Yawarra Primary gets web-savvy in the wonder years

THE pupils at Yawarra Primary School are much the same as their peers around the country.

Huddled around computers, doing class projects, creating presentations and solving maths problems.

And like the other children elsewhere, they get warnings on internet 'stranger danger'.

This month, a presentation at the Boronia will make them smarter about using digital devices safely.

Run by the Australian Communications and Media Authority, the session will instruct teachers, parents and pupils in grades 3 to 6 about the murky underworld of the internet and how to avoid its dangers. 

Pupils can also use the lessons at home. Sami, an 11-year-old pupil, shares an iPad and computer with his mother and sister but is allowed on them only for a set period each day.

He uses the iPad to play games and watch videos on YouTube. Sami said his family downloaded a 'site adviser' that warns when a site could be dangerous or inappropriate for children.

Another pupil, nine-year-old Rylan, got an iPod when he was seven but isn't allowed to download any violent games.

Yawarra principal Charles Spicer said children were so savvy these days because they were "digital natives". Anyone born before 1980 was a "digital immigrant".

"I didn't see a computer in a classroom until I was in year 7," he recalled. "We're not saying don't use it. We're saying: use it carefully."

He saw presentations by ACMA at other schools where he taught and was surprised by the information.

"I was the ICT co-ordinator and I thought I knew my way around, but I was shocked by how much I didn't know."

Mr Spicer warned parents may not realise what their child had access to online..

"Senior kids are using digital devices every day. Not all kids use them where parents can see them. We need to teach the right ways to use technology."

The pupils will take part in the ACMA CyberSmart presentation on March 21. A 6pm session is open to all parents in Knox. Bookings: 9801 3289.