"Disciplining students without getting sued"
Internet Safety Educator
2 Comments
My friend, Mike Tully, has written an excellent article, "Disciplining Students without Getting Sued".
The issue of cyber bullying/harassment/mischief or inappropriate web sites, is complex. What steps can public schools take, legally? Mike has been of great help to me, when I was writing the cyber bullying policy for my school District (still waiting on approval).
This is an excellent read for educators, administrators and those of you interested in the complicated issue of cyber bullying which occurs on and off campus.
Reader Comments (2)
We have been in contact lately about guest blogging and I wanted to throw you a heads up to recruit your services if things come along like I hope.
I have been approached by Techlearning.com to head up a Wiki on Cyberbullying as an open resource for all... As soon as I have more details and how I can fit others in, I would hope to get your input into the project.
My most recent blog entry on Cyberbullying: 5-7-2007
Cyberbullying Frequency isn't the Issue!
A continuing trend I have noticed in my personal research on cyberbullying is the proliferation of cyberbullying as an increasing trend to the point that it is overtaking traditional bullying in frequency. As a teacher for 12 years, I can guarantee that bullying is present in schools at very high rates that cyberbullying doesn't even compare with... This really isn't the issue that needs to be focused on though... The problem isn't frequency yet. The problem is the severity of bullying and how visible and quickly cyberbullying is passed along.
According to the Olympian Online's Bullies with Technology would be Targets of New State Rules,
"Bullying on the playground, you can see," said Courtney Schrieve, a North Thurston School District spokeswoman. "You can't always know what students are doing on their electronic devices."
If Ms. Schrieve is referring to the physical process of cyberbullying than I would tend to agree that it can be easy to determine. Otherwise I would disagree... Cyberbullying is very visible and difficult to erase sometimes as websites and email can be created and sent to thousands in mere seconds. Just think about how fast someone can create a fake email account and send a nasty email as someone to thousands of people...
Furthermore, bullying in person can be very difficult to determine in some cases and actually hidden very well. One of the greatest problems with cyberbullying is that the bullying tactic is very visible and can be spread quickly to a huge audience. Once a web page is created by someone, it can be a nightmare to get it taken off the Internet. Free speech is a very sticky situation that companies are reluctant to move quickly on.
Scott,
Thank you for thinking of me.
Cyber bullying is and has been a pet project of mine for the past two years. So much so, it was high on my "to-do" list as Internet Safety Coordinator. I spent many months putting together an anti-cyber bullying policy for our District, which I hope to push further then my immediate area.
Thanks so much!! I'd love to help!!
jace