Call for more net safety training

Westbrook School principal Colin Watkins said teaching cyber safety was up to parents "in the first instance". Photo / Thinkstock

A new survey shows two-thirds of teachers feel they don't have the training to deal with cyber-bullying and internet security.

But a Rotorua primary school principal says online education starts at home.

An annual global survey of teachers' and students' internet use released this month found parents expected teachers to educate their kids about internet safety. But the amount of time spent covering online safety in class didn't match up with parents' expectations, despite more than nine out of 10 teachers saying they used the internet during lessons.

The AVG Technologies survey also found nearly a third of teachers felt ill-equipped to deal with cyber bullying, and only 18 per cent had received formal training to teach online safety. More than three quarters believed their pupils' parents relied too heavily on schools to prepare kids for the online world, and one in three felt parents didn't know enough about cyber-bullying.

Westbrook School principal Colin Watkins said teaching cyber safety was up to parents "in the first instance".

"Like a lot of things, we're often thrown a curveball to deal with issues that have risen in society that historically probably parents would normally have dealt with."

However, the school already taught cyber safety and had firewalls up to prevent the kids from using any "undesirable" sites. "Most schools do the same sort of thing. Kids have got access to all sorts of internet-capable hardware so you don't put the blinkers on and pretend they're not going to be exposed to it. You teach them how to deal with it when they are exposed to it."

Westbrook School staff were all "absolutely capable" of teaching internet security, and passing their skills onto new staff. "I like to think we do it in partnership. We try to be on the same page as the parents."

According to the survey, 77 per cent of teachers thought internet safety should be a dedicated part of the curriculum. After cyber bullying, the next biggest issue teachers had was students coming to them about viewing inappropriate content online. NetSafe executive director Martin Cocker said there was room for increased training for teachers. "There is a greater need for teachers to feel confident dealing with these issues, and feeling they have access to the tools to deal with it and manage with the challenges students face online."

The facts

*Only 18 per cent of Kiwi teachers have been formally trained to teach internet safety, compared to 28 per cent globally.
*47 per cent of New Zealand teachers agreed they needed better training, compared to 64 per cent globally
*61 per cent of New Zealand schools have Information Technology classes, down on the global rate of 72 per cent.
*70 per cent of Kiwi teachers believe that internet safety should be a dedicated part of the curriculum.
Source: AVG Technologies

- additional reporting Nikki Papatsoumas