Cyberbullying: Making Sure the Kids are Alright

 This week's topic is one that is obviously important, but can be easy for teachers and schools to just pay lip-service to. Based on this week's readings and resources, in particular Faucher, Cassidy, and Jackson's article, The Seven Deadly Digital Sins, and the material found on Shippensburg University's website, cyberbullying is something which is almost continually present in society and yet does not receive much focus in school curriculum.

At any of the middle school's I've worked at, cyberbully and other forms of bullying receive special attention maybe once per year. School counselors will deliver lessons infrequently to students, and there is usually an "anti-bullying day" at some point. Students and staff wear t-shirts and might sign pledges, but these actions do not become imbedded as part of the day-to-day culture of the school. They last about as long as the gif I've included below.

Do we embed cyberbullying awareness for longer than the loop on this gif?

According to Faucher, Cassidy, and Jackson, we should be looking at cyberbullying and traditional bullying not as separate but overlapping entities. Cyberbullying is often a continuation of traditional bullying when students are not on campus or adults are not at their workplace. According to Cassidy et al., more than a third of students reported being victims of cyberbullying and almost that number reported being the perpetrators. I have a suspicion that these numbers have either increased since the study was done in 2012 and/or are underreported by those involved. As shown in the first video featured cyberbullying.org, the cyberbullying was happening for quite some time before adults were involved. The student, Joe, was even asked by a teacher if everything was alright. It took more time after the teacher approached Joe before he reached out to his mother.

In order to both educate and create a space where students both feel comfortable coming forward and understand the seriousness of cyberbullying's impacts, educators need to incorporate digital citizenship into all levels and areas of instruction. No more quick school counselor lessons as a one-off, no more once a year pledges, but a true embrace of instruction and community building.

Digital Citizenship Curriculum

I really like the curriculum found on Common Sense Media. I have used several of their lessons before, and I appreciate that they involve videos, graphic organizers, and full lessons for those who are not as comfortable developing their own. I think these provide a great starting point for a staff looking to develop a school-wide curriculum.

Full lessons are available by grade level, as well as quicker mini-lessons which could be used to start discussions or at the beginning of classes. The site also includes games to practice decision making related to digital citizenship for grades 3-5 and 6-8. For grades 6-8, the game is called Digital Compass and is set up like a choose your own adventure game.

Start Page for Digital Compass Game

If a school sat down with its leadership team, they could use the content provided on Common Sense Media to develop a school-wide plan for discussing digital citizenship. I think cyberbullying should not be treated as a stand-alone issue, but it should be taught in connection with all of the other skills students need to safely navigate the 21st century.

Library Sponsored Project

Another idea I have is related to creating more empathy among students. I think the more we can develop empathy, the more a student will pause before clicking send on a post or text which cyberbullies another. This idea is inspired by the project created by Brandon Stanton. In 2010, Stanton started a photography project where he wanted to document 10,000 New Yorkers. This project morphed into something much more and has grown from an Instagram account into a website and several books.

Humans of New York Website Banner

All of the individuals and stories featured on Stanton's feed and website are not necessarily appropriate for all ages of students, but I believe there are stories present which would be appropriate for grades 6 and up, and possibly upper elementary depending on the student population.

Through these photo-essays, Stanton helps his readers see each person as just that - another person with struggles, triumphs, and human feelings. What is extraordinary about each of the people featured is that their stories are ordinary as well. The photographs and captions help to remind us of the universal truth that all people are facing their own struggles, and that all people have some gift to share with or give to others.

As school librarians, we will have the ability to interact with every student and staff member at our schools. How amazing would it be to use our platforms to share about the humans present within our buildings? Certainly not everyone would be interested in participating - some people and students are very private, and that should be respected. However, for those willing to share, using the library as a posting space and organizer for their real-life stories could be an amazing way to remind the school community of the extraordinary ordinary present. This could build student and staff empathy and combined with authentic, frequent digital citizenship lessons could encourage students to reexamine their actions or become "upstanders" when they witness any type of bullying taking place. 

References:

Childnet International. (2008, May 3). Let’s fight it together [Video]. YouTube. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=dubA2vhIlrg

Common Sense Media. (2022, February 10). Digital compass for educator. Common Sense Education. Retrieved March 13, 2022, from https://www.commonsense.org/education/digital-compass

Faucher, C., Cassidy, W., & Jackson, M. (2015). From the sandbox to the inbox: Comparing the acts, impacts, and solutions of bullying in k-12, higher education, and the workplace. Journal of Education and Training Studies, 3(6). https://doi.org/10.11114/jets.v3i6.1033

Stanton, B. (n.d.). humansofnewyork. Humans of New York. Retrieved March 13, 2022, from https://www.humansofnewyork.com/about

Stephens, R. (2020, December 4). How adolescents cope with digital stress - the journalist's resource. The Journalist’s Resource. Retrieved March 13, 2022, from https://journalistsresource.org/health/adolescents-cope-digital-stress/