Skip to main content

Cyberbullying - It's not Just at School Any More


1 in 3 students in over 30 countries have reported being a victim of cyberbullying, in the average United States classroom this translates to over 1/3 of students being a victim of this act, and the numbers have only increased since the pandemic with the implementation of online learning (Wylie, 2019). In our world, where teens are on a screen for over 7 hours a day, it is imperative we empower our children and students with the knowledge of how to be respectful and responsible digital citizens (Rogers, 2019). But teaching our children and students how to navigate both the physical world and digital world is a huge undertaking and one not for the faint of heart. I'm sure we can all agree, it would be much easier to assume the stance that as long as our children are kind in person that they would probably follow that practice online. However, with shows like Catfish becoming mainstream and our world evolving to allow children o have access to technology now more than ever we cannot just assume that our children will be able to translate their knowledge of how to be empowering individuals or not act as a bystander to bullying in the cyber world. 

In the age where people are always connected, whether through their computers or cell phones, our ability to communicate effectively, responsibly, and compassionately is more relevant than ever. Studies have shown that victims of cyberbullying under the age of 25 are twice as likely to self-harm or attempt suicide (Newman, 2018). Me, as a victim of cyberbullying both as an adult and teenager, can confirm that the detriments of being cyberbullied are dire and can result in some of the most painful moments I to date have experienced. However, there is hope and that hope can take the form of the integration of socio-emotional learning in our classrooms and curricula as a means of teaching educators how to effectively respond to bullying, students how to use their voice in a productive way, and parents on how to help their children be responsible digital citizens. 


I believe it is necessary for us, as a society, to continue to adapt and pivot when challenges arise and face us as a community and I believe that cyberbullying is no different. For years, The United States has made a point of collecting data on bullying in our schools as a means of formulating an appropriate response for our educators and educational leaders to take in their schools. However, the pandemic threw a curveball into this data collection and, beyond that, allowed us insight into a problem that was festering before Covid ever existed. Cyberbullying didn't just start when the pandemic did, it just became a more visible problem, a visible problem that warrants an immediate response. 


So what do you, as an adult, do about this? Use your voice. As an adult, you have the innate ability to see an injustice and respond to it in a solution-based manner, and, no, responding doesn't mean making a snarky comment in a reactive manner. Responding can mean reporting the post to the social media provider, sending the post to an individual who is able to take further action, or even reporting the post to the proper law enforcement authorities if the situation warrants it (such as someone threatening to harm another individual or posting something that could be construed as a threat). This week, take a moment to read through the posts you read online and really identify whether or not the post's comments could be identified as a form of bullying and, if they are, respond accordingly to best resolve the matter in a solution-based form. A simple task of reporting a post, or comment, truly could help someone and their experience in navigating this digital world. 

References

Newman, C. (2018, April 19). Young victims of cyberbullying twice as likely to attempt suicide and self-harm, study finds. Swanesa University. https://www-2018.swansea.ac.uk/press-office/news-archive/2018/youngvictimsofcyberbullyingtwiceaslikelytoattemptsuicideandself-harmstudyfinds.php

Rogers, K. C. (2019, October 29). US teens use screens more than seven hours a day on average. CNN. https://edition.cnn.com/2019/10/29/health/common-sense-kids-media-use-report-wellness/index.html

Wylie, H. (2019, September 3). UNICEF poll: More than a third of young people in 30 countries report being a victim of online bullying. UNICEF. https://www.unicef.org/press-releases/unicef-poll-more-third-young-people-30-countries-report-being-victim-online-bullying

Media References

All the Latest Cyber Bullying Statistics and What They Mean In 2022. (2022). BroadbandSearch.Net. https://www.broadbandsearch.net/blog/cyber-bullying-statistics

Hinduja, S. (2022, March 8). Cyberbullying in 2021 by Age, Gender, Sexual Orientation, and Race. Cyberbullying Research Center. https://cyberbullying.org/cyberbullying-statistics-age-gender-sexual-orientation-race

What’s Cyberbullying? (2018, November 6). YouTube. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6ctd75a7_Yw



Comments

  1. Renee MApril 27, 2022 at 10:07 AM

    I read an article this week that 70% of parents estimate that their children watch a minimum of 4 hours of screen time EVERY DAY! That certainly increases their chances of being or participating in cyberbullying. I think encouraging parents to reduce screentime will help reduce the incidents of bullying!

    ReplyDelete

Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

What is Socio-Emotional Learning and Why Does it Matter?

Throughout this blog, I have emphasized the importance of the adoption and integration of the socio-emotional learning ("SEL") curriculum in schools and have shared how only 29 of our 50 states have determined SEL standards and shared those guidelines with their schools ( Positive Action, 2020 ). With 31 states not adopting  guidelines  and standards on how to implement SEL in schools, we must take it upon ourselves to ensure our student bodies receive this key area of knowledge integral to their growth as humans, their interactions and communication skills, and their own intrinsic emotional needs. Unfortunately, the states that do choose to adopt SEL programs into the school curriculum often fall short of being able to implement it wholly and instead integrate a small amount of the core teachings and broad goals for development thus doing their student bodies a disservice as they're not receiving the full benefit of the curriculum. So what should we do to ensur...
Post a Comment
Read more

My Story: A Victim Turned Advocate

 In a world where 1 in 5 children reports being bullied, I can confidently assume that you, as the reader, either know someone who has been affected by bullying, has been the bully, or was the victim of a bullying situation ( National Center for Educational Statistics, 2019)  Our country's response to this overwhelming number was to implement zero-tolerance policies as a means of ending bullying. However, because of the lack of intervention programs, the aggression that a bully shows isn't stopped and their behavior isn't corrected. These programs and policies are often successful at short-term remediation of the behaviors but are not based on the "psychobiological model of bullying that provides a framework for understanding the causation and prevention" thus ultimately ignoring "the factors operating throughout the development of the child that contributed to the bullying behavior of that child" (LeBlanc, 2001). Ultimately, this leaves our students wit...
Post a Comment
Read more