WINNIPEG – Despite being such a huge part of students’ lives, cellphones and social media don’t have much of a place in the school curriculum.
The Canadian Centre for Child Protection wants to change that by bringing technology and its pitfalls into the classroom.
“It’s bigger now. A lot of people go to social media before they talk to other people,” said Nicholas Odidison, a Grade 11 student at West Kildonan Collegiate.
The Canadian Centre for Child Protection has created programs geared towards students in grades 7 to 10 that include lessons plans for teachers and workbooks for students.
“We’ve created it to address the collision we’re seeing between technology, kids experimenting sexually or sexual exploitation, and the cyberbullying that ensues as a result of that,” said Noni Classen, director of education at the Canadian Centre for Child Protection.
The lessons were designed based on real-life cyberbullying situations, which guidance counsellors and teachers say is important when relating to the students.
“I think, in the classroom, that’s the most ideal situation,” said Marika Hackbart, school counsellor. “That’s where kids know their teachers, and you can get some really good discussions going.”
Teachers and the school boards will decide whether to bring the material into their physical education classrooms.
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