Cyberbullying
the Silent Killer
Ambro. Teenage Girl Using Laptop Stock Photo. Digital image.Freedigitalphotos.net. N.p., 8 Oct. 2012. Web. 23 July 2014.
The Ease of It
With all the new technology we have acess to and all the benifits it brings it's hard to see the downside. With the ease of long distance communication comes the ease of harming others from a distance. When we are mean to someone on the internet we don't see their pain which makes it alot easier to make others suffer. Not only does it not effect us, it's alot harder for people to be caught. You can only fix a problem you know abount and only a tenth of bullied children will tell a parent or authority figure.
The Numbers
A little over half of people admit to have being cyber bullying and that is not limited to Facebook, twitter, and texting. There are whole websites dedicated to bullying a single student that an estimated 3/4 all of their classmates see. These harmful practices can be deadly with cyber bullying more than doubling a persons risk of suicide. Cyber bullying needs to be stopped and there are a few things we can do to help.
Protection and Prevention
While we can't stop cyber bullying from happening we can help prevent its impact and help stop it from progressing. I propose a two part plan that centers around two themes, Prevention and Protection. First is to inform our children about the dangers of cyber bullying and encourage them to be open with us about it. This will help Prevent cyber bullying from effecting our children and their friends, good communication can help prevent bad communication. The second part is to take steps in stopping cyber bullying and Protecting our children from it. Tell our children to record hateful messages and especially threatening ones so we can tell other parents what their children are doing so they can stop such actions. If the activities continue after telling the parents attempt to tell them again, if their children do not stop then it is time to get the school involved. Tell the principal about the bullying and the other parents inability to stop. If this step has no effect/worsens the issue it is time to get the police involved. Help protect your children and reduce their risk for self harming behaviors. Do not be fooled, cyber bullying can cause people to go to dark places and can lead to suicide. Be aware, supportive, and helpful.
source
DoSomething. "11 Facts About Cyber Bullying." DoSomething.org. N.p., n.d. Web. 21 July 2014.