As we approach the end of the term we have much to celebrate, our Year 7 students have successfully navigated the transition to high school confidently and competently, our Year 10 students enjoyed the Year 10 camp, their evaluations indicated that as a result of their camp and the experiences offered over this time, 89% of participants felt that they had become more resilient & confident, 88% felt they had further developed their leadership skills, 86% felt that they had become more independent and 93% said that they felt more connected to one another and their teachers. Whilst we were disappointed to have to reschedule our Year 7 camp due to the weather we look forward to offering our Year 7 students this opportunity in Term 3, Week 4, August 8 -10 (7A – 7E) and August 10-12 (7 F-I). On Thursday, 7 April, our Year 7 students will be our first group of students to undertake the My Strengths program for 2022, partaking in the My Resilience program, led by Dan Hardie and his team. We look forward to sharing these experiences with you at the start of Term 2.

Last week, staff, students and members of the extended College community had the opportunity to deepen their knowledge and understanding of the cyberworld and its many dangers through a presentation by Mr Brett Lee of Internet Safe Education. Mr Lee worked as a detective with the Queensland Police for 22 years, with 16 years being associated within the Law Enforcement’s Field of Child Exploitation. Each presentation was tailored to the individual stages of the students, with areas such as Cyberbullying, Sexting and Online Identity covered in great detail to the value of those present. Mr Lee also presented to members of the College Staff and the families, providing invaluable information and strategies that will help us support the students of Edmund Rice College.

As we know, technology has become a tool that we all use on a daily basis. It is therefore important that we instil in our students the education necessary to use it safely. It is also vital that we, as our students’ support network, have the necessary understanding to support their effective use of technology as they continue on their schooling journey.

Following a full day of student presentations, Brett presented to staff in the afternoon and then to parents in the evening. Thank you to those parents who were able to join us for this event.

Brett Had 5 key messages for parents:

• Communicate with your kids
• Set clear rules and boundaries
• Stay up to date with apps and programs
• Consider and use parent controls
• Be the one who makes the final decision

A number of students have provided their own thoughts on their respective presentations below:

I enjoyed how his examples were relevant to us being teens around the whole social media aspect of the presentation. His story experiences were a huge wake up call as he emphasized how easily something can be found with as little of just a click of a button. I also found it interesting with the way he spoke about his job as a detective and gaining access to all the information he has and how to use it professionally. Leonardo Valentinetti – Year 10

The presentation was a big wake up call for us as students on how the social media world can impact a person’s life with just one click of a button. His stories about working with different countries and government agencies were crazy to hear. Listening to a few of the things that people get up to on social media and the consequences of their actions were eye opening. Samuel Brannon – Year 10

Last Wednesday, Year 9 gathered in the ERC Centre to listen to Mr Brett Lee discuss online safety. He made multiple great points but some key points I took away from the day was how your actions online can have real world consequences. As well as this he also mentioned how even if you delete something you have posted, someone can always take a screenshot and save it, or find it somewhere else on the internet. This means it’s important to think before you post something, because later down the line it may affect your future opportunities. He communicated what to do if you are being cyberbullied and what not to do. The day was very informative and I think he taught the boys a very valuable lesson about how to remain safe online. Michael Da Silva – Year 9

Please find here the resources provided by Internet Safe Education, which are able to be accessed by all families and friends of the College. The resources tab provides access to 3 very valuable handbooks for parents

This week the Oscars caught the attention of the world not just as a result of the awards but as a consequence of one man’s actions towards another in defence of his wife. This week’s Parenting Ideas article by Dr Justin Coulson provides some valuable advice about how to talk to young people about this incident.

Mrs Hughes
Director of Pastoral Care & Wellbeing