Beyond age limits: Supporting student body image online

Teaching students critical thinking skills and practical strategies are vital in a changing digital landscape

Butterfly FoundationFebruary 11, 2026Last Updated: January 28, 2026

0 4 minutes read

With new social media legislation now in effect, access to popular platforms has changed for some under-16s – but not for all.

For many young people, the “ban” has been uneven in practice; bringing with it a mix of confusion, frustration, relief, exclusion and curiosity. Families and school staff alike continue to navigate these changes.

As educators return to learning environments, these experiences are coming to light in classrooms, schoolyards and wellbeing conversations, which prompt important questions for schools:

If students are restricted from social media, should we still be teaching about it?
How do we balance online safety with realism?
What skills do students actually need right now?

The answer is clear: students need education and guidance more than ever.

When access happens without education

Regardless of legislation, young people continue to encounter unregulated appearance- and health-based content across online games, messaging apps, streaming platforms, advertising and emerging digital spaces. Algorithm-driven messaging, misinformation, AI-generated and digitally altered imagery, and persuasive marketing are not confined to social media platforms alone.

When young people engage with these environments without the skills to critically interpret what they see a number of issues can arise:

Harmful content is harder to recognise
Misinformation spreads unchecked
Shame and secrecy increase
Opportunities for early intervention are missed.

Legislation can set boundaries – education builds skills.

Why digital literacy and body image education must go hand in hand

Young people are exposed to highly curated and manipulated images that promote misinformation and narrow body, health and fitness ideals. Messaging that links worth, success, popularity and lovability to appearance remains largely unchallenged.

At the same time, diet, wellness, eating and exercise or “health” trends – many of which normalise disordered eating and compulsive exercise – dominate online spaces.

Over time, these messages become internalised as core beliefs. They show up in classrooms, friendship groups, sporting environments and peer relationships, influencing self-confidence, participation, performance and mental health. In young people, this increases vulnerability to body dissatisfaction, disordered eating behaviours, and eating disorders.

Media and digital literacy skills are recognised evidence-based protective factors in body image education. When combined with self-compassion, help-seeking skills, and positive relationships with food and movement, they help put armour around young people.

Bridging the gap between policy and lived experience

A social media ban for under 16s is not enough to protect young people from exposure to messaging and content that can lead to body dissatisfaction or disordered eating, and assuming otherwise risks complacency.

Butterfly Foundation's BodyKind Online Education program was developed to bridge the gap between policy intent and the real-world digital experiences young people navigate every day.

Delivered in an engaging, self-paced e-learning format, over 3 x 30 minute modules, BodyKind Online Education provides schools with a safe, structured way to address complex and often sensitive topics.

The program supports students to develop:

Critical thinking around images, messaging and trends
Awareness of algorithms and how they shape beliefs
Skills to challenge appearance teasing, talk and comparison
Practical strategies to protect their body image online.

Developed by body image education and eating disorder experts, the program has been reviewed by educators, online safety specialists, and mental health professionals to ensure it is safe, age-appropriate and does no harm.

The eSafety Commissioner Online Safety Grants Program funded the development of the program and entrusted Butterfly Foundation to do this important work.

Butterfly, alongside other mental health organisations, continues to advocate for stronger content regulation, improved in-app safeguards and clearer reporting processes. Education remains a critical part of this protective ecosystem.

The powerful role of schools

Schools play a powerful role in shaping young people’s digital decision-making and wellbeing – skills that extend well beyond adolescence.

BodyKind Online Education is one of a kind. It is currently the only multi-module, evidence-informed e-learning body-image program designed for schools in Australia, with a specific focus on online safety and digital literacy.

An evaluation by the University of the Sunshine Coast, showed students demonstrated significant improvements in social media literacy related to appearance-based content, as well as increases in self-compassion. Further evaluation findings are available via the Butterfly website.

Ahead of its wider release in 2025, the program was refined to reflect evaluation recommendations and respect legislation.

From online environments to real-world impact

While supporting young people to spend more time away from screens is important, a key strength of BodyKind Online Education is its focus on transferable skills. Students learn to:

Pause and reflect on how language and messaging affect mental health
Question body and health ideals rather than internalising them
Recognise and reduce appearance-based comparison
Understand the impact of appearance-based teasing and bullying
Identify when friends may be struggling
Respond with compassion and appropriate help-seeking.

These skills are especially important during adolescence, when identity, belonging and self-esteem are forming. Learning them earlier can support lifelong wellbeing.

Designed with schools and teachers in mind

With more than 20 years’ experience delivering body-image education to Australian schools, Butterfly understands the realities of busy curricula and competing priorities.

BodyKind Online Education is easy to implement, available for Years 7-8 and 9-10, and is suitable for Health, Wellbeing, Pastoral Care and whole-school initiatives that support Australian curriculum and wellbeing frameworks.

The program can be implemented in a flexible manner with only a device and access to the internet required to participate.

Educators don’t need to be experts in these topics and can feel confident to implement the program themselves. Teachers are supported with a program support guide that provides context, guidance and delivery tips including how to create space for safe, guided conversations – something students consistently say they want, but don’t always know how to start.

By strengthening digital literacy and body image skills, BodyKind Online Education supports schools to: