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Pick one question and share your thoughts about it in the comment section below.

In what ways can cyber wellness be infused more meaningfully across subjects, beyond CCE periods? Can English, Humanities, or even Science lessons touch on ethical tech use?

What challenges do you face when trying to teach or reinforce cyber wellness values?

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What is Cyber Wellness?

Information and Communication Technologies (ICT) are becoming increasingly pervasive in our world. While creating instant connectivity and access to vast repositories of information, knowledge, and opinions, the open nature of the Internet can expose our students to undesirable content and influences.

Cyber Wellness in Character and Citizenship Education (CCE) focuses on the well-being of our students as they navigate cyberspace. Our curriculum aims to equip students with the knowledge and skills to harness the power of ICT for positive purposes, maintain a positive presence in cyberspace and be safe and responsible users of ICT.

The 3 Cyber Wellness Key Messages

Embrace the affordances of technology while maintaining a balanced lifestyle between offline and online activities.

Be a safe and responsible user of technology and maintain a positive online presence.

Be responsible for personal well-being in the cyberspace.

Cyber Wellness Education: at a glance

Cyber Wellness education is usually conducted through CCE lessons during curriculum time, key Student Development Experiences (SDEs) beyond the classroom, school-based initiatives, teachable moments during other subject lessons, and learning opportunities beyond school.

The Cyber Wellness curriculum is organised into 5 topics:

Maintaining a healthy balance of online and offline activities

Cyber identity

Developing a healthy online identity

Appropriate online expression

Cyber relationships

Netiquette

Cyber bullying

Developing safe, respectful and meaningful online relationships

Cyber Citizenship

Understanding the cyber world

Handling online content and behaviour

Having a positive presence in the cyber community

Cyber Ethics

Creating and sharing of online content in a responsible manner

Respecting copyright

Support at home

Parents play a key role in their children's growth. Students benefit the most when the home and school environments are attuned to each other. To help your child stay safe and have positive experiences online, you can:

Activate parental controls on your home devices.

Model good digital habits for your child.

Set ground rules for internet use.

Navigate the internet together to understand their usage.

Resources

Learn more about how to keep your child safe online through these resources:

From MOE

From external agencies

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Information and Communication Technologies (ICT) are becoming increasingly pervasive in our world. While creating instant connectivity and access to vast repositories of information, knowledge, and opinions, the open nature of the Internet can expose our students to undesirable content and influences.

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Australia’s social media ban is attracting global praise – but we’re no closer to knowing how it would work

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Australia’s social media ban is attracting global praise – but we’re no closer to knowing how it would work

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Share your reflection in the comment section below.

What was one trend or idea that stood out to you from Australia or other countries that you know of?

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Australia’s social media ban is attracting global praise – but we’re no closer to knowing how it would work

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A trial is under way but the government faces many hurdles – including whether Trump-emboldened tech companies will comply

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S'pore govt considering social media age limit after Australia's under-16 ban

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S'pore govt considering social media age limit after Australia's under-16 ban

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Share your reflection in the comment section below.

What do you think Singapore is doing well, and where are our gaps?

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S'pore govt considering social media age limit after Australia's under-16 ban

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The government said they will continue to study the effectiveness of mandating age limits to ensure online safety for minors.

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The Big Read: Cyberbullying is more rampant and damaging to young lives than we think. It's time to take it seriously

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The Big Read: Cyberbullying is more rampant and damaging to young lives than we think. It's time to take it seriously

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Imagine if the stories in the article had happened to one of your student in your school. What could schools and teachers do to create a culture of psychological safety for students to speak up? Share your comments below.

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The Big Read: Cyberbullying is more rampant and damaging to young lives than we think. It’s time to take it seriously

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Having distanced herself from a close female friend after a falling out, Ms Erin Seah, then 15, thought that she could move on. Then one night, her phone buzzed — a mutual friend sent a slew of screenshots from an Instagram post where she was called, among other things, attention-seeking and dumb.

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Excessive social media use linked to mental health symptoms among youths: IMH study

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Excessive social media use linked to mental health symptoms among youths: IMH study

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Share your thoughts on the implications of a "whole-of-government and whole-of-society" approach in our school setting, that aims to improve Singapore’s mental health ecosystem.

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Influencers, hate comments and more: Updated CCE syllabus tackles ‘contemporary’ issues like cyber wellness

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Influencers, hate comments and more: Updated CCE syllabus tackles ‘contemporary’ issues like cyber wellness

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Pick one question and share your thoughts about it in the comment section below.

How do you feel about integrating topics like cancel culture, doxxing, and digital empathy into your subject lessons outside of CCE or form teacher guidance lessons?

Will the pursuit to deepen students' competencies in handling these real issues shortchange them academically? Why?

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Influencers, hate comments and more: Updated CCE syllabus tackles ‘contemporary’ issues like cyber wellness

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SINGAPORE: What would you do if you were bombarded by hate comments after saying something positive online? Responding to hate comments in such situations, getting “cancelled” and the influencer industry were among the topics Secondary 4 students at Compassvale Secondary School discussed on Tuesda…

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Guidelines on screen use to be rolled out in Singapore schools

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Guidelines on screen use to be rolled out in Singapore schools

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Share your thoughts on the two questions in the comment section below.

What strategies does your school currently use to monitor or manage use of handphones in school?

How can schools partner with parents to ensure a consistent message about healthy screen use across home and school settings?

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SINGAPORE: Guidelines on screen use will be introduced in schools, including preschools, as part of a new national strategy launched on Tuesday (Jan 21) to address children's health.

The national health promotion strategy - Grow Well SG - seeks to improve preventive care and inculcate healthier lifestyles in children and adolescents, according to a joint release issued by the Ministry of Health (MOH), Ministry of Education (MOE) and Ministry of Social and Family Development (MSF) on Tuesday.

During a media briefing on Monday, MOH said local cohort studies have led to more studies on children's health behaviours and their impact in the short as well as long term.

This includes studies on how the central nervous system and brain developments are associated with screen use as well as how inadequate physical activity has resulted in poorer body mass index (BMI) or obesity problems.

"We've reached a critical point. We have enough evidence that prompts us to want to do something than to wait for more evidence to come up," said MOH.

For a start, the new strategy will focus on children aged up to 12 years old but will be extended to older children subsequently.

TACKLING EXCESSIVE SCREEN TIME

As part of the strategy, the Early Childhood Development Agency (ECDA) will update its code of practice for preschools, effective Feb 1, to mandate no screen use for infants up to 18 months.

This follows research indicating a strong association between screen use and cognitive development in infants and toddlers, with inappropriate and excessive use leading to poorer language skills and shorter attention spans.

Under the revised code of practice, screens can only be used for teaching and learning purposes for children aged 18 months to six years.

At the media briefing, MSF clarified that most preschools currently do not use screens in their care for infants.

"These new screen use requirements are actually reflective of practices in preschools today, but the inclusion of the screen use requirements in the code of practice formalises these practices, which are already widely adopted by preschools, and also makes clear to preschools what they should not screen as time fillers to occupy the children," said MSF.

Responding to questions from reporters about what happens if a preschool does not comply with the code, the ministry said it will provide guidance and support to preschools in the first six months of implementation, adding that it will not take a punitive approach during this period.

"After that, for preschools who do not comply ... ECDA will then direct them to cease this practice and also to take further regulatory actions if the children's well-being is being compromised," MSF said, adding that regulatory actions could include warnings.

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Guidelines on screen use to be rolled out in Singapore schools

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"We've reached a critical point. We have enough evidence that prompts us to want to do something than to wait for more evidence to come up," says the Ministry of Health.

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or jot it down at the comment section below:

“What’s one shift you can influence — in your school, organisation or classroom — to build a more respectful digital culture?”