In 2022, residents of Corona, Queens proposed the idea to hold workshops for families on digital safety as part of the first-ever cycle of The People's Money - Citywide Participatory Budgeting. In December 2023, about a year ago, CIANA was selected by the NYC Civic Engagement Commission, which manages Citywide PB, to make these workshops a reality.
We began 2024 doing research on the most pressing digital safety issues impacting today’s youth, and reaching out to schools to hear their concerns. As it turned out, parents and educators had run into particular issues with their children and students’ online access, including adult content, anonymous cyberbullying, and excessive use of social media.
From March until June, CIANA’s Outreach team educated more than 70 parents at three elementary schools in Corona on how to identify digital safety threats, their impact, and how parents and caregivers can take action.
Corona, Queens is one of the most immigrant-heavy neighborhoods in New York City, with many of its residents speaking Spanish as their primary language. Many parents may not understand the slang, trends, and video content that their children consume, let alone know what they might be harmful. Our Outreach team utilized engaging, informational graphics and videos in both English and Spanish so that they are better able to identify and address what words and phrases are used by today’s youth, and what might be inappropriate.
Using content from Common Sense Media and other platforms, we spoke about some of the most common threats to children’s safety when using digital devices: sharing personal information online; interacting with strangers; cyberbullying and its long-term consequences; and the impact of technology usage on kids’ health, just to name a few.
We touched on additional topics that may not be as obvious, like understanding YouTube algorithms and the developmental benefits of video games.
We also discussed how parents can identify these concerns and address them. Parents can monitor their children’s contact lists and social media followers; have access to their children’s social media feed and internet history; stay alert for any emotional or behavioral changes in their child; and limit their children’s access to screens overall.
While parents have the right to enforce rules when it comes to their children’s use of technology, Common Sense Media encourages that everyone in the family knows what the rules and expectations are, and how they change as you get older. That’s why at the end of each presentation, we distributed Common Sense’s Family Tech Planner so families can jointly plan out the tech usage guidelines for parents and children of all ages.
Above all, we emphasized that parents have a responsibility to keep their children safe online, and this means modeling healthy habits, staying engaged with their children, and setting age-appropriate limits and boundaries.
Cycle 3 of Citywide Participatory Budgeting is underway, with Borough Assembly Committees convening this winter to narrow down a new slate of ideas to benefit local communities and New York City overall. Voting will take place in the spring; stay posted for dates!
CIANA's team is happy to speak about Digital Safety at schools, afterschool programs, places of worship, and anywhere else where families may need additional information on how to stay safe when using the internet or digital devices. Contact us to learn more and discuss scheduling a workshop.
We’ve made a page on our website on Digital Safety resources and tips, as well as the handouts distributed at the workshops we led. Check it out here.
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