A handbook for schools

The Slovenian Safer Internet Centre published a handbook for schools to mark Safer Internet Day. Titled Online violence: recognising, coping and intervening, the handbook addresses the issue of cyberbullying and provides school staff with a range of information on how to deal with it, and when to escalate issues to the police and social workers. The second part of the handbook describes the different forms of online violence and advises on how to tackle it. The police, the Community of Social Work Centres, and the Inspectorate of the Republic of Slovenia for Education all contributed to the creation of the handbook.

A conference for school staff

 The main focus of Safer Internet Day celebrations was a conference for school staff on online violence, which took place on Wednesday, 14 February 2024, at the Faculty of Social Sciences of the University of Ljubljana. The conference especially promoted the publication of a handbook on cyberbullying, and the authors appeared as speakers.

Accordingly, conference participants first learnt what cyberbullying is and what forms of online violence exist, along with the obligations schools have in dealing with online violence. As educational institutions, schools play a very important role in combating online violence between peers. This was followed by a presentation on the role of teachers in confronting and preventing online violence, from police and social work perspectives. The conference concluded with a presentation on parental education and prevention work in schools.

A total of 180 teachers, head teachers, school counsellors, and other people who work with young people attended the conference, as well as police officers who deal with reports of cyberbullying.

Every year, on Safer Internet Day

Every year, to mark Safer Internet Day celebrations, schools are encouraged to organise various activities to promote safe internet use throughout February. This year, the Safer Internet Centre prepared a package of activities for pupils and students, including lessons on cyberbullying. More than 300 teachers from in excess of 300 schools signed up for the package.

The national broadcaster also actively participated in Safer Internet Day celebrations this year, with several radio and television programmes broadcast on the topic of safe internet use and documentaries raising awareness among young people and their parents on some of the risks of being online.

Safer Internet Day 2024 was a great success in Slovenia, as evidenced by the large number of mentions in the media and the participation of numerous schools.

Find out more about Safer Internet Day in Slovenia or learn more about the work of the Slovenian Safer Internet Centre more generally.