Government to introduce new anti-bullying laws
• 600 intervention court orders this year against children
• New laws to focus on mediation
• 10% of Australian teenagers are victims of cyber-bullying

The changes come at a time when more children are taking out intervention orders against other children in an attempt to deal with the growing number of cases of school bullying, especially cyber-bullying.

Former cyber-safety project officer with the Victoria Police and Generation Next speaker, Susan McLean said the increase in cyber-bullying at schools meant that the student’s concerns needed to be resolved immediately in order to avoid long term trauma for the victims.

If these new laws are to be effective they must be supported by extensive training in cyber-bullying for all mediators, school councillors and teachers.

“They can’t wait six weeks for mediation – that would defeat the purpose,” Ms McLean said. “As an adult, if someone sends you something nasty you delete it. Children read and re-read.”

There are also concerns that teachers are not equipped to deal with both the increased cases of bullying and the nature it is now taking, which includes cyber-bullying, stalking and acts of violence including the use of weapons.

Research carried out by online bullying expert Dr Spears, a senior lecturer at the University of South Australia surveyed 700 student teachers “we know pretty well all universities are giving pre-service teachers behaviour management courses, but we need to focus on the specifics of how you help somebody. If a child comes to me then what do we do?” Dr Spears said.

“If we’re looking for a whole school community response (to cyber-bullying) then we can’t ignore the people training to be teachers.”

“There’s an understanding that these young people are digital natives, online and offline their worlds are one and the same,” she said.

“The fact is nothing is private online,” Dr Spears said. “If the information is there it can be accessed. Young people need to realise once it is there it is there forever.”

For this reason, it was important for Internet users to adopt the rule of thumb: What goes online stays online, she said.

The National Centre Against Bullying is also calling for all student teachers to receive compulsory and comprehensive training in both bullying prevention and bullying management during their training.

Writer Helen Splarn. Editor Dr Ramesh Manocha.
Source: National Centre Against Bullying.

Generation Next presents Australia’s leading experts on children and teenagers in one event.

Generation Next is an exciting new initiative featuring a national seminar series and supporting resources aimed at protecting and enhancing the wellbeing of our children and teenagers.

Generation Next has been developed in close consultation with leading experts in adolescent psychology, drug and alcohol research, depression, cybersafety, sexualisation and bullying. The seminars address the rising tide of mental, emotional and social challenges affecting young people as they enter and begin navigate through the increasingly complex world in which we live.

Generation Next will provide professionals, parents, carers, teachers and anyone who cares about the future of Australia’s young people with accurate information and reliable advice on how to deal with these unprecedented challenges.

Generation Next Public Seminar

ADELAIDE - 21 August
For Parents, Carers and Teachers:

Venue:  AAMI Stadium. West Lakes, Adelaide
Time:    12.30pm – 5.30pm

Register online by going to Generation Next Seminars or Download the brochure.
See details and running order for “Generation Next Public Seminars”.

The Mental Health and Wellbeing of Young People 2010

SYDNEY – Friday 10 September.                
For Education, Health and Welfare Professionals:

Venue: Matthews Theatre A, University of NSW, Sydney
Time:   9am-5pm

Register online by going to Generation Next or Download the brochure.
See details and running order for “The Mental Health and Wellbeing of Young People 2010″.

Editor Dr Ramesh Manocha.