Cyberbullying

Cyberbullying is when someone tries to intimidate, harass, or torment another person via the internet, text messages, social network sites, or some sort of media.

I personally have never been a part of cyberbullying but I recognize the negative effects and will do everything I can as a teacher to rid my classroom of it.

         Cyberbullying is an issue hard for schools to deal with, it can happen off of school grounds and it’s hard to see. I feel that if my students are being hurt it is my duty regardless of location to help them. I think that the effects of cyberbullying are similar to that of regular bullying. Students may become withdrawn or appear to be sad or depressed, I feel that it is important as a teacher to step in and help out. If a student is being noticeably hurt by cyberbullying then by law the school must help out. Parental abuse doesn’t generally happen on school grounds but teachers are required to say something, I think it should be the same anytime a student is seriously in trouble.

         At the beginning of the year as a teacher I would go over my no tolerance of cyberbullying policy. I would lay out the consequences of their actions should a student choose to cyberbully. I would also make a class discussion of it, so students can understand how hurtful it can feel and what a toll it takes on their peers’ lives. Like any other issue in the classroom I would deal with it on an individual or group basis depending on the situation. I would hope that after we discuss the implications of cyberbullying in class I wouldn’t have to deal with it.