2. Hello teachers!
What we will discuss today:
What is cyberbullying?
The impact of cyberbullying on our teaching and
student‘s learning
Let‘s explore and compare the different
programs/resources in place in the USA and Australia.
We‘ll look at how the Australian cyberbullying
programs/resources are used within a Queensland
private High School and a Queensland public High
School.
Some recommendations for dealing with cyberbullying
in our school
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3. What is cyberbullying?
Cyberbullying is harassment via email, mobile phone
texts, personal websites, blogs, online gaming, instant
messaging, social networks.
Cyber bullies can target victims seemingly
anonymously
Cyber bullies are often students you may not suspect
(Urbanski & Permuth, 2009).
Victims fear losing Internet access if they tell parents
(Goodstein, 2007).
Victims may also engage in cyberbullying (Urbanski &
Permuth, 2009).
Bystanders or onlookers allow bullying to continue and
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give the bully power (Coloroso, 2008).
4. Cyberbullying in the middle
years
The middle years is from Years 4 to 9.
The amount of teenagers on the Internet has
increased and the amount of time they spend on the
Internet is increasing.
Accessing the Internet and communicating with
mobiles are part of the everyday life of many of our
students. Teens may have access to the Internet
24/7 which makes them ―…susceptible to
victimization (and able to act on mean intentions
towards others) around the clock‖ (Hinduja & Patchin,
2010, p. 2).
―ONE in five Australian parents believes their child
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has been bullied over the internet…‖ (Thom, 2011, p. 1).
5. Impact on teaching and learning
Victims of cyberbullying may get
―…depressed, sad, angry, and frustrated‖
(Hinduja & Patchin, 2010, p. 1).
Victims may develop social and psychological
issues as well as have educational difficulties
(Australian Communications and Media Authority, 2009b).
Cyberbullying has resulted in suicide and it
negatively effects a student‘s capacity to learn
in your classrooms.
Let’s do something about it!
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6. The emotional effect of
cyberbullying
Victims of bullying, including cyberbullying, do not feel
safe at school (Varjas, Henrich & Meyers, 2009).
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7. Cyberbullying programs and
resources from the USA
Conference on Bullying Prevention ~ a major
conference headed by President Obama and the First
Lady in March 2011.
The media generated around this conference would have
increased the public awareness of cyberbullying
Check out this video clip next time you‘re at your
computer:
President Obama & the First Lady: Conference on
Bullying Prevention
www.StopBullying.gov ~ new USA Govt. website which
went online the day of the conference.
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8. Cyberbullying programs and
resources from the USA
Centers for Disease Control and Prevention have
created assessment tools/surveys (Hamburger, Basile
& Vivolo, 2011) which are used by health educators or
teachers.
We could use some of the survey questions as
a great way to start talking about cyberbullying
in the classroom!
OnGuard Online ~ http://www.onguardonline.gov/
Lots of information, onlines quizzes and videos (another
great resource to use in our classrooms!)
Net Cetera, a specific campaign to help inform kids
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9. Australian cyberbullying programs
and resources used in schools
Youth Advisory Group on cyber safety (YAG) ~
established by the Australian Govt. in 2009. A part of
the comprehensive cyber safety plan (Department of
Broadband, Communications and the Digital Economy, 2011).
In 2011 YAG will include 120 schools and 1200
students to inform them of young adult‘s cyber issues
and concerns.
Cybersafety Help Button ~ developed
from the YAG advice. On desktops of all
school computers. Can download onto home
computer. The user double-clicks on the
button and then can Talk, Learn or Report.
The Talk section will link the user to Kids
Helpline (Department of Broadband,
Communications and the Digital Economy, 2010).
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10. Australian online resources for
students, teachers & parents
budd:e ~ an eSecurity education package.
https://budd-e.staysmartonline.gov.au/
An Australian resource that informs students of online safety
cyber(smart:) ~ created by the Australian Communications and
Media Authority (ACMA). http://www.cybersmart.gov.au/
Includes educational lesson plans with videos
Think U Know ~ Australian Federal Police and Microsoft Australia
joined to create this site. http://www.thinkuknow.org.au/site/
This explains how kids use technology
Cure The Bullies ~ fun, interactive website that focuses on
the bystander and helps kids realise that some things they
may do might actually be an act of cyberbullying
http://www.curethebullies.com.au/
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11. The Queensland Department of
Education &Training
Queensland Government Responsible
Behaviour Plan for Students ~ all state
schools are required to have one and it should
be reviewed at least every 3 years (Department of
Education and Training, 2011a).
Queensland Schools Alliance Against
Violence ~ advice on the best practices to
address bullying and violence in Queensland
schools (Department of Education and Training, 2011b).
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12. Comparison of USA & Australian
programs/resources
Both the USA and Australia have identified
cyberbullying as a major problem
Both countries have numerous programs and
online tools to help teachers, parents and
students understand cyberbullying issues and
how to keep safe online.
I believe positive change is possible if we talk
about this issue more and engage students,
parents and the community in this discussion.
The action taken by the USA Government to hold a
major Whitehouse Bullying conference is a good step in
educating their whole community.
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13. (Sample Public School)
A Queensland State School
Responsible Behaviour Plan for Students
Zero tolerance of bullying
Staff to take action for all bullying complaints
(Sample Public School) Anti Bullying Policy
No specific mention of cyberbullying within this document
Anti-bullying program
In-class lessons and reminders at assembly of the impact of
cyberbullying
Have set up an anonymous bullying email ‗Hotline‘
Input student behaviour data on a daily basis into a
database that helps track the effectiveness of their program
and also identify specific issues
Internet usage agreement to be read and signed by
both students and their parents.
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14. (Sample Private School)
A Queensland private school
Computer usage agreement
Have students and parents read and sign
Include information regarding cyberbullying and the
use of technology in their monthly newsletters
Internet Safety Awareness Presentation (Australian
Communications and Media Authority: CyberSmart, 2009a)
The school holds these presentations once or twice a
year for parents, students and teachers
Advise parents who complain about child being
cyber bullied to inform the police
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15. Comparison of private and state
school approaches to
cyberbullying
Both schools have Internet usage agreements which
parents and students are to read and sign
(Sample Public School) (state school) has a specific
anti-bullying program in place, which means that
they have specifically identified the issue and are
trying to minimise its impact on a daily basis.
(Sample Private School) (private school)
communicates to parents about cyberbullying and
the use of technology on a regular basis through
their monthly newsletters.
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16. “cyberbullying rarely
occurs in our school”
I communicated with a teacher at (Sample
Public School) and the Assistant to Director of
Student Services at (Sample Private School)
and both claimed that cyberbullying rarely
occurred at their schools.
Discussion:
Is this realistic?
Possibly students are reluctant to inform the
school. Why do you think this may be the
case? How can we ensure that students
feel safe to tell us about these occurrences?
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17. Recommendations
Let‘s be realistic! Cyberbullying is more prevalent than
we may realise. Talk about it with your students.
Introduce an anti-bullying program within our school and
specifically include cyberbullying as a main focus.
Get more information regarding the use of a student
behaviour database, as used at (Sample Public School)
Have students be part of deciding on what is acceptable
behaviour and outline the steps that they can take to stop
cyberbullying
Make action plans with students about how to deal with
bullies, the victims and the bystander
Talk to students and parents about the use of technology
and identify what is cyberbullying and the impacts that it
has on our teaching and student‘s learning.
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18. Recommendations
continued…
Look into hosting an Internet Safety Awareness
Presentation by ACMA for our students, teachers,
parents and interested community members
Hold evening cyberbullying information sessions for
parents – create an online presentation for those parents
unable to attend
Include in-class sessions in ICT, Business or Art courses
using the budd:e and www.curethebullies.com.au
websites as a basis for learning about cyberbullying,
technology, web art and web design
All teachers in classroom with computers should remind
students about the purpose and use of the CyberSafety
Help button.
18 Review our Responsible Behaviour Plan for students
19. Conclusions
Cyberbullying has a negative impact on our
students
Victims of bullying do not feel safe at school. Often
they feel sad, embarrassed, depressed, frustrated
and scared and this impacts on their ability to learn
The USA and Australia have strong cyberbullying
programs and resources
Both private and public schools have Internet usage
plans and have anti-cyberbullying programs or
online safety awareness presentations – but more
can be done!
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20. References
Australian Communications and Media Authority : CyberSmart. (2009a). Internet safety
awareness presentation . Retrieved on 15 March, 2011 from
http://www.cybersmart.gov.au/Schools/Book%20school%20seminars/Internet%20Saf
ety%20Awareness%20Presentation.aspx
Australian Communications and Media Authority : CyberSmart. (2009b). Key
characteristics and forms of cyberbullying. Retrieved on 15 March, 2011 from
http://www.cybersmart.gov.au/Schools/Common%20cybersafety%20issues/Cyberbull
ying/Key%20characteristics%20and%20forms%20of%20cyberbullying.aspx
Coloroso, B. (2008). The Bully, the Bullied, and the Bystander. New York : Collins Living
Department of Broadband, Communications and the Digital Economy. Australian
Government. (2010). Cybersafety help button download page. Retrieved on 20
March, 2011 from
http://www.dbcde.gov.au/online_safety_and_security/cybersafetyhelpbutton_downloa
d
Department of Broadband, Communications and the Digital Economy. Australian
Government . (2011). Youth Advisory Group on cybersafety. Retrieved on 20 March,
2011 from
http://www.dbcde.gov.au/funding_and_programs/cybersafety_plan/youth_advisory_gr
oup
Department of Education and Training. (2011a). Responsible Behaviour Plan for
Students. Retrieved on 20 March, 2011 from
http://education.qld.gov.au/studentservices/behaviour/bm-plans.html
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21. Department of Education and Training. (2011b). Queensland school alliance against
violence. Retrieved on 20 March, 2011 from
http://education.qld.gov.au/studentservices/behaviour/qsaav/background.html
Goodstein, A. (2007). Totally wired: what teens and tweens are really doing online. New
York : Saint Martin's Griffin
Hamburger, M. E., Basile, K.C., & Vivolo, A.M. (2011). Measuring bullying victimization,
perpetration, and bystander experiences: a compendium of assessment tools. Atlanta,
GA: Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, National Center for Injury Prevention
and Control.
Hinduja, S. & Patchin, J. W. (2010). Cyberbullying: identification, prevention, and response.
Retrieved on March 15, 2011 from
http://www.cyberbullying.us/Cyberbullying_Identification_Prevention_Response_Fact_S
heet.pdf
Sameer, H. & Patchin, J. W. (2008). How cyberbullying victims felt (table). Retrieved on 20
March, 2011 from
http://cyberbullying.us/2007_charts/cyberbullying_how_victims_felt_2007.JPG
Thom, G. (March 6, 2011). Cyber bullying fears rife among parents. Herald Sun. Retrieved
on March 15, 2011 from http://www.heraldsun.com.au/news/national/cyber-bullying-
fears-rife-among-parents/story-e6frf7l6-1226016745249
Urbanski, J. & Permuth, S. (2009). The truth about bullying: what educators and parents
must know and do. Lanham, Md. : Rowman & Littlefield Education
Varjas, K., Henrich, C. C., & Meyers, J. (2009). Urban middle school students perceptions
of bullying, cyberbullying, and school safety. Journal of School Violence, 8: 2, 159 —
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