The Edutopia Poll
by Sara Ring
Most educators would agree that cyberbullying has become a significant problem among today's students. But is it the school's job to punish behavior that occurs away from school grounds? In Beverly Hills, California, school officials suspended a middle school student who used her personal computer to post a video on YouTube of herself and others bad-mouthing another student. The punished student is now suing her school district, claiming that because she made and posted the video after school and off campus, it does not fall under the school's jurisdiction. Yet schools across the country are stepping up their responses to cyberbullying, which can take a heavy toll on the emotional and academic well-being of victimized students. Do schools have the right to punish the off-hours, online harassment of their students? Tell us what you think!
Cyberbullying
Submitted by Andrea (not verified) on September 28, 2008 - 14:12.
If the bullying online is done outside of school, then it should not be considered an offense in terms of the school. Now if the bullying trickles into the school hallways or classrooms during the school day, then it is the responsibility of the school to stop the bullying in school. Notice I mention bullying in school. When something starts off campus, it usually winds up in school grounds and that is when the school/district should be involved.
Cyberbullying
Submitted by Penne Grisham (not verified) on September 28, 2008 - 19:41.
I think that if cyber bullying is done off school premises that it can not be the responsibility of the school. If however, the bullying carries over into the school and the victim is harrassed at school then it is the school's responsibility to punish that bully to the highest degree. It should not be tolerated anywhere but unfortunatly I do not believe the school can take action when it does not occur at school.
It's our job to TEACH them the proper online behavior
Submitted by Jill (not verified) on September 20, 2008 - 20:12.
What I have heard over and over from teachers is, "What can I do to help students understand proper online behavior?" How can I explain to them that what they post on their Facebook or MySpace pages can be seen by the world (and their college admissions officers)? How can I teach them that they can stand up to cyberbullying?
Here's a curriculum that EVERY school should look into.
It's about you. It's about me. It's about face.
http://www.faceourselves.com
Cyberbullying and Punishment
Submitted by Len Scrogan (not verified) on September 19, 2008 - 08:20.
Schools should only be able to punish students for engaging in cyberbullying activities if
1. district technology resources are used (hardware or network);
2. personal technologies are used on school grounds or at school-sponsored events;
3. the punishment appropriately measures up to the severity of the infraction
4. the punishment is similar to a punishment that would occur in a face-to-face bullying episode
Parental Involvement
Submitted by Steve (not verified) on September 19, 2008 - 05:13.
If there should be a conflict at a playground or in the neighborhood over the weekend, would we deal with that at school? Schools have taken on enough parenting, let the families involved advocate for their children.
Territorial Disputes
Submitted by Eric (not verified) on September 18, 2008 - 22:00.
Schools need to deal with school-related issues. This can be the case with cyberbullying if the students are engaging in or being affected by it at school. It's not civilized to wantonly threaten another individual by any means. In some cases the school might be the ones raising the flag and police might need to investigate for any possible felony activities that students are engaging.
Outside of school the family of the harassed child can take it to the next level and contact authorities that will try to protect the child from harm. Possibly you can make a public stink over the bullying, humiliate the bully, chastise the negligent parents, and bring light to the issue to the reduce the chances of future incidents occurring.
Taking parents to court is a good way to teach them to monitor their kid's online activities...
In the case of 'bad-mouthing' another student, trying to humiliate them online and destroy their lives--- this can be dealt with at both school and civil court levels.
Cyber Bullying
Submitted by Chuck Fellows (not verified) on September 18, 2008 - 09:52.
Don't lose another teachable moment.
Expose the activity when asked to (make the school professionals available) and allow the students and adults the opportunity to engage in a meaningful dialogue.
Use this as an opportunity to explore empathy, diversity of thinking and that you are only hurt by the words and actions of others if you give them permission.
Four rules to follow:
Be impeccable with your word.
Don't take anything personally.
Don't make assumptions.
Do your best.
Thank you to Ruiz and the Totec civilization for the above.
Protect the Children
Submitted by Bruce -- New Jersey (not verified) on September 18, 2008 - 06:45.
Lets protect the children from EVERYTHING and at all costs. What ever happened to dealing with problems, challenging bullies, and becoming emancipated from parents? It's no wonder that children now live with their parents until they are 35 years old. The time is now to WAKE UP and help students work on coping skills.
Cyberbullying
Submitted by Charlie (not verified) on September 18, 2008 - 04:01.
Cyberbullying should be a punishable crime and a severe warning to all who engage in this behavior including children and adults.
Who is affected by this intolerable behavior?
The answer is everyone involved- police, students, teachers, parents, guidance dept., pschologists, principals...the Some states and countries esp. England have strong enforcement of cyberbullying and this includes social networking sites that need to police their sites for cyberbullying as well.
Possibly new police or enforcment jobs can be created that do not exist now to help the police and school systems create programs like DARE- drug and alcohol awareness...
This is a large problem that isn't going away. The great majority of public school sytems do not deal affectively with this issue... I don't know if they want to or know how to? The DARE program or one like this can be created to address this in an Internet Awareness Program... IAP that should be offered in primary grades and refreshed in guidance in the first year of high school.
Why do we not care enough to make this a mandatory in all public schools?
Guidance and teachers and principals can offer a discussion for free????
It doesn't need to cost one penny...but think of the consequences if we continue to ignore it...more legal battles, YouTube issues. We need to think of the children first and make an action plan now!
Campus-Based Discipline
Submitted by Jo (not verified) on September 17, 2008 - 18:25.
There should definitely be campus-based discipline. When activities that occur off campus impact learning, consequences should be imposed. Whether parents are involved at home, whether law enforcement is involved, may make some difference in what those consequences are, but every student must know that we ARE part of the same society they enter when they leave the school. In order to keep my classroom a safe place to learn, I MUST ensure that outside distractions, from abuse to bullying to neglect, are not allowed to reduce the confidence my students feel that this will be a safe, calm, and non-threatening environment where they can try and fail without fearing embarrassment or threat.
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