Upcoming Webcast on Cyberbullying
March 27, 2009 - On April 22, the Stop Bullying Now! Campaign will host a webcast on cyberbullying. The webcast will help participants learn about best practices in cyberbullying prevention and intervention and how to lend support when bullying occurs. The webcast, held from 3:00 to 4:30 pm EST, will feature experts such as Susan Limber, PhD, MLS, from Clemson University, who will provide current information on the use of cyber technologies and the emerging phenomenon of cyberbuylling among youth.
Bullying within school buildings is fairly common (i.e. face-to-face), but with the advent of new technologies, the prevalence of cyberbullying is increasing. Children spend countless hours “socializing” through mediums such as computers and cell phones and, thus, cyberbullying has presented itself as a partly "masked" or anonymous form of harassing people.
Which students are bullied and what are the consequences?
Bullying happens among students of all racial and ethnic groups and of diverse socio-economic backgrounds. Nevertheless, as shown in a new report by the Gay, Lesbian and Straight Education Network (GLSEN), bullies often use one’s race/ethnicity or sexual orientation to channel their harassment. The report, called “Shared Differences”, shows how lesbian, gay, bisexual, and transgender (LGBT) students of color face unique and diverse challenges regarding bullying victimization at school.
Key report findings include that across all groups, sexual orientation and gender expression were the most common reasons LGBT students of color reported feeling unsafe in school; and more than half of African American/Black, Latino/a, Asian/Pacific Islander, and multiracial students also reported verbal harassment in school based on their race or ethnicity. The report also reveals that about a quarter of African American/Black and Asian/Pacific Islanders had missed class or days of school in the past month because they felt unsafe. In addition, students’ overall GPA dropped when they reported high severities of harassment based on sexual orientation and/or race/ethnicity.
What can schools do?
Schools that have effective anti-bullying programs and policies can better address these issues and other health, social, and academic problems that arise when young people are victimized or are bullies themselves. An example is a new psychodynamic program recently featured in a Science Daily article. The program, called CAPSLE (Creating a Peaceful School Learning Environment), has been successfully championed by University College London and U.S. researchers, and uses a groundbreaking method that focuses more on the bystander than on the bully or the victim.
CAPSLE addresses the relationship between bully, victim, and bystanders, assuming that all members of the school community, including teachers, play a role in bullying. It aims to improve the capacity of all community members to interpret one’s own and others’ behavior in terms of beliefs, wishes and feelings, assuming that this greater awareness will counteract the temptation to bully others. Also teaching management of power struggles, the program was found to reduce children’s experiences of aggression and improve classroom behavior.
To learn more about and register for the Stop Bullying Now! Campaign webcast on cyberbullying, please email Nicolle Grayson at Nicolle.Grayson@widmeyer.com. For further information on cyberbullying, check out CyberSmart’s Cyberbullying Prevention Package for Schools, that includes a focus on the role of a “bystander.” To access the GLESN report, please click here.
Source: "Shared Differences Examines LGBT Students of Color Experiences in School," GLESN Press Release, January 15, 2009; and "New Tactics to Tackle Bystander's Role in Bullying," Science Daily, January 27, 2009.