To help keep Filipino children safe online, parents should avoid controlling their every move and instead equip them with the skills needed to navigate the digital space safely, while the government and other stakeholders should work to create an enabling environment for online safety, civil society groups said Tuesday.
“For parents, I think our role is not to become a technology police that we need to know every app, every trend,” Ma. Sheila N. Estabillo, program manager at Plan International Pilipinas, said during TikTok’s #ThinkTwice Troop Townhall event.
“What matters more is to become a trusted digital guide so your child can approach it if something uncomfortable or confusing happens,” she added.
Ms. Estabillo also emphasized that parents, along with the government, private sector, and communities, all have shared responsibilities to make digital space safe for teens.
She also said that the goal now should not be to move them away from the digital space, but instead equip them “with the necessary practical skills so they can navigate the online environment safely, critically and responsibly.
For Filipino television host, parent creator Alejandro “Kim” Atienza, parents can help their children stay safe online by immersing themselves and understanding how social media works, and how it affects people.
Mr. Atienza also said that parents should know how to set halfway rules, instead of imposing a complete ban on their children, noting that they are digital natives, and they also treat social media as their real life.
“The best way to navigate it as a parent is, we as boomers have to immerse ourselves in social media and TikTok as well and learn how the algorithm works, and learn how it affects us,” Mr. Atienza said.
“It has to be halfway. We cannot take them off social media because to them it is life and reality; there is no difference,” he added.
Meanwhile, Amihan Abueva, regional executive director of Child Rights Coalition, said that the country’s low functional literacy has made the teens more vulnerable to risks in the digital space, sounding an alarm to our educational system.
“If our functional literacy is so low, that also means that we’re very subject to what we get online, and the capacity to really analyze this critically is very much impaired,” Ms. Abueva said.
“The kids may have a very large virtual playground, but if you don’t have the skills to use it intelligently, you can get lost,” she added.
Underscoring the importance of parents’ role in helping their children navigate the digital space, TikTok officially launched the #ThinkTwice Family Guide during the event, which was celebrated ahead of International Youth Day on Wednesday.
The guide is designed to help families openly discuss their online experiences and develop healthier digital habits together. — Edg Adrian A. Eva
