EU president presented child-safety report co-authored by Leitrim woman
The child-safety report will help inform EU policy and parents about how to protect children online.
Last Monday, 13th July, a report on children’s safety online, co-authored by a Leitirm woman, was presented to Ursula von der Leyen, President of the European Union.
The report was informed by the work of a panel of experts who were tasked with developing a strong and practical European approach to keep children safe online. The panel brought together young people and experts from across the EU, including in health, neuroscience, education, psychology, computer science, child rights, and digital literacy.
Dr Louise Heeran Flynn PhD, from Trinity College Dublin School of Education and a Carrick-on-Shannon native, was one of the experts who contributed to the panel.
The report, according to Louise, highlights the critical challenges children face online and provides recommendations and inspiration on better protecting and empowering them, as well as on the age-appropriate use of social media and other digital services.
“We must keep children safe in the online world, just as we do in the offline world. The positive opportunities that technology offers cannot come at the expense of children’s safety, health or happiness.”
“Discussions looked at how to better support parents and caregivers, while highlighting key lessons and good practices from across the EU and beyond. The panel discussions have been based on the latest research and real-life experiences of children and families.
The report cites Louise’s recommendation to “position teacher education as a non-legislative pillar for children’s online safety” and to “embed digital education across teacher education programmes in an integrated manner and empower teachers to work effectively with parents”.
The study, which is freely available online, suggests that creating an environment of online safety “is not primarily about regulating small children’s behaviour” but about creating a caring and co-operative environment in which they can learn how to self-regulate their relationships with technology over time.