Cyberbullying and the Schools

[Madeline]

Can schools ever get a handle on this issue?

How Should Schools Handle Cyberbullying? - NYTimes.com

 

[topspin]

Laugh at the parents

 

[Zoom-boing]

Take away the damn cell phone.

 

[Madeline]

So schools need to prohibit cell phones on campus? All schools, even high schools? What about off-campus use of a pc or whatnot to harrass a student?

 

[chanel]

I didn't read the whole article but I agree with some who stated that schools feel their hands are tied. We have a peer mediation program that is pretty effective in handling minor issues between kids. We also have a strict protocol when it comes to bullying within the school (that may be a state law) However, privacy issues often trump common sense when it comes to investigating such matters. Parents have to take the lead and handle it amongst themselves. If the harrassment is via media owned by the parent, its their deal.

Unfortunately, it is too common. I know of girls whose reputations have been damaged by awful vicious lies posted on myspace and facebook. Kids can be mean. Esp the girls.

 

[Zoom-boing]

So schools need to prohibit cell phones on campus? All schools, even high schools? What about off-campus use of a pc or whatnot to harrass a student?

Yes. If I were a teacher (grades K-12) I'd have ground rules for my classroom. No cell phones, no ipods. If you use the item - or I hear the damn phone ring - student gets three warnings. First warning, item gets taken for remainder of class; second warning item gets taken for remainder of week; third warning item gets taken for remainder of semester. I have no clue if I'd be allowed to do that, per the school but . . . that's what I do.

I meant the parents should take away the cell phones. Why does a 12 year old need a cell phone anyway? Cause everyone has one? Bullllll. While there are exceptions I think cell phones provide too much freedom (pre-high school anyway) for kids, as bullying/sexting, etc shows.

 

[Madeline]

Parents of student victims of bullying are putting enormous pressure on school officials to stop online bullying and don't seem to care whether it occurred on campus. They feel the police are not as well equipped to respond. Can school officials just turn a blind eye?

What about when online bullying is coupled with in school harrassment?

 

[Dis]

So schools need to prohibit cell phones on campus? All schools, even high schools? What about off-campus use of a pc or whatnot to harrass a student?

Yes. If I were a teacher (grades K-12) I'd have ground rules for my classroom. No cell phones, no ipods. If you use the item - or I hear the damn phone ring - student gets three warnings. First warning, item gets taken for remainder of class; second warning item gets taken for remainder of week; third warning item gets taken for remainder of semester. I have no clue if I'd be allowed to do that, per the school but . . . that's what I do.

I meant the parents should take away the cell phones. Why does a 12 year old need a cell phone anyway? Cause everyone has one? Bullllll. While there are exceptions I think cell phones provide too much freedom (pre-high school anyway) for kids, as bullying/sexting, etc shows.

That's what used to happen waaaaaay back when I was in school.

Know what? It didn't do a damn bit of good back then, either. If the parents are going to buy the crap for the kids, the kids are going to bring it to school, and if you take it, the parents will be knocking on your door.

 

[uscitizen]

Ban all cell phone activity by students on school property during classroom hours.

 

[Dis]

Ban all cell phone activity by students on school property during classroom hours.

LOL! Know how easy it is to operate a cell phone without anyone knowing? Put that puppy on vibrate, and stuff it in your bra if you're a girl. Nobody will know.

Put it on vibrate and stick it in your waistband if you're a guy. Nobody will know.

Most people can text without ever looking at their phone just by memorizing key positioning, and letter counts, if they don't have a QWERTY keyboard.

 

[Madeline]

I had thought mebbe schools could get some sort of jammer to block signals, but even if they could, then what? A war of the techies?

Seems to me we need some sort of basic policy decision. Either the cops are gonna come to the schools to deal with bullying, or the school officials are gonna have to face the problems head on.

I'm inclined to leave it with school officials. Whaca think?

 

[Dis]

I had thought mebbe schools could get some sort of jammer to block signals, but even if they could, then what? A war of the techies?

Seems to me we need some sort of basic policy decision. Either the cops are gonna come to the schools to deal with bullying, or the school officials are gonna have to face the problems head on.

I'm inclined to leave it with school officials. Whaca think?

The guaranteed quickest way to block any cell phone signal is to put a tower within 500+ of it.

AT&T had a 3G tower a block from where I was, an I used to get ZERO reception til I left the area.

Line them up along the football field, and nobody will be talking to anybody.

 

[Madeline]

Till after school. What then?

 

[Zoom-boing]

So schools need to prohibit cell phones on campus? All schools, even high schools? What about off-campus use of a pc or whatnot to harrass a student?

Yes. If I were a teacher (grades K-12) I'd have ground rules for my classroom. No cell phones, no ipods. If you use the item - or I hear the damn phone ring - student gets three warnings. First warning, item gets taken for remainder of class; second warning item gets taken for remainder of week; third warning item gets taken for remainder of semester. I have no clue if I'd be allowed to do that, per the school but . . . that's what I do.

I meant the parents should take away the cell phones. Why does a 12 year old need a cell phone anyway? Cause everyone has one? Bullllll. While there are exceptions I think cell phones provide too much freedom (pre-high school anyway) for kids, as bullying/sexting, etc shows.

That's what used to happen waaaaaay back when I was in school.

Know what? It didn't do a damn bit of good back then, either. If the parents are going to buy the crap for the kids, the kids are going to bring it to school, and if you take it, the parents will be knocking on your door.

Then let them knock.

 

[Zoom-boing]

Till after school. What then?

Then parents need to get off their asses and parent their children.

 

[Modbert]

As much as teachers and administrations alike would like for students to not bring phones, they still do. I didn't use mine during school hours, but I sure as hell kept mine on me. After Columbine, Virginia Tech, etc, how many parents do you think realistically are going to send their kid to any school without a immediate way to contact them?

 

[uscitizen]

As much as teachers and administrations alike would like for students to not bring phones, they still do. I didn't use mine during school hours, but I sure as hell kept mine on me. After Columbine, Virginia Tech, etc, how many parents do you think realistically are going to send their kid to any school without a immediate way to contact them?

Just send a gun with them instead. Bullying problem solved.

 

[Modbert]

Just send a gun with them instead. Bullying problem solved.

Dirty Harold! Bang Bang!

 

[chanel]

There is major controversy at my school for a change in policy regarding cell phones. We will now allow them to be used during lunch and study halls. Essentially, the administration has given up. We will now be complicit in feeding the addiction. I mentioned before that I have had to call security, who have threatened arrests of several students who would not give me their phones. Even though I ALWAYS give them back after class. Some are like crackheads.

I believe the Courts have ruled that text messages are private and need a warrant to read. And let's not forget that "sexting" is a serious concern. No teacher wants to view child porn on a kid's phone.

Our school blocks social networking sites; but like most tech savvy kids and those with G3s; they get around that.

Madeline - I would like to see the schools take charge of this serious problem, but it's not going to happen. Too many lawyers itching to sue for "privacy violations". Any bully suspended for something that happened in their own home will be laughing their way to the bank.

 

[chanel]

Check this out:

A Utah mom allegedly doctored a pornographic photo of a woman having sex with a dog, superimposing into the picture the face of a 13-year-old girl who attends middle school with her daughter.

Danette Stark, 37, appeared in court Monday to face 18 counts of sexual exploitation of a minor. Prosecutors said she created the image, put it into fliers and distributed them at Northwest Middle School in Salt Lake City.

Miller told FoxNews.com that this is the district's first case of social networking bullying, and they are trying to keep the 13-year-old girl’s identity as private as possible.

“She is traumatized by the event,” Miller said. “We are trying to keep her privacy protected as much as possible to help keep her life as normal as possible.”

FOXNews.com - Utah Mom Accused of Doctoring Photo to Show Girl, 13, Having Sex With Dog