Primary school bans Fortnite talk
A Taranaki primary school has banned all talk about the online shooter-survival game Fortnite.
Central School in New Plymouth has advised parents it does not want children talking about the game, principal Juliet Ormrod said.
‘‘We’re not really banning [the game]. You can’t ban it, but we’re making parents aware of the bullying behaviour that has been occurring because of it.’’
Ormrod said the ban came because there had been some incidents in the playground that had resulted in distressed children.
When she talked to the kids she found the problems stemmed from the game.
‘‘So, we are talking to parents saying the children are not allowed to talk about the game at school.
‘‘From what I understand it’s a phenomenon.’’
Fortnite is a video game released in 2017 and though it is rated for children aged 12 and over, many younger children are playing it.
The most popular format is Battle Royale, in which 100 players face off against each other initially armed with just a pickaxe, to see who is the last player standing. The game is played by more than 125 million people worldwide.
Amy Mason, whose 7-year-old daughter goes to Central School, said she totally agrees with the school’s stance.
‘‘Children that age shouldn’t be playing those games. They’re fighting games.’’
When her daughter told her they weren’t allowed to talk about
Fortnite at school, Mason Googled it to find out more about the game, she said.
‘‘With those games you’re talking to people you don’t know. That’s dangerous.’’
St Joseph’s School New Plymouth principal Mike Dowd said they had a lot of children who were talking about Fortnite.
His concern was about the amount of time kids spent in front of a screen, not just when they were playing Fortnite.
‘‘We don’t have any detrimental behaviour.
‘‘It’s more about the time spent in front of the screen that is a concern. We have concerns around some of the choices parents are making and if parents are aware.
‘‘We’ve pointed those things out in newsletters as well.’’
It was hard to make definitive judgments about how the game was affecting the kids, he said.
‘‘I think it is like anything – you want to have balance in your life and make sure you are having the opportunities to do a wide variety of things and making sure you have a healthy lifestyle,’’ he said.
The school has a filter on the internet, so the children can’t access the game there.
New Plymouth Principals’ Association president and Mangorei School principal Michael Carr said he had talked to other principals specifically about Fortnite.
‘‘We haven’t had any major disputes that have spilled into the playground about it.’’
A number of schools have information evenings to help inform parents about cyber safety, he said.