Now is the time for our students aged under 16 years to prepare for the new social media age restrictions coming into effect on 10 December.
With Beaconhills students finishing school on 5 December, it is important that our young people assess their current social media platforms and ensure they have arrangements in place to stay connected with each other over summer. Meta has indicated that it will start deleting social media acounts from 4 December.
Families will be the ultimate decision-makers on whether they support these social media age restrictions. However, as a school, we encourage families to use this as an opportunity to move younger students away from apps identified as harmful through expert submissions to the Senate hearing in 2024.
My conversations across the schooling sector – including our sister schools in Japan and France – have found that we all share the same concerns relating to student addiction, distraction and general mental health relating to the overuse of social media apps.
Between now and the 10 December deadline, we encourage you to sit with your children and discuss your expectations and approach to the use of technology in your family.
Below you will find links to some helpful resources:
- Social media age restrictions hub | eSafety Commissioner
- Social media age restrictions: Get-ready guide for under-16s | eSafety Commissioner
Also available on BeaconNet:
- SPECIAL REPORT: New Social Media Regulations | Beaconhills College (including a parent poll for the College)
- Online Safety and Digital Citizenship | BeLearning Lounge
This legislation does provide us with a clear opportunity to establish new habits in the use of mobile phones and social media.
We look forward to working with our families as we all transition into this new phase.
