A social enterprise providing education and information to protect and enhance the mental health of young people
Earlier this week a new cyberbullying educational campaign titled Cyber Bullying Affects Real Lives was launched. The interactive multimedia campaign aims to raise awareness of cyberbullying and the impact it can have. Featuring a two-minute YouTube video and an interactive online game called Web Warriors, the campaign hopes to engage with and educate children on [...]
We can’t forget that not all young people are the same, and this is particularly true when it comes to attitudes and values of around drugs. Even when it comes to alcohol use, young people are not one homogenous group. When I talk to groups of teenagers I usually divide them into three key categories, [...]
Our kids trust us to instil in them values and ethics that will help them navigate the difficult terrain of school, friendship and, later, personal and professional relationships. Values that will help them turn out to be well-rounded, functional human beings. To do this, they need to know that material goods, like fashion, do not [...]
Late last week the Minister for Early Childhood Education, Child Care and Youth released The State of Australia's Young People Report, examining youth aged from 15-24 years of age. The report was commissioned earlier this year by the Office for Youth to complete the State of Australia’s Young People report and will later be used [...]
Over the years I have attended a number of Schoolies Week celebrations and although there have always been incidents, usually linked to excessive alcohol consumption, for the most part I have found the young people to be very well behaved and reasonably sensible. The most concerning aspect of the event is the social pressure on [...]
A Melbourne business marketing 'make-up parties' to girls as young as four has been slammed for sexualising children. The business offers to 'makeover' children with blush, eye liner, eye shadow and nail-paint. Kids Free 2B Kids founder and Generation Next speaker Julie Gale described the business as harming to children. "Parents need to wake up. [...]
A British study of 17,000 parents and their children found that mothers who return to work before their child's first birthday do not harm their child's mental development. The study examined children born in the 1990s with a series of tests and questionnaires. Co-author of the study, Professor Heather Joshi, described why the study is [...]
The Australian Communications and Media Authority (ACMA) last week launched Let's Fight It Together, a government resource designed to combat cyberbullying. The resource which is available to schools includes a 40-page teacher's guide, featuring lesson plans, follow up activities and support material to help teachers write classes to educate students about cyberbullying, and a DVD, [...]
On the 24th of September in Sydney, politician Greg Donnelly will host a breakfast discussion about the sexualisation of children titled “Raising Healthy Kids in a Sexualized World”. It will feature speakers Maggie Hamilton, Julie Gale and Melinda Tankard Reist. Presentations will be given over the course of the breakfast, with a question and answer [...]
An Australian study has found children who frequently use mobile phones to send text messages are being taught to act impulsively and make mistakes as a result. The study of 317 Melbourne students aged between 11 and 14 found those who regularly send text messages were faster to respond to IQ style questions but were [...]
