Cyber Bullying & School Bullying » Cyber Bullying

What actions to take once cyberbullying starts?

admin — Wed, 21 Sep 2011 16:27:08 +0000

Schools play an important role in fighting cyberbullying. Since children spend large portion of their days in school, school teachers and staff members should be actively involved in fighting cyberbullying. The first thing to do is to investigate reports of cyberbullying immediately. If cyberbullying occurs on-campus or through the school district’s internet system, school staffs are obligated to take action. Even if the cyberbullying occurs off-campus, you can still help. Remember even cyberbullying that occurs off-campus can affect how students behave and relate to each other at school.

Closely monitor the behavior of the students.
Investigate to see if those who are cyberbullied and need help from a school health professional.
Notify parents of students.
Talk with all students about the negative effects of cyberbullying.

Always get ready to contact law enforcement if the aggressive behavior is criminal.

Source: Department of Health & Human Services

Noticeable symptoms of cyberbullying

admin — Fri, 09 Sep 2011 15:09:09 +0000

There are two sides of bullying. The ones who bully and the ones who are being bullied. When it comes to cyberbullying, research has found that both sides involved in bullying are more likely to: unwilling to attend school, have poor grades, show signs of lower self-esteem, and sometimes show signs of health problems.

But the victims will show more signs of cyberbullying. They are significantly more likely to use alcohol and drugs, skip schools altogether, or experience in-person bullying or victimization.

Parents need to take notes when their children are unwilling to go to school. Usually that’s the first sign that there could be a problem going on in their lives.

Can text message be a form of bullying?

admin — Mon, 18 Jul 2011 19:00:09 +0000

The answer is yes. Sending hurtful, rude, or mean text messages to others is cyberbullying. Since children and teenagers are so involved in their digital world, a text message can spread like a wild fire. Parents need to spend time to educate themselves and their children what kind of digital behavior is acceptable, and what kind is not.

It’s impossible to monitor the kids’ text messages. The best way is to inform them in advance what kind of messages are considered to be cyberbullying. While the government, schools, and communities are fighting against cyberbullying, a careless text message can be taken seriously if it causes harm to the recipient. Educate your children is the best way to prevent harm them and to others.

The effects of cyberbullying on children

admin — Mon, 11 Apr 2011 01:35:16 +0000

The biggest difference between face to face bullying and cyberbullying is that cyberbullying is 24/7, it can happen every minute of day. It reaches to much more people. One post on facebook or a blog can be indexed by search engines in a few seconds. The effects of cybercullying on the victims are:

The student might be afraid to go to school or attend any activities. They are more likely to use drugs and alcohol. Also cyberbullying usually leads to in-person bullying. Parents and educators need to be aware of the effects on cyberbullying and stop it before it happens.

Stop Bullying Suggestions For Educators

admin — Mon, 12 Apr 2010 20:09:08 +0000

Educate your students, teachers, and other staff members about cyberbullying, its dangers, and what to do if someone is cyberbullied.
Be sure that your school’s anti-bullying rules and policies address cyberbullying.
Closely monitor students’ use of computers at school.
Use filtering and tracking software on all computers, but don’t rely solely on this software to screen out cyberbullying and other problematic online behavior.
Investigate reports of cyberbullying immediately. If cyberbullying occurs through the school district’s Internet system, you are obligated to take action. If the cyberbullying occurs off-campus, consider what actions you might take to help address the bullying:
- Notify parents of victims and parents of cyberbullies of known or suspected cyberbullying.
- Notify the police if the known or suspected cyberbullying involves a threat.
- Closely monitor the behavior of the affected students at school for possible bullying.
- Talk with all students about the harms caused by cyberbullying. Remember — cyberbullying that occurs off-campus can travel like wildfire among your students and can affect how they behave and relate to each other at school.
- Investigate to see if the victim(s) of cyberbullying could use some support from a school counselor or school-based mental health professional.
Contact the police immediately if known or suspected cyberbullying involves acts such as:
- Threats of violence
- Extortion
- Obscene or harassing phone calls or text messages
- Harassment, stalking, or hate crimes
- Child pornography

Source: U.S. Department of Health & Human Services

Tips For Dealing With Cyberbullying That Your Child Has Experienced:

admin — Sun, 04 Apr 2010 12:47:57 +0000

Because cyberbullying can range from rude comments to lies, impersonations, and threats, your responses may depend on the nature and severity of the cyberbullying. Here are some actions that you may want to take after-the-fact.

Strongly encourage your child not to respond to the cyberbullying.
Do not erase the messages or pictures. Save these as evidence.
Try to identify the individual doing the cyberbullying. Even if the cyberbully is anonymous (e.g., is using a fake name or someone else’s identity) there may be a way to track them through your Internet Service Provider. If the cyberbullying is criminal (or if you suspect that it may be), contact the police and ask them to do the tracking.
Sending inappropriate language may violate the “Terms and Conditions” of email services, Internet Service Providers, Web sites, and cell phone companies. Consider contacting these providers and filing a complaint.
If the cyberbullying is coming through email or a cell phone, it may be possible to block future contact from the cyberbully. Of course, the cyberbully may assume a different identity and continue the bullying.
Contact your school. If the cyberbullying is occurring through your school district’s Internet system, school administrators have an obligation to intervene. Even if the cyberbullying is occurring off campus, make your school administrators aware of the problem. They may be able to help you resolve the cyberbullying or be watchful for face-to-face bullying.
Consider contacting the cyberbully’s parents. These parents may be very concerned to learn that their child has been cyberbullying others, and they may effectively put a stop to the bullying. On the other hand, these parents may react very badly to your contacting them. So, proceed cautiously. If you decide to contact a cyberbully’s parents, communicate with them in writing — not face-to-face. Present proof of the cyberbullying (e.g., copies of an email message) and ask them to make sure the cyberbullying stops.
Consider contacting an attorney in cases of serious cyberbullying. In some circumstances, civil law permits victims to sue a bully or his or her parents in order to recover damages.
Contact the police if cyberbullying involves acts such as:
- Threats of violence
- Extortion
- Obscene or harassing phone calls or text messages
- Harassment, stalking, or hate crimes
- Child pornography

If you are uncertain if cyberbullying violates your jurisdiction’s criminal laws, contact your local police, who will advise you.

Source: U.S. Department of Health & Human Services

Suggestions for Parents: Tips To Help Prevent Cyberbullying:

admin — Sun, 28 Mar 2010 23:33:30 +0000

Keep your home computer(s) in easily viewable places, such as a family room or kitchen.
Talk regularly with your child about online activities that he or she is involved in.
- Talk specifically about cyberbullying and encourage your child to tell you immediately if he or she is the victim of cyberbullying, cyberstalking, or other illegal or troublesome online behavior. View the Campaign’s Webisodes with your child and discuss in particular Webisode 5 that addresses cyberbullying.
- Encourage your child to tell you if he or she is aware of others who may be the victims of such behavior.
- Explain that cyberbullying is harmful and unacceptable behavior. Outline your expectations for responsible online behavior and make it clear that there will be consequences for inappropriate behavior.
Although adults must respect the privacy of children and youth, concerns for your child’s safety may sometimes override these privacy concerns. Tell your child that you may review his or her online communications if you think there is reason for concern.
Consider installing parental control filtering software and/or tracking programs, but don’t rely solely on these tools.

Source: U.S. Department of Health & Human Services

How Does Cyberbullying Differ From Other Traditional Forms of Bullying?

admin — Wed, 24 Mar 2010 02:58:32 +0000

Available research and experience suggest that cyberbullying may differ from more “traditional” forms of bullying in a number of ways (Willard, 2005), including:

Cyberbullying can occur any time of the day or night.
Cyberbullying messages and images can be distributed quickly to a very wide audience.
Children and youth can be anonymous when cyberbullying, which makes it difficult (and sometimes impossible) to trace them.

Source: U.S. Department of Health & Human Services

Do Children Tell Others If They Are Cyberbullied?

admin — Thu, 18 Mar 2010 01:19:07 +0000

According to one telephone survey of preteens and teens (Fight Crime: Invest in Kids, 2006):

51% of preteens but only 35% of teens who had been cyberbullied had told their parents about their experience.
27% of preteens and only 9% of teens who had been cyberbullied had told a teacher.
44% of preteens and 72% of teens who had been cyberbullied had told a friend.
31% of preteens and 35% of teens who had been cyberbullied had told a brother or sister.
16% of preteens and teens who had been cyberbullied had told no one.

Source: U.S. Department of Health & Human Services

Where Are Children and Youth Cyberbullied?

admin — Thu, 11 Mar 2010 19:04:14 +0000

In a telephone survey of preteens (6-11 year-olds) and teens (12-17 year-olds) (Fight Crime: Invest in Kids, 2006):

45% of preteens and 30% of teens who had been cyberbullied received the messages while at school.
44% of preteens and 70% of teens who had been cyberbullied received the messages at home.
34% of preteens and 25% of teens who had been cyberbullied received the messages while at a friend’s house.

Source: U.S. Department of Health & Human Services