Cyber Bullying

Cyber Bullying

Bullies..THEN

Technology has opened another avenue for bullies to perform what they are so good about—harassing, threatening, and targeting other people in the digital world.  This digital word has just given parents, care giver, teachers, and administrators a much bigger scope of responsibilities.   Now bullies are not just confined in our school playgrounds but as scary as it is, they are with us—right on our cell phones, tablets, and computers.  I say, it is getting too close to home!!!

Bullies.. NOW

So what then is Cyber Bullying? This is a term use in the technology world meaning to harass, threaten, embarrass, or target another person.  Cyber bullying can be as simple as a mean or cruel message through text message, tweet, and/or email.  Cyber bullying can be intentional or accidental as well.  Accidental ones are hard to spot since the impersonal nature of our texts, emails, and IMs sometimes make it hard to detect the tone of the sender, but repeated pattern of texts, emails, IMs is not accidental.

As more and more children are given access to computers, cell phones, tablets, and other technology, the incidence of cyber bullying is likely to rise.

While children will manifest different signs, here are some general signs that parents, caregiver, teachers, counselors, and administrators should be looking for:

• signs of emotional distress during or after using a cell phone, computer or smart tablet
• being secretive of their digital life
• some form of withdrawal from family, peers, and even from activities they used to enjoy doing
• grades are negatively affected
• changes in their moods, behavior, sleep pattern and even changes in their appetite