Cyberbullying
(Cyberbully statistics are scary - get the facts 2022)
Cyberbullying is a form of bullying online and unfortunately it happens all of the time. I am saddened to read that “the teen survey found that 46 percent of kids ages 13 to 17 had experienced at least one of six cyberbullying behaviors, while 28 percent have experienced multiple types” (Chang, 2022). This is a large percentage especially starting at such a young age. Some forms of cyberbullying can include name calling, spreading rumors, threats, etc. Cyberbullying can become so bad that it makes people want to commit suicide. In the documentary Dark Cloud: the high cost of cyberbullying, Amanda Todd took her life because of cyberbullying. In the documentary it said “I remember one of our participants in a study had a quote that really described it. It’s like a paper cut a thousand times every day” (Dupej & Embry, 2020). I find this quote to be really significant because unless you are being cyber bullied, you don’t understand what it is like. Everyone has gotten a paper cut before and knows how it feels so by saying it’s like getting a thousand of them a day, really puts the pain into perspective. Something that really stuck out to me from this film was when one of the girls said Saturdays were the worst because that’s when girls would have sleepovers and call her non stop in the middle of the night. I think this really stuck out to me because there are multiple girls doing this together and not one of them tried to stop this from happening. It just really blows my mind how a group of people can come together and willingly be mean to someone else and out right tell them to kill themselves.
Understanding cyberbullying is crucial when it comes to working with the youth. Something very important to see if your student is being cyber bullied is to “be aware of your students’ emotional state” (Wilkey Oh, 2019). This includes seeing if they’re depressed, distracted, seeing if their friend group has changed, etc. Noticing this is important because you have to inform the parents and the school so you can get them help and hold the bullies accountable if they’re not hiding behind a screen. Another way to see if a child is being cyberbullied is to notice how long they stay on their devices. Nowadays, kids are always on their phones so if you see a kid who used to use it all of the time and now doesn't, it could be because they don’t want to see the hateful comments. This tip could have been useful for the teacher(s) of Amanda Todd. Maybe if they noticed she was getting cyberbullied it could have ended a lot sooner. However, this also applies for kids who had a sudden increase in phone use and this is important to spot because they can be the ones bullying. For example, “a child hides their screen or device when others are near, and avoids discussion about what they are doing on their device” (Tips for Teachers, 2021). This could be because they are hiding the comments they are making. Being able to detect a bully and detect someone who is being bullied is huge when being a teacher.
The topic of cyberbullying relates to our previous conversation on school violence. This is because someone who is being bullied can bring a weapon to school and target the individuals harassing them. School violence and cyberbullying both need to be taken seriously and seek improvement throughout the school system. I know these things can be hard to control but there should be more effort in getting these things under control.. For example, the schools can host workshops for more training in detecting cyberbullying. With more awareness, hopefully the rates of cyberbullying will decrease. There also can be days throughout the year dedicated to educating students on cyberbullying and the effects it has on people. Students should also learn more about school violence and know what to do if something is happening within their school.
References
Chang, E. (2023, January 17). Cyberbullying affects almost half of American teens. parents may be unaware. The Washington Post. https://www.washingtonpost.com/parenting/2022/12/16/cyberbullying-teens-social-media-pew/
Cyberbully statistics are scary - get the facts. WebPurify. (2022, September 27). Retrieved February 14, 2023, from https://www.webpurify.com/blog/40-statistics-about-cyberbullying-in-2021/
Dupej, H. & Embry, M. (2020). Dark cloud: The high cost of cyberbullying. TELUS Wise.
Tips for Teachers: Warning Signs a Child is Being Cyberbullied or is Cyberbullying. (2021, May 21). stopbullying.gov. https://www.stopbullying.gov/cyberbullying/tips-for-teachers
Wilkey Oh, E. (2019, March 25). Teachers' Essential Guide to Cyberbullying Prevention. Common Sense Education. https://www.commonsense.org/education/articles/teachers-essential-guide-to-cyberbullying-prevention
Hey Ashley!
ReplyDeleteI like how you started out with a statistic in your intro paragraph. It really set the tone of what today's society is like when it comes to bullying. The percentages are concerning to me and like you said in your blog they are so young. It's sad that some people feel as though they have no choice but to end their life by suicide. This is why as future educators it is so important to know the warnings throughout our students. No one should feel like committing suicide is the answer to stop bullying but unfortunately, some young kids just want it to stop. Cyberbullying in today's world with technology can be so hard to understand because when bullies start using technology it can sometimes never stop for children. With bullying, they can get bullied while going to school, at school, and then with cyberbullying, it can continue at home. I really like how you touched on this throughout your blog that it is not just in-person bullying that can affect children, it is also online bullying as well. There are so many sites in today's world that children can go on whether it be bullying over video games or a social media site where the bullying can occur. This is why it is important as educators to promote a safe comfortable environment where students can feel they can express themselves freely. You never know what a student is going through, throughout their day at school, when they get home, and while they are getting to school. Educators need to keep a careful eye out to prevent these situations from occurring. Really cool blog post!
Hi Ashley,
ReplyDeleteCyberbullying is an important topic, especially with us becoming future teachers. It is so sad to think that students are being told to kill themselves and called names, and this is so repetitive every time someone opens their electronic device. As you said, awareness of our student's emotional state is essential. Many harmful things that come to students can be prevented just by teachers being aware of how students are feeling. In our strategies class, our professor always ensures she starts the lesson by having students say how they feel or what emotion they are feeling. It is excellent for teachers to know how a student feels and show that the teacher is open to listening. Preventing cyberbullying is so important because cyberbullying will be with them everywhere they go if they open their electronic device and can make a student feel unworthy. Great tip on how to care for students!