Reading and watching videos this week brought home to me just how detached that many students are from the impact that their decisions have on others. Cyberbullying has moved to the forefront as a major issue among teens and adolescents in school. At a time when students are discovering who they are, cyberbullying can damage them for life or even result in suicide. Unfortunately many people are not aware of the danger to the vulnerable and lonely.as technology has made a leap forward.
Let’s take a closer look at cyberbullying. What is cyberbullying? One source (Brewer, 2015) defines it: …one widely accepted definition refers to cyberbullying as ‘‘an aggressive, intentional act carried out by a group or individual, using electronic forms of contact, repeatedly and over time against a victim who cannot easily defend him or her- self’’. Now, breaking that down, electronic could be email, text, photos, social media, video/online games, phone, and video links. When we delve into the “intentional act” it really gets scary. Some bullies don’t have to have a grudge against a victim or even know them to decide to attack online, without provocation. Anyone can be a victim of cyberbullying. Most students do not report it to their teacher or anyone.
Brewer & Kerslake (2015) state that the perpetrator and the victim do have some of the same predictor issues: self-esteem, loneliness, and empathy. In order to fight cyberbullying, students need to learn empathy. Students that are connected to others in positive, meaningful relationships are less likely to succumb to bullying or being a bully.
Research shows that 71% of attackers in school shootings between 1974-2000 felt bullied before they went on a rampage. “Cyberbullies seek pleasure or perceived social benefit from the mistreatment of others”. (Hinduja, 2015) This piece of information caught my attention. Cyberbullying is not an accident. Various readings, videos, and examples on cyberbullying all have a common underlying theme of “lack of empathy and hiding behind anonymity”. They are planning to harm, embarrass, or cause mental anguish to another human for their own self-entertainment. Sometimes to make themselves feel powerful or popular.
In an effort to improve the online digital citizenship culture and eliminate cyberbullying, I would make students more aware of issues and consequences of cyberbullying in a several step process throughout the school year. One of the first steps would be to get their attention with an appeal to the heart with one of the videos we watched this week in class. Ryan Halligan, Megan Myers, Monica Lewinsky all have tragic stories that were shared about the impact of cyberbullying on them immediately and its life-long impact. Step two would be to have students understand the consequences-have them research the law and consequences for cyberbullying others. Step three would be to have students share personal examples of being cyberbullying and how they handled it. Step four would be to make a flowchart or graphic organizer of the events (cause/effect) of how specific events played out online could impact their future.
I was really shocked when I watched a video Cyberbullying - Megan Meier's Story Part 2 and saw that a young man had killed himself because of being bullied. When his cyber-attacker was on video apologizing for his part he stated that he was not sorry for why he did it. What in the world is in this guy’s mind that he can justify his behavior? It surely does make me think that we need to ensure that we are teaching students to be accountable for their own behavior, build empathy, and make them connect their virtual world to reality. For many students, people in general, there seems to be a disconnect and a sense of anonymity for any online behavior. We need to bring it home for them!
What can be done? These principles are noted across the board as vital elements to the prevention of cyberbullying-
Build awareness
Create a culture of caring
Build relationships with students
Help students learn empathy
Think before posting
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