Cyber-Bullying - Please Help ARMS Prevent Cyber Bullying!

As the new school years gets underway, it’s wonderful to see students making new friends and renewing old friendships! For many kids this age, peers can be wonderful companions and support each other as they experiment with more independence. Social relations at this age can be complicated, too, and I’d like to address one way in which social behaviors can be hurtful: Cyber bullying.

Cyber bullying occurs when students are harassed on-line (or by mobile phone) by other young people. This can take the form of e-mails, texts, chats, personal quizzes, or photos/videos posted to make another person uncomfortable or to be hurtful. Young adolescents may participate in these activities without thinking about the full impact of their behavior. Sometimes they are attempting to fit in with a group of friends; at other times, what is viewed as a “joke” by the sender may be experienced as hurtful by the receiver. Many students have access to social media 24/7, and this can intensify the effects of cyber bullying behavior. Some social media sites (e.g. Facebook or Twitter) can be accessed via cell phones that are not smart phones.This constant access can make it very difficult to escape unkind peers, and can make a child’s life miserable!

If the school becomes aware of negative on-line activity that involves your child, we will alert you to it. If the behavior does not occur in school and does not impact students in the school setting, it is a family and law enforcement responsibility. When cyber bullying occurs within the building or impacts a student’s experience of school as being a safe and supportive environment, though, we will act swiftly to make sure that the behavior stops, and disciplinary consequences are likely. In extreme cases, there can be legal consequences as well.

As parents, you can help us keep our whole community safe. Please monitor your child’s cell phone and on-line activities! This is, of course, more easily said than done. Your child may protest that no other parent is doing this. Please be assured that you are not the only one! For children this age, this is appropriate parenting. You may also find that your child understands more than you do about social media sites, and may have already joined sites that you have never heard of. It is well worth taking the time to learn about these sites so that you can monitor. It may actually be a relief to your child to have their on-line and cell phone activities monitored--then, when something feels inappropriate or unsafe, they can blame you for their refusal to participate. See below for safety tips; a more extensive list of resources is available in the ARMS Student and Family Handbook.