Bullying And Cyber Bullying

When students go to a school, the school’s goal is to make the student feel safe being there along with providing a positive environment. Over the past couple of decades this has changed. There are students who absolutely dread going to school due to them being bullied every time they are at class. With the popularity of technology, bullying can follow a student home whether it is on social media or texting. Schools have begun to recognize this and have taken action to preventing bullying, cyber bullying still remains a large problem. Cyber bullying is much harder for the school to control because most of the time it happens off school property. Many times bullying of all kinds can get so bad, it drives some kids to suicide. This is an awful …show more content…
Cyber bullying is a growing type of bullying which is convenient and effective. Cyber bullying is defined by Stop-Bullying.gov as “Bullying that takes place using electronic technology… Including texts, emails, or posts on social media sites”. This hybrid type of bullying covers numerous mediums, causing it to have such an effect. When online, anything can be said without much worry due to the distance of the bully and the victim. That being said, according to Stop-Bullying.gov, victims of cyber bullying are often bullied physically as well. Both types of bullying combined can be very tragic for a victim. Often when this occurs it is hard for a victim to find a place where they are safe and away from bullying; the bullying affects them at school and at home on their computers and phones. Signs that parents can look for if they suspect their child is being bullied include: “Skipping school, low self-esteem, and low grades” (Stop-Bullying). Since the bullying may continue at school, there are some ways that schools can help, but it is very …show more content…
Schools are often tasked with the job of dealing with cyber bullying. With the recent advances in technology over the last couple of years, schools with younger students are forced to deal with this more. An article written in the New York Times by reporter Jan Hoffman covered a story of cyber bullying in New Jersey. In the article a 12 year old boy sent disturbing texts to a girl in the same grade as him and the parents were horrified. The school principal Tony Orsini replied to the parent’s wishes stating “’This occurred out of school on a weekend, I cannot punish him’” (Hoffman). This is a major dilemma that schools face when attempting to discipline students that have committed acts of cyber bullying, also leaving parents in a hard situation. When Orsini advised for the parents to contact the boy’s parents they decided not to replying it was “Too awkward, the dads coach sports together”. This leaves the entire ordeal as a moot point with nothing gained. Schools still have very little they can do if the bully even happens on their