The Organization for Social Media Safety Releases Groundbreaking, Free Online Course For Parents Looking to Keep Their Children Safe On Social Media
First-of-its-Kind Educational Course for Parents Provides the Dos and Don’ts to Protect Children from Social Media-Related Dangers Like Cyberbullying, Hate Speech and Human Trafficking
Los Angeles, January 21, 2021—With social media use surging among tweens and teens as a result of the Covid-19 pandemic, the Organization for Social Media Safety has released a free online social media safety course for parents today called the Buckling the Social Media Seatbelt Super Course. This new course teaches a first-of-its-kind, exclusive safety system to parents with children who are already on or just starting out on social media. Covering the conversations to have, rules to implement, and settings to calibrate, the course will give parents a comprehensive set of to-dos to help protect their children from social media-related cyberbullying, screen addiction, hate speech, and trafficking, among other dangers.
This innovative course, which is available completely free at this link, was created in consultation with the Organization for Social Media Safety’s Advisory Council, a group of preeminent experts in related fields of education, technology, and psychology. The curriculum is based on both extensive research and practical work with thousands of educators, students, and parents. The Organization for Social Media Safety made the decision to develop and distribute the course for free due to the Covid-19 pandemic during which quarantines and school
closures have caused social media usage to rise among tweens and teens. (One study by Lurie Children’s Hospital found that 63% of parents reported that their child is using social media more now than before than pandemic.) Along with this increased time online, anecdotal reports are suggesting a related increase in cyberbullying, depression and self-harm, sexting, hate speech, trafficking, and social media addiction. L1ght, a company that
monitors online hate and harassment, identified a whopping 70% increase in cyberbullying during the pandemic.
“Even before Covid-19, parents were struggling to keep up with the ever-changing world of social media and how to protect their children from the many dangers lurking on it,” said Marc Berkman, Co-Founder and CEO of the Organization for Social Media Safety. “Now, for the first time, instead of having to dig through tip after tip on the internet, parents will have a comprehensive guide to walk them through all the steps they need to
take to maximize safety for their children on social media platforms like Instagram, Snapchat and Tik Tok.”
What’s in the Buckling the Social Media Super Course:
- Conversations. The course walks parents through what social media safety conversations they should be having with their children. The objectives of these conversations include raising awareness of risks and imparting essential principles and values to help guide children in navigating social media responsibly. Topics include various social media-related dangers like cyberbullying, social media addiction, sexting, trafficking, and violence.
- Rules. The course provides parents with a template of social media safety rules. These rules intend to protect against both common dangers, like cyberbullying and social media addiction, and also low-probability, severe dangers, like human trafficking. They are designed to foster safe, responsible social media habits.
- Calibrating Safety Settings. The course walks parents through the process ofmaximizing the safety settings on their children’s operating systems, devices, and social media platforms. Safety settings are an essential component of a comprehensive social media safety strategy.
The entire Buckling the Social Media Safety Course is available for free here on the Organization for Social Media Safety’s website.
About the Organization for Social Media Safety:
The Organization for Social Media Safety is the nation’s first non-profit that serves as a consumer protection organization focused exclusively on social media. We protect families from all social media-related dangers including cyberbullying, violence, hate speech, human trafficking, and propaganda through innovative educational programming, legislative and regulatory advocacy, and technology development. To learn more, please visit our website at www.ofsms.org or follow us on social media.
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PRESS CONTACT:
Tatiana Winograd
Organization for Social Media Safety
tatiana@mileskennedy.com
(818)645-0312