Cyberbullying in Public Schools

Cyber Bullying and School Supervision

The article reviews the policy vacuum that currently exists when it comes to the legal expectations and obligations of schools to supervise and monitor discourse that occurs online and at the same time balance the safety of students, education and the way they interact in virtual space. The author clearly illustrates using examples how cyber bullying is something very anonymous hence it is very difficult to curb. There are some illustrations that the author gives regarding how difficult it is to deal with cases of cyber bulling as a result of inadequate laws protecting against cyber bullying. I agree with the author when he states that cyber bullying can only be curbed especially in schools if the teachers as well as parents play a collective role in controlling how students use the internet.

Cyber bullying is increasingly becoming a menace around the world. The article confirms that victims as well as perpetrators are students' particularly adolescent girls. This is achieved through threatening, degrading and sexually explicit messages and images that are conveyed electronically through cell phones, chat rooms, emails and even personalized online profiles. The incidence the author gives of the eight grade girl is a clear indication of how cyber bullying has become rampant. I agree with the author that cyber bullying is insidious due to its anonymous nature and allows the participation of an infinite audience who can be from anywhere. For these reasons it becomes quite difficult to set boundaries for supervision and hence making cyber bullying a very difficult thing to deal with.in the context of schools it is very dangerous as it takes place outside school hours hence it becomes very difficult to supervise. Cyber bullying creates a virtual island where the students are put and they have no supervision .within these islands there are also few rules therefore paving way for bullying to escalate to life threatening and dangerous levels.it is true that the anonymous nature of cyber bullying is what makes it troublesome since the victims are left clueless on who the person behind the message is. Within the internet there is no culture that has been created allowing people to get along well with each other. There is also no adult supervision within the internet hence perpetrators are free to pick their victims. Cyber space creates a borderless filed empowering student to isolate, harass, insult and threaten their peers. The internet is open and free not like school hence infinite students can join the abuse cycle. Cyber bullying starts in a virtual environment but has a great impact on the physical school environment.

Schools face a dilemma when they are trying to navigate moral and legal challenges when they are responding to cyber bullying. Teachers and school administrators hold the argument that they should not be expected to supervise their students when they are using their computers at home.at the same time parents are now suing schools and technology companies claiming that they have failed to protect their children. however it is true that even if parents turn to court their claims are delayed or settlement done outside court since there are no clear legal boundaries that are in place regarding freedom of expression, the privacy of students and the protection in cyber space.it is also true that most of the victims fear reporting cyber bullying as they are afraid that their cellphone and computer privileges will be taken away from them.