Digital safety resources to keep children and teens with disability safer online
With research revealing that three-quarters of Australian teens who are living with disability are exposed to potentially harmful online content - compared with a national average of 62%^ - the disability sector is welcoming new online safety resources developed by Scope and the eSafety Commissioner’s Office.
Scope’s Be Safe Online resources are designed to not only support young people with disability but also to empower parents, guardians, and carers to have meaningful conversations about online safety.
Developed over 18 months, these resources were created with direct input from young people with disabilities, their families, carers, educators, and subject matter experts, ensuring they are specifically tailored to meet the needs of this vulnerable group.
Focus groups facilitated by Scope revealed that while there is widespread awareness of the risks associated with being online, many parents, carers, and educators lack the confidence and tools to effectively discuss safe practices with young people.
The Be Safe Online resources developed by Scope to better protect young people living with disability online include:
· Suite of Easy English resources designed for people with communication disabilities and low literacy to access with support of a communication partner if needed, covering topics such as staying safe from scams, providing online consent and maintaining a healthy online balance;
· Communication book and key word sign resource designed to facilitate effective conversations about online safety and make reporting to the eSafety Commissioner more accessible and;
· eLearning module developed to support educators and trainers to provide more communication accessible content to their audiences.
Scope CEO, Kate MacRae, stated that the tailored resources will support young people with disability to access the online world safely while also supporting parents, guardians and carers to engage them with confidence.
“The ability to access digital platforms is very important for young people with disability. Along with being important from an accessibility perspective, the internet can open opportunities to participate in communities and forge connections in ways that may not be easily accessible to them in the physical world.
“However, people living with disability are disproportionality at risk of online abuse, exposure to inappropriate content and scams. It’s crucial that we support young people with disability to access the online world safely. This also means empowering their parents and carers, many of whom lack the confidence to address these challenges effectively.
“These resources have the potential to be a gamechanger for both young people living with disability and the people who support them. Our goal is to enable young people to explore the online world freely, but with the assurance that they can do so safely. The Be Safe Online resources will help us to do just that.”
The development of the resources has been funded through the eSafety Commissioner’s Online Safety Grants Program. The Be Safe Online resources can be accessed here: https://www.scopeaust.org.au/disability-services/communication-aids/be-safe-online.
