Issues Paper: Cyberbullying

By: Debra Nichols FRIT 7330 Y-01 July 7, 2012

Belson.R. (n.d.). Medford public schools cyberbullying policy. Retrieved from Http://www.medfordpublicschools.org/for-parents/technology-resource-guide-for-parents

The Medford Public School system developed a policy for cyber-bullying which was pretty thorough. The policy began by naming places where if cyber-bullying occurred would be considered a violation of the policy. It listed places not only on school grounds or affiliated with the school, but also listed that if it occurred outside of school but created a hostile environment at school for the victim or disrupted the education process, it would be a violation of the policy. The policy then went on to state that cyber-bullying should be reported immediately, and that the appropriate disciplinary measures would be taken and notification of the police would occur if necessary. In the policy they also stated that the school would be providing anti-bullying instruction for the students and annual training for the staff on recognizing the cyber-bullying. The final thing the policy discussed is that false accusations would be dealt with and not tolerated. Strengths of the policy: One definite strength of the Medford policy is that it very clearly states the different venues where cyber-bullying, if occurs, would be considered a violation of the policy and would be dealt with accordingly. I really liked the fact that it also included cyberbullying done outside of the school or school events, and recognized that this would cause a hostile environment for the victim at school. Another strength of the policy is that it gives some good examples of possible cyber-bullying so there is no misunderstandings of what cyberbullying is. A third strength of the policy is that it includes bullying prevention instruction and training for the staff and students. This is very important if cyber-bullying is to be prevented and not just dealt with when it occurs.

Weaknesses of the policy: I felt that a weakness of the policy was that it wasnt specific enough about the discipline or consequences of cyber-bullying. It didnt mention what would constitute calling the policy and filing criminal charges and it didnt give specific examples or steps of disciplinary action. To me, the students need to know and be aware of the specific consequences, which shows that the school means to hand out the punishment, and not just give the students a slap on the wrist. The other weakness of the policy was that it did not direct the students to save or print a copy of the cyber-bullying for physical proof. This is extremely important in proving instances of cyber-bullying.

Jenetta, V. (2008). Cyberbullying policy. Retrieved from http://www.bristol.k12.ct.us/page.cfm?p=5730 http://www.bristol.k12.ct.us/page.cfm?p=5730

As a part of the Memorial Boulevard Middle School, a cyber-bullying policy can be found. They begin with stating that cyber-bullying is unacceptable and is against the Districts acceptable use policy and procedure. They summarize cyber-bullying as being any type of hate mail, harassment, or any other antisocial behaviors which is done electronically. They inform the readers that any instance of cyber-bullying should not be deleted, but should be saved and printed out. The policy goes on to state that the cyber-bullying will be investigated by the administrator and gives a list of possible disciplinary actions that may be taken against the perpetrator. It also discusses when the police will be notified so criminal charges can be pursued. Strengths of the policy: There were three areas where I felt like the policy was strong in. The first was when they discussed how important it was for the victim to keep a record of the cyber-bullying instance and print out the record. This will be extremely helpful in proving the case of cyber-bullying. The second area of strength was that it gave detailed examples of the disciplinary actions that would be taken. The third area of strength is that it gave examples of why and when the police would be called in. When these three areas are detailed out, it gives more importance to these areas and helps students see that the schools policy is serious and they plan to carry out what is stated within the policy. Weaknesses of the policy: Although they do state that a record of the cyber-bullying instance should be kept, it doesnt go into further detail on how to report the instance, or what the

procedure will be after an instance is reported. This is the only real area of weakness that I found in this policy.

Snell, C. (n.d.). Skerton community high school anti-cyberbullying policy information for parents and students. Retrieved from http://www.skertonhigh.lancs.sch.uk/download/file/CyberbullyingPolicy.pdf http://www.skertonhigh.lancs.sch.uk/download/file/CyberbullyingPolicy.pdf Skerton Community High School proudly claims on their website that they have No place for bullies!. This is the first thing you notice when you pull up their anti-cyberbullying policy. From there, they talk about two types of bullying that they feel should be mentioned: virtual bullying and cyber bullying. After discussing what constitutes virtual and cyber bullying, they then list seven categories of cyber-bullying, being very specific with each category. Some examples of the categories are: text, email, chat room, and picture/video. The next couple of sections outline what parents should do if they become aware of their child being cyber-bullied and what students should do themselves if they become cyber-bullied. Once it is reported, they outline what will occur, what the procedures are for determining an instance of cyber-bullying. The policy ends by stating that there will be consequences for the perpetrators of cyber-bullying. Strengths of the policy: I felt like the main areas of strength for this policy was the section to the parents and the section to the students outlining what should be done if instances of cyber-bullying occur. It is very important that the parents are brought into the situation and are made aware of what to look for and what to do if it is seen. The policy was also specific on the investigation proceedings, which helps make this portion become more real to the students. Weaknesses of the policy: As was stated with a previous policy, I feel it is a weakness when a policy does not state specifically what will happen as a consequence to cyber-bullying. Just stating that disciplinary actions will follow does not make it seem real enough to students. They need to know specifically what can and will happen if we hope to prevent cyber-bullying

from occurring. Another weakness is that there wasnt any mention of educational instruction preventing cyber-bullying.

Laurens County School Systems Anti-Cyberbullying Policy

Laurens County School System has recently adopted a ZERO-TOLERANCE Cyberbullying Policy. Cyber-bullying is any bullying that takes place using electronic technology. Laurens County will deal promptly and harshly with any form of bullying, including cyberbullying.

Examples of Cyberbullying
The following are examples of cyber-bullying that will not be tolerated. These are just examples, not an exhaustive list: a) Abusive text messages: any text message sent which is meant to embarrass, harass, bully, harm, or threat another person. b) Emails any email containing an abusive message, harmful rumors, or false accusations. c) Silent phone calls: repetitive or excessive calling of the same number meant to taunt or scare by not saying anything. d) Pictures and/or videos: inappropriate pictures, embarrassing pictures sent out of the victim, posting pictures and/or videos on social networking sites meant to belittle the victim. e) Websites bullying through websites, or creating false profiles of the victim

f) Bullying through instant messaging or in chat rooms.

Where can cyber-bullying occur?

Cyber-bullying will be considered a violation of this policy if it occurs at any of the following locations: a) School property b) School-related activities, sports events, or programs (it doesnt matter if it is on school property or not) c) School bus stops d) Any vehicle owned, leased, or used by the school e) Through the use of any equipment owned by the school f) Anywhere else if it creates a disruption of the education process, or creates a hostile environment for the victim while at school

What to do when Cyber-bullying is experienced or witnessed?

It is important to immediately report any occurrence of cyber-bullying. Do not ignore the cyber-bullying, hoping it will just go away. If you experience cyber-bullying, or witness a case of cyber-bullying, follow the steps below:

1.

Do not delete the act of cyber-bullying. Save it and, if possible, print a hard copy as evidence. Record the date and time of the occurrence.

2. If the cyber-bullying occurs at school, once you have the printed evidence, take it to your principal or administrator and report the instance. 3. If it occurs outside of school, report it first to your parent/guardian or accompanying adult, then take it to the administrator at the first possible chance. 4. Discuss with the administrator any other instances where cases of bullying may have occurred.

Consequences of Cyber-bullying
When cyber-bullying is reported to the administration, an investigation will immediately begin. The victim will be interviewed, then the perpetrator will be interviewed. Once cyberbullying has been established, the following will occur: 1. Notify the parents of the perpetrator

2. Notify the parents of the victim 3. Disciplinary action to the perpetrator (see below) 4. Contact the police to file criminal charges if the cyber-bullying contained any of the following: hate mail and/or hate crimes, threats of physical harm, or threats of death Disciplinary Action 1st Offense: All computer privileges at school will be removed for the remainder of the school year AND 5 days of In-School-Suspension 2nd Offense: 5 days of Out-of-School Suspension

3rd Offense: Expulsion from school for the remainder of the year

False Accusations
If any student falsely accuses another student of cyber-bullying, that student will be punished with one of the following: In-School-Suspension, loss of computer privileges, and/or Out-of-School Suspension.

Prevention of Cyber-bullying
In the hopes of preventing cyber-bullying from occurring in our school system, an AntiCyber-bullying Education program will be implemented. Each year teachers and students will be trained and instructed on what cyber-bullying is, what to do when it occurs, and the consequences of cyber-bullying in Laurens County.