Schools Target Bullying On Myspace And Bebo
Australian schools are making efforts to address the problem of cyber bullying in information technology classes.
The problem is reaching epidemic proportions among teens, and is related to social networking sites such as Bebo and Myspace.
The schools are giving special ‘cyber citizenship’ classes as part of their technology course, and are based on a similar scheme in the United States.
Riverside Girls High School in Sydney’s Northern Suburbs will be one of the first schools to conduct the course this year, which will be initially aimed at junior high school students.
I have written about my family’s battle with this problem before, and how we have dealt with it, in consultation with other parents, and the local high school.
I can’t say that the problem is finished with as far as we are concerned, as it is an epidemic as has been stated in the quoted news article.
One thing I can say though is that unless parents are involved from the start, the scheme is doomed to failure.
The problem of cyber bullying requires parents to supervise their children’s use of technology, including mobile phones, and to listen to all sides of the story.
It is also necessary for parents, schools, and the educational system to realize that it is the parents’ responsibility to teach morals.
Where this falls down of course is in circumstances where parents don’t fulfill their obligations in this regard.
This is where it becomes the responsibility of the wider community as well.
Blaming social networking sites such as Facebook, Bebo, Myspace and so on is irrelevant, and counter productive.
They are no more to blame than the local shopping mall where teenagers may go to hang out – the kids are there because their friends are there.
As far as I am aware, these sites take their responsibilities very seriously.
I had someone say that my actions in regard to our kids actually infringed on their human rights.
My response to that codswallop was simply that there are no rights without responsibility.
Online citizenship is no different to the ‘real world’, it has to be based on mutual respect and personal responsibility, otherwise it just falls down!
I believe that it is time to empower the parents by educating them, and giving them the power they need to address the situation at home.
Only then will any school based program have a chance of any real success!
To coin a phrase from the late Dr Ed Cole, doing otherwise is like building a second floor on a vacant lot…
A Definition Of Bullying
Bullying is a big concern for many parents and, if your child is distressed by any sort of bullying, then it should be taken seriously.
Bullying is defined as persistent unwelcome behaviour and can include anything from teasing, deliberately ostracising someone to assaults and abuse.
Bullies will use many ways to get at their victims and the Internet gives them yet another method.
This form of bullying is sometimes called cyber bullying and describes the misuse of email systems or the Internet for harassing people, such as by sending unpleasant or aggressive messages.
Although this is a relatively recent phenomenon and may not yet be taken seriously by everyone, bullying of all kinds is wrong and should be challenged.
This definition of Bullying comes from: From Be Safe Online
This post is based on a recent News.com.au Article. To read the full article, simply follow the link!
3 Comments