‘The whole world’s watching really’: Parental and educator perspectives on managing children’s digital lives

Abstract

Teachers are under increased pressure to teach children digital skills, and parents are having to manage children’s online presence as well as their offline lives. Much of the discussion surrounding the issue of children’s digital footprints highlights the potential present and future risks that children could be exposed to. While parents and teachers are expected to educate and protect children online, little is known about what parents and educators know in the Australian context and how they feel about being the custodians of children’s digital presence. The purpose of this article is twofold. Firstly, the authors report on the Best Footprint Forward project, which employed focus groups to qualitatively investigate the digital-footprint awareness of parents and teachers from three primary schools in regional Australia. Secondly, the authors outline an ethical framework that can be used to provide guidance to those who teach children on how to manage their online presence. Parents and teachers were very aware of the issues surrounding digital-footprint management and cyber safety for children, but had little awareness of the positive potential of digital footprints or how to help children manage their digital lives. In reporting the uncertainty experienced by these two groups, the authors seek to highlight the ethical complexities of children’s participation in digital cultures and provide a framework for engaging with these complexities.

Children’s, parents’ and educators’ understandings and experiences of digital resilience: A systematic review and meta-ethnography

“…The majority were semi-structured and/or repeat interviews and focus groups, with only one study including participatory or ‘mobile methods’ in which participants showed researchers where they used digital technologies (Nansen et al, 2012). In addition, some papers reported on the same studies – that is, Buchanan et al (2019); Buchanan et al (2017) and Smahel and Wright (2014); Mascheroni et al (2014); Haddon and Livingstone (2017). However, these were included as each paper discussed different topics and/or from different perspectives.…”

“…Frequently appearing in this theme was the emotionality of the ‘conduct’ risk of cyberbullying. This was explored in several papers (Baas et al, 2013; Buchanan et al, 2019; McInroy and Mishna, 2017) and from different stakeholder perspectives (children, parents and educators). As emphasised by the mother of a pre-teen in the quotation below:They’re basically – that sort of thing is bringing home the schoolyard bullying into the house and it’s no longer a schoolyard, it’s now more – like every day, constantly, which is worse than the schoolyard .…”

Online sharenting: Identifying existing vulnerabilities and demystifying media reported crime risks

“…It is important to note that in most countries there are currently no policies securing children’s right to online privacy, and the decision on whether and how to disclose information online is left to the parents or guardians (Lavorgna et al, 2022). This makes them the ‘digital custodians’ (Buchanan et al, 2019: 175) of the personal information of their children online, but they are often unprepared to the role (Brosch, 2018; Steinberg, 2017).…”

Criminogenic and harm-enabling features of social media platforms: The case of sharenting practices

“…A core problem is that much of the focus of studies exploring digital parenting has been on offering guidance to adults on how to best manage screens and media for their children (Uhls, 2015). But parents (and, more generally, guardians, including teachers), whilst being expected to educate and protect children online, are unprepared for their role as ‘digital custodians’ (Buchanan et al, 2019: 175). They should be the first line of defence, but at times are not (Brosch, 2018).…”