Digital education speaker and youth digital resilience specialist.
Schools, educators, parents, youth-focused organizations, and corporate teams seeking online safety and digital wellbeing training.
Digital Life Skills & Media Literacy
Dean McCoubrey is a leading digital education speaker and the founder of MySociaLife, South Africa’s Digital Life Skills Program in Schools. With more than twenty years of experience across traditional, digital, and social media, he brings deep insight into how modern platforms shape thinking, behavior, and wellbeing. Dean began his career as a writer and editor before expanding into media leadership as the owner of Mediaweb South Africa. These roles provided a front-row view of the accelerating influence of media on youth, sparking his mission to help students understand and manage the digital world with clarity and confidence.
Through MySociaLife, Dean delivers a comprehensive curriculum that addresses online safety, cyberbullying, digital footprints, misinformation, social media habits, and emotional resilience. His programs combine storytelling, data, and practical tools to prepare students for the complexities of life online while supporting educators and parents with guidance that is relevant, research informed, and easy to apply. Dean is a sought-after voice for schools, youth organizations, and corporate groups seeking a grounded, expert-led approach to digital citizenship.
Dean McCoubrey brings over two decades of expertise in traditional, digital, and social media to the forefront of his mission. Recognizing the profound impact of media on today’s youth, he embarked on a journey to provide guidance and education to young learners, empowering them to navigate the complexities of the digital age with awareness and resilience.
As the founder of MySociaLife, South Africa’s premier Digital Life Skills Program in Schools, Dean is dedicated to equipping the next generation with the tools they need to thrive in an increasingly interconnected world. With a background as a writer, editor, and owner of Mediaweb South Africa, Dean possesses a deep understanding of media dynamics and a passion for fostering positive digital citizenship among youth.
With over two decades of experience spanning traditional, digital, and social media landscapes, Dean McCoubrey has established himself as a trailblazer in the field of digital education. His journey began with a realization: amidst the rapid evolution of media platforms, young minds needed guidance. This realization fueled Dean’s passion for education, leading him to found MySociaLife, a pioneering initiative aimed at empowering students with essential digital life skills.
Dean McCoubrey’s dedication to digital education and youth empowerment has positioned him as a leading voice in the field of digital citizenship. Through his innovative programs and dynamic presentations, Dean inspires positive change and equips students with the skills they need to thrive in today’s digital world. As a sought-after speaker and educator, Dean’s impact extends far beyond the classroom, making him a valuable asset for any event seeking to address the challenges and opportunities of the digital age.
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This 29 minute conversation between host Josh Ochs and digital life skills expert Dean McCoubrey focuses on the universal challenges children face online and the practical steps adults can take to support them. Josh opens by emphasizing that although communities differ, children around the world demonstrate similar patterns in anxiety, depression, and screen-related behavior. Dean agrees, noting that his work across South African schools confirms that digital pressures are consistent globally.
Dean explains MySociaLife’s eight module Digital Life Skills Program, delivered to learners ages 9 to 17. The curriculum develops students from safety to smart use to confident exploration, covering identity, online safety, empathy, cyberbullying, sexual expression, resilience, privacy, security, and screentime habits. He notes that young learners respond strongly when given structured and relatable guidance.
A major theme is the growing gap between young people’s digital experiences and adults’ understanding of modern platforms. Dean discusses how therapists, counselors, and mental health professionals increasingly seek training because social media context shapes issues such as self-harm, anxiety, OCD, and body image. Without understanding digital environments, practitioners struggle to decode the underlying triggers behind behaviors they see in clinic settings.
In school environments, concerns skew toward bullying, intimidation, sexting, and unwanted online contact. Dean highlights how online experiences can amplify existing offline challenges, and how offline stressors can intensify online reactions. He emphasizes that digital behavior is deeply interconnected rather than isolated.
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