Get Schooled

By high school teacher

May 8, 2008 8:50 AM | Link to this

Unless the cyberbullying includes something about the school (a cyber-threat to beat someone up in the school bathroom, for instance), I don’t see how the student could be punished by the school. That’s akin to suspending a student for being arrested over the weekend for DUI.

If parents monitored their childrens’ myspace accounts, then they could notifiy the police (not the school) if their child was the victim of cyber-bullying.

By jim d

May 8, 2008 9:00 AM | Link to this

Oh my,

I’m afraid JM and I will be agreeing on this one.

“PARENTS” need to gain control their heathen hordes. This isn’t a job for the schools!!

By V for Vendetta

May 8, 2008 9:03 AM | Link to this

Wow, another example of s school doing something that parents should do. I’m comletely shocked! (Imagine hands slapping cheeks in faux surprise.)

Get real, people. We are at an unfortunately juncture right now when it comes to technology. The vast majority of kids in currently high school have grown up with technology and are very savvy in the various forms of electronic media. Alas, their parents are not. Many of the parents out there know little about MySpace, Facebook, or other social networking sights. Those that do are few and far between. But you know what? There’s a much easier way to solve this problem than a parent/child cyber war:

Have your home computer in a PUBLIC place like the living room where your child can not be on the internet cloistered alone in some private space. He or she will be MUCH less likely to abuse the freedom of the internet when they know you could walk in the room at any minute. It’s a relatively simple solution that eliminates SOME, but not ALL of the problem.

It all boils down to values, though. If you raise a shi+head then he or she is going to act like a shi+head, it’s as simple as that. You get what you pay for, so to speak.

Oh, and in case you didn’t get all that …

Do I think this is the schools’ job? HELL NO.

By jim d

May 8, 2008 9:07 AM | Link to this

This is just another example of schools attempting to grab more power and authority over childrens lives. It really ain’t their job to parent children regardless of if the kids parents are doing their job or not.

By jim d

May 8, 2008 9:10 AM | Link to this

V,

Gee! wanna tell us how you really feel? :-)

By WFC

May 8, 2008 9:33 AM | Link to this

JIM D: I don’t know of ANY school employee who wants to be involved in stupid “cyberspace garbage.” Simply turn off the dumb computer! No more bullying!

By Frank

May 8, 2008 9:38 AM | Link to this

You have it all wrong. Schools do not want this role. It is all about liability. Parent love to sue schools. This is the drivng force with many so called “far reaching” policies from schools. Believe me, schools have enough to do. The same parents who complain about theses policies are the same ones with their lawyers at the door when something happens. You can not have it both ways.

By jim d

May 8, 2008 9:41 AM | Link to this

I agree WFC, it isn’t the school employees it is the SYSTEM and a few folks with an Alvin complex.

oops, I meant Napolean complex.

By high school teacher

May 8, 2008 10:27 AM | Link to this

jim d, let me coin a new word for you: “Napoalvin.” you make me grateful that I neither teach nor live in Gwinnett. :)

By Joy in Teaching

May 8, 2008 10:44 AM | Link to this

It isn’t the school’s responsibility to monitor a child’s computer usage at home: that is the parent’s responsibility whether they choose to exercise that responsibility or not. Technology is only as good as the people who use it. If a child has been raised to be a good person who exercises moral responsibility, then there should be no problems. If a child is left to basically raise himself or is raised with the idea that they do not have to be morally responsibile, then there WILL be problems.

It IS the school’s responsibility to monitor how that at home computer usage affects a student’s behaviour in the classroom or on school property. If something obnoxious is written on line, printed out, and then brought to school where a disruption erupts because of it, then that is where the school should step in.

I do think that schools should offer quick workshops/solutions to parents on how to successfully monitor and limit their children’s use of technology. Most parents are too busy trying to make a living and keep their families intact to have time to learn the latest updates on technology as well.

By catlady

May 8, 2008 11:07 AM | Link to this

5 years ago my daughter was threatened on an internet site. I am glad the school stepped in and facilitated expelling the boy and getting him into court. That was one unhappy, angry kid, whose parents were in complete denial of his offense.

If we had waited for the police to handle it on their own, it might never have been addressed (and he might have acted on his threats). (He had a crush on my daughter’s boyfriend)

By V for Vendetta

May 8, 2008 11:51 AM | Link to this

LOL JimD.

Schools seem to have enough trouble stopping REAL bullies, what makes us think they can do anything about bullies on the internet!?

By jim d

May 8, 2008 12:10 PM | Link to this

high school teacher

I respectfully request you grant me license to use the term Napoalvin in future blogs. (I wouldn’t want to be accused of cheating by plagerisim) :-)

Thanks in advance for this consideration.

By abcdefghijklamnop...

May 8, 2008 12:19 PM | Link to this

I was reading in The Week Magazine that the little girl who bullied someone to the point of suicide was helped by her mother to create such horrible stories. And we wonder where these little darlings get their morals and values?

By meme

May 8, 2008 12:36 PM | Link to this

We have had instances of parents wanting the school to do something about what other children wrote on their My Space page. As far as I am concerned, that is a parent responsibility. If you have never been to My Space you need to go just to look at what the kids are posting about themselves.

By high school teacher

May 8, 2008 12:37 PM | Link to this

jim d, you have my full copyright permission, with all the rights and privileges appertaining thereto (I threw in that last part because of the upcoming graduations). :)

By jim d

May 8, 2008 12:51 PM | Link to this

HST,

Indeed we are down to 9 and counting!

Wonder if i should make up a sign to hold up at graduation that says

“NAPOALVIN IS MY HERO——— NOT”

By HS Teacher Too

May 8, 2008 1:24 PM | Link to this

I’ll jump on the bandwagon. It is simply not the job of schools to police or discipline for cyberbullying, unless they can show that it was done from school. That being said, I think the liability question runs boths ways: what of the public school that does decide to discipline for off-campus behavior, and is sued for going too far?

Right now, cyberbullying is not illegal except for in a handful of states. But, given its increasing prevalance, my guess is that we can expect to see legislation that addresses cyberbullying in some way in the near future. Let’s just hope the solution doesn’t end up worse than the problem! It’s an interesting balance between First Amendment issues and defamation and harassment issues. Should be a good one to watch whenever it does “hit.”

jim d, I am so happy for you! It is, indeed, quite liberating to finally be free of the Leader of the Chipmunks!

By Teacher, Too

May 8, 2008 2:25 PM | Link to this

So glad I left Gwinnett County— much, much happier where I am now!

The social networking sites are restricted in my school system. But, I know that some of the kids know how to get around it. I don’t have a clue how they do it; they are so much more computer saavy than I am.

I’ve gone on My Space a few times (I’m not a member or have a log-in or anything). I know a couple of my students use screen names rather than their real names, so I never can find them.

It does make it difficult to find the cyber bullies if you can’t check out the sites on the school network.

I do caution my students that what they put on the internet is for public viewing! If you don’t want everyone to see it, then don’t post it!

By Lisa B.

May 8, 2008 3:00 PM | Link to this

When my 14-year-old kept receiving threats via text messages, my husband called the police and let them handle it. The police did a great job, and the threats stopped immediately. Though the person making the threats is a student in my son’s school, it never occurred to me to have the school handle the problem. Terroristic threats are crimes to be handled by law enforcement. So is bullying.

By Tony

May 8, 2008 5:07 PM | Link to this

Threats through electronic means should be dealt with through law enforcement. However, schools have a right to intervene if the threat could potentially affect the safety of students at school. Schools should not put themselves in the position of being the enforcer of all rules related to bullying.

jim d says this is another example of schools grabbing power over kids lives. Perhaps it is important for schools to maintain policies that allow them to take appropriate action when incidents outside of school affect people in school.

Lisa B describes the very best way to deal with behavior like this. I can’t wait to hear what Jeff will say.

By jim d

May 8, 2008 5:20 PM | Link to this

Tony,

fraid my libertarianisim may be showing a bit today. :-)

By jim d

May 8, 2008 5:22 PM | Link to this

tony,

allow me to end the suspense of waiting on jeff,

I’m sure his comment would have something to do with the amount of damage that might be inflicted to the brain with a .50 cal.

By Tony

May 8, 2008 5:58 PM | Link to this

jim d - I agree with you about jeff’s probable response, but it sounds so different coming directly from him.

Believe it or not, I have a tendency towards libertarianism myself. Where I think we have failed miserably with public schools is with states allowing the gradual transfer of power to Washington. One of the tenets of libertarianism I cannot accept is the abolition of public schools. Without education for all citizens, our democracy will crumble.

By Erin

May 8, 2008 8:09 PM | Link to this

I noticed at least one comment about how someone can’t find their students on MySpace because they use screennames and you can’t find them …

MySpace has a search function on there where you can search for someone according to their real name OR their screen name and you can narrow the search to within a certain number of miles of whatever ZIP code you’re in.

Not exactly foolproof, but it’s better than nothing!

By Lee

May 8, 2008 8:20 PM | Link to this

Regarding monitoring what your student does online…

Years ago, when the oldest was in high school, “chat rooms” were the big craze. I noticed that my daughter would minimize the chat screens whenever I would walk by.

Solution. I bought a program that would log every keystroke and take a “snapshot” of the screen once every few seconds.

Lucky for her, all she was trying to hide was silly, teen-aged girl chatter.

What’s that old saying, “Trust, but verify.”

By jim d

May 9, 2008 7:15 AM | Link to this

Tony,

I think that perhaps schools sometimes overreact. Personally I believe that the risk of ignoring a lot of this stuff is worth the cost in protecting our freedom of speech.

If we allow government to limit the speech of students (which freedom has been upheld by the Supreme court in many instances) we risk surrendering our own freedom. This is not something I would care to relinguish now or ever just because “Something could happen” Hell as much as I disagree with Jeff’s comments at times, I would go to the mat for his right to make them.

a 12-year-old Halsey Junior High student in Queens was suspended for two days because of his Web site’s depiction of teachers as ‘sluts,’ strippers, and engaging in oral sex.

A Seventeen-year-old senior of Belleview High in Ocala, Florida. was suspended for 10 days February 14, for creating a Web site that used ‘vulgar language’ to criticize the school.

Students playing the addictive Counter Strike are nothing uncommon today, but things went seriously wrong for Texas teenager when he got suspended from Clements High School for playing Counter Strike in his home computer, on a level which closely resembled his high school.

By Lee

May 9, 2008 7:38 AM | Link to this

Count me in with the group that says schools have no jurisdiction to do anything to a student because of what they post on the internet. The one caveat is if the student used a school computer to do so.

If someone were threatening one of my children over the internet, I think that is a matter handled best by law enforcement. There is also such a thing as getting a Temporary Restraining Order (TRO) against the person to limit contact.

Which brings up another question - how would the school handle the situation if I got a TRO against a student who attended the same school as my child?

By WFC

May 9, 2008 8:49 AM | Link to this

Much ado about very little. The internet is only a tool that can be used for good or ill. The same stuff happened 40 years ago, just in low tech (notes, writing on bathroom walls, etc.)

I keep my computer in the most public part of my house. I pay for it so I set the rules. It’s fairly simple if adults have any backbone.