Kim Chapman, a volunteer host at NACTV and a retired teacher at the Beautiful Plains School Division, had the chance to speak with Val Caldwell, an independent consultant and speaker on online safety. Val has been working for several years in the Westman region, educating parents and children. During their conversation, Val emphasized the importance of teaching parents and guardians how to protect their children from online risks.

Liway Cabrera – Local Journalism Initiative

 Val Caldwell’s initiative to educate families and students about the effects of technology began many years ago, during her time working with Child and Family Services as a program facilitator. It was here that she noticed a growing concern among parents, particularly regarding the increasing influence of technology in their lives.

Back then, platforms like Facebook, Kick, and MSN Messenger were becoming widely popular, and parents were showing up to sessions with mounting concerns about their children’s use of technology. However, there were very few resources available to help address these concerns. Recognizing the gap, Caldwell and a co-facilitator took it upon themselves to develop the first-ever presentation on virtual realities, specifically designed to help parents better understand the digital world their children were navigating.

Val Caldwell have been presenting to schools here in Neepawa for four consecutive years already and has been presenting to the kids and parents of Grades 4-8 and saw some growing concerns by parents as well on their children's exposure to the online world.

“My approach is very much a mental health based approach. The way we behave online should be the same as how we behave in person. So we want kids to understand when we talk about online concerns with the younger kids, I actually designed the presentations where they guide me. So I’ll ask related questions like, "Can you tell me what Val should worry about when kids in Grades 4 are playing Roblox or Snapchat?" They come forward with the information which is wonderful.” said Caldwell.   

When asked what the community can do to address this issue Caldwell responded “Well I do want to say, a huge thank you to Miles for Mental Health for they continually support this initiatives in the schools here for me to visit so I’m always appreciative to them. I think the ongoing support within communities. I know to bring in presentations..to bring in education, it’s costly for schools, there are costs associated with it.  If there are community groups or organizations like Miles for Mental Health that are willing to sponsor presentations or help schools out that way. But I also try to always encourage everyone to create safety nets around kids in every aspect so my ultimate hope would be kids have safe and trusted adults in every aspect of life.”