Abstract
While technology can be educationally motivating for students of all ages, technology can also be a cruel tool in the hands of youngsters and teens who do not yet understand the implications and ramifications of remote and potentially anonymous communication. Texting and talking on a mobile cell phone encourages more uninhibited discourse than would likely occur in face-to-face conversation because the texter or talker sees no visual cues that signal the response of the recipient of the communication. Technology-enabled verbal bullying behavior, or cyberbullying, can become especially vicious, even threatening. This chapter will examine the elements of cyberbullying as a misuse of technology and especially as a misuse of mobile phones, its prevalence, and some of the reasons students cyberbully. The article will also examine the potential legal issues involved in bullying and cyberbullying. Finally, the article will offer proposed solutions to the problem, including the responses and responsibilities of school personnel, families, and the students themselves.
TopOverview
The current author, Kathleen Conn, was one of the first legal and educational scholars to recognize the potential impact of the internet on students, schools, and school personnel, and the publication of her book by the Association for Supervision and Curriculum Development, The Internet and the Law: What Educators Need to Know (2002), stirred great interest. That book was followed two years later by Bullying and Harassment: A Legal Guide for Educators (2004). Conn’s third book, Bullying and Cyberbullying: Policies and Tools for Administrators (2010), authored in collaboration with Travis Hicks, former editor of the Educators’ Guide to Controlling Sexual Harassment, published by Thomson Publishing Group, offered model policies for school administrators. In 2014, Conn authored the final chapter in Sexting and Youth, edited by Todd Hiestand and Jesse Wiems, and published by Carolina Press.
Other leading scholars include Nancy E. Willard, J.D., Director of the Center for Safe and Responsible Internet Use, Williamette University, WA, author of Cyberbullying and Cyberthreats: Responding to the Challenge of Online Social Aggression, Threats, and Distress; Associate Professor Justin W. Patchin, Ph.D., University of Wisconsin-Eau Claire, WI, and Associate Professor Sameer Hinduja, Ph.D., Florida State University, FL, both of whom author and maintain the website of the Cyberbullying Research Center at (http://cyberbullying.us/about-us); and Associate Professor Shaheen Sharif, Ph.D., McGill University, Montreal, Quebec, Canada, who has conducted and reported research with Canadian students.
Key Terms in this Chapter
Suicide: An individual’s intentional ending of his or her own mortal life.
School: A physical structure in which education or educational activities take place.
Sexting: The practice of sending sexually suggestive or naked images from one electronic device to another.
Cyberbullying: Technology-facilitated bullying.
Mobile Phone: A wireless electronic device used for communication of alphanumeric messages.
Students: Individuals who are endeavoring to learn and become educated.
Technology: The application of scientific knowledge for practical purposes.
Bullying: Repetitive, intentional aggressive behavior directed by one individual against another for the purpose of engendering fear and/or discomfort in the target.