1. Slides (for School’s Use) to Excessive Internet Use
Brief Parents on
Excessive Internet Use

2. Sharing with Parents on Excessive Internet Use
A warm welcome to all parents to our sharing on Cyber Wellness.
For today, our topic is on Excessive Internet Use.

3. Outline of Presentation
To share on:
Singapore: A Wired Nation
What is Excessive Internet Use?
Signs of Excessive Internet Use
Negative Impact of Excessive Internet Use
How to Support your Child
MOE’s Cyber Wellness Education
School-wide Programmes
School’s Policies & Procedures
Resources
The outline of my presentation on Excessive Internet Use is as follows:
Digital use in Singapore
Introduction to Excessive Internet Use: definition, warning signs, and impact
How parents can help their children maintain a healthy digital diet
MOE’s Cyber Wellness (CW) education
Our school’s Cyber Wellness; and finally
Related resources.

4. Singapore: A Wired Nation
Singapore’s mobile penetration rate: 149.8% in
Our children: accessed the Internet > 4-7 days a week. 2
Our children: started using Internet at 6.1 years old 2
Singapore is one of the most wired places on Earth. It is common to see people swiping at their mobile devices on the go, at the shops and at food courts and restaurants. Our mobile penetration rate was 149.8% in , which means that on average, every person in Singapore owns at least one phone.
Our children are digital natives and Internet savvy. The MDA Zero-to-Fourteen Consumer Experience Study showed that most of our children went online most days of the week using their smartphones and started using the Internet at 6 years old. Is this true for your child?
1. Department of Statistics Singapore
2. MDA Zero-to-Fourteen Consumer Experience Study 2015

5. What is Excessive Internet Use?
Let’s watch a video (for Primary Schools)
[For primary schools: Play this video “Tips for Healthier Screen Time” (playtime: 2 minutes 15 seconds) from the weblink above. Please do not download this video.]
Let’s start by watching this video “Tips for Healthier Screen Time” produced by ECDA (Early Childhood Development Agency). Dr Jared Ng, Consultant, Department of Child & Adolescent Psychiatry and Department of Community Psychiatry, Institute of Mental Health shares tips for healthier screen time.
The main points of this video are:
ICT can have benefits but too much of a good thing can lead to: difficulties in sleeping, slow down in brain development and motor skills in children, and aggressive tendencies.
Some helpful family rules to consider:
No screen time at meal times,
Reading and face to face interaction play an important role in children’s development in the early years,
Encourage recreational activities outdoors
Set consistent screen time limits
Watch TV or online videos with children to discuss what is real and what is appropriate
Practise what you preach

6. What is Excessive Internet Use?
Let’s watch a video (for Secondary Schools)
For secondary schools: Play this video “Dr. Ari Brown Offers Tips for Parents on Children and Media Use” (playtime: 1 minute 16 seconds)
initiatives/pages/media-and-children.aspx
from the link above. Please do not download this video.
Let’s start by watching this video “Dr. Ari Brown Offers Tips for Parents on Children and Media Use” produced by the American Academy of Pediatrics. The key points from this video are:
How can parents help kids optimise their screen time?
Be a parent in whatever environment your kids are in, whether offline or digital.
Know who their friends are
Don’t use devices during meal times or bed times
Be a good role model yourself. Spend off screen time with your kids
Play digital games with your kids and allow them to teach you how to navigate new technologies

7. What is Excessive Internet Use?
This happens when an individual uses the Internet to the extent where he/she experiences problematic outcomes that negatively affect his/her life.
So, what is Excessive Internet Use?

8. Signs of Excessive Internet Use
Needs to spend an increasing amount of time using the Internet before achieving satisfaction
Becomes irritable or violent when disrupted from the use of Internet
Academic performance and health are affected
Here are signs of Excessive Internet Use identified by experts,
Tries to go online less often but is unsuccessful
Prefers Internet use to social events or hobbies that may lead to strained relationships with family and friends
Constantly listens out for the phone when away from it, feels distressed when it cannot be found
Source: Resource Booklet on Excessive Internet Use

9. Negative Impact of Excessive Internet Use
Physical
Sleep deprivation and disturbance
Obesity and cardiovascular risk
Carpal Tunnel Syndrome (i.e. hand and wrist pain)
Personal health and hygiene affected
Here are some examples of the negative impact of Excessive Internet Use on our physical, social, emotional and cognitive health as well as to our purpose in life.
References:
Chassiakos, Y. L. R., Radesky, J., Christakis, D., Moreno, M. A., & Cross, C. (2016). Children and adolescents and digital media. Pediatrics, e
Choo, H., Gentile, D., Sim, T., Li, D. D., Khoo, A., & Liau, A. (2010). Pathological video- gaming among Singaporean youth.
Weinstein, A., & Lejoyeux, M. (2010). Internet addiction or excessive internet use. The American journal of drug and alcohol abuse, 36(5),
Yao, M. Z., & Zhong, Z. J. (2014). Loneliness, social contacts and Internet addiction: A cross-lagged panel study. Computers in Human Behavior, 30,

10. Negative Impact of Excessive Internet Use
Social
Feelings of loneliness worsened
Strained relationships with family and friends
Emotional
Aggressive behaviours and poorer impulse control
Depression symptoms

11. Negative Impact of Excessive Internet Use
Cognitive Skills
Attentional problems
Information processing problems
Purpose in Life
Online activities perceived as most important aspect of life
Loss of interest in real world activities

12. Negative Impact of Excessive Internet Use
Exposure to other risks
Cyber Bullying
Dangerous cyber contacts
Inappropriate online content
Privacy and security risks
Excessive Internet Use may also expose our children to other risks, such as
Cyber Bullying
Dangerous cyber contacts
Handling online content (e.g. age-inappropriate content, websites that promote self-harm, extremist sites, fake news, fake websites)
Privacy and security (e.g. spam and scams, identity theft)

13. How to Support Your Child
TALK
SET Screen time limits
Parents play an important role in helping children and teens navigate media, which can have both positive and negative effects. Our children, like us, interact with their friends through digital activities, such as online gaming and social media, and use the internet to learn about the world. Whilst we may think that our children are often more digitally savvy than we are, as responsible parents and educators, we should not allow them to navigate this space alone. Our children still need our guidance to balance their on- and off-line activities and to be responsible and safe online. It is our responsibility to:
Talk with your children to find out what they have been watching or playing online. Teach them to be discerning and careful online. Try to stay updated of their media influences.
Set screen time limits. Parents should set home rules and boundaries on internet use. The American Academy of Pediatrics has provided some helpful screen time guidelines and recommendations. [ press-room/Pages/American-Academy-of-Pediatrics-Announces-New- Recommendations-for-Childrens-Media-Use.aspx]
Tell your children about the negative consequences of Excessive Internet Use.
Have tech-free time. Organise tech-free family activities and promote tech-free hobbies. Promote sufficient physical activity (1 hour) and adequate sleep (8–12 hours) daily. Set tech-free family times (e.g. meal times) and zones (e.g. bedrooms). For good quality sleep, turning off hand phones and keeping them out of our children’s bedrooms and even a digital detox before bedtime has been recommended.
Role model balanced internet use yourselves! A third of 2, to 18-year-olds polled in the UK said that they had asked their parents to stop checking their devices and 22% of this group of children said that the use of mobiles had stopped their families from enjoying each other’s company. [Reference: poll conducted in 2016 by Digital Awareness UK and the Headmasters’ and Headmistresses’ Conference in UK.
HAVE Tech-free time
role model

14. MOE’s Cyber Wellness Education
MOE’s Cyber Wellness Education comprises of the following components to reinforce the importance of Cyber Wellness and its messages
ICT is used in schools with the objective of nurturing Future-ready and Responsible Digital Learners. To complement the use of ICT, MOE’s Cyber Wellness (CW) education is systematically implemented in all schools comprising a) the CW lessons in the formal curriculum and b) the school-wide programmes (e.g. CW assembly talks, CW activities) to reinforce the importance of CW and its messages.
The CW curriculum covers the topic “Balanced Use of ICT” in primary 4 and 6 during Form Teacher Guidance Period and in Sec 1 and 2 during Character and Citizenship Education

15. School-wide Programmes
Examples of School-wide Programmes
<< Schools are encouraged to share with parents
their school-based CW programmes
to create greater awareness
how their children are benefitting
from the programmes. >>
For e.g. Schools can share with parents
their school’s cyber wellness student ambassador programme here (i.e. how their students have led in the promotion of CW messages amongst their peers, helped to look out for their peers who might be using the Internet excessively.)
Schools are guided by the CW framework to plan and implement CW programmes which are customised to students’ profile and school environment.
For example, we conduct …< School to insert relevant activities such as CW Workshops, Assembly Talks, CW Activities, CW Day/Week>.

16. School’s Policies & Procedures
<< Schools are encouraged to share with parents
their school’s policies/ procedures (e.g. counselling & mediation) for management of Excessive Internet Use; MOE HQ’s Excessive Internet Use tip sheet for parents; and the ICT Connection Cyber Wellness portal for parents [ for-parents]

17. Resources Ministry of Education
ictconnection.moe.edu.sg/cyber-wellness/for-parents
Ministry of Education
whatbothersyouth.sg/en/Pages/Online--Gaming-Addiction.aspx
Ministry of Social and Family Development
Health Promotion Board
healthhub.sg/live-healthy/1037/help-your-child-untangle-from-the-web
Media Literacy Council
medialiteracycouncil.sg/online-safety/Pages/internet-addiction.aspx
Here are some resources on Excessive Internet Use for your information. We have also printed tip sheets on Excessive Internet Use for you to refer to.
nams.sg/addictions/Gaming-Internet-Addiction/Pages/Gaming-Internet.aspx
National Addictions Management Service

18. Every Parent A Supportive Partner
We are all here to build the next generation. Parents and schools are key building blocks, so let us work hand in hand to grow each student into a healthy, well-adjusted adult with strong values and outstanding character.