Monitor your children’s social media activities

PARENTS and caregivers have been urged to steer children through the digital world as they become more exposed to online platforms.

Film and Publications Board acting research manager Oupa Makhalemele said reliance on the internet and social media had seen technology’s grip on citizens deepen to new levels.

South Africa is commemorating Child Protection Week.

Makhalemele said the digital space had many positive selling points, from streaming movies for entertainment, to attending school online.

However, the young and vulnerable still needed to be guarded against the threats that it poses.

“A digital device makes many people feel untouchable as it removes the element of face-to-face interaction. The same restraint that someone might feel in person seems to dissipate when they post hurtful, prejudiced or violent content online,” he said.

Makhalemele said they conducted a convergence survey every two years to assess the extent to which the classification guidelines are used by the organisation and to assign age ratings to content aligned to public sentiment.

He said recent results showed that more than 35% of parents did not monitor their children’s online presence

“Children are not psychologically or emotionally equipped to deal with this kind of trauma and need to be educated on the risks faced when online.

“Parents and caregivers are encouraged to familiarise themselves with these, and to ensure that their children maintain these guidelines by monitoring their digital and social media activity,” he said.

Kelvin Khumalo of non-profit organisation Mother Nature South Africa, which educates schools about bullying, said children should be monitored all the time.

He suggested sharing devices with children and using them beside them until they were older enough to own a cellphone or computer.

He said the Fourth Industrial Revolution forced children to be tech-savvy, but they would have to be educated about the responsibility that comes with it.