On Tuesday, Ms McLean visited Rochester Secondary College, and spoke over three sessions with Grade 6 to Year 10 students about their online safety and the precautions they could take.
“I believe you can’t teach anything in isolation,” Ms McLean said.
“Everything online is connected, and online actions have offline consequences.
“Tech evolves much quicker than laws about tech do.”
Ms McLean delivers the same messages and information to all of the students she speaks to, who can be as young as Grade 3, but delivers it in an age-appropriate manner for each year.
“The way I speak to a Grade 3 is going to be very different from the way I speak to a Year 10,” she said.
“I’m very blunt, but I know that the earlier they learn about cyber safety, the better.
“Prevention is better than cure — we’d rather not need to catch the bad guy.”
Ms McLean uses real life examples of bullying, predatory or unwanted behaviour in her presentation, ranging from topical subjects such as (in the Year 10 presentation at RSC) the Tim Paine scandal of recent weeks, to her first cyber case with Victoria Police, involving the bullying of a 13-year-old girl being posted on an adult website with her address and phone number.
Teacher Kate Taylor welcomed Ms McLean’s fifth visit to the school and the impact it had had on her students.
“We have had her a few times now, and the feedback from the students is always good,” Ms Taylor said.
“The impact has been substantial.”
