Cyberbullying

YouTube has promised to ramp up its fight against hate and harassment. The video service recently announced changes to its harassment policy,  which include a ban on implicit threats of violence and insults that target someone for their race, gender expression or sexual orientation. Under its new harassment policy, the service aims to also take down videos that simulate violence against an individual, or that suggest that violence may happen. The post specifically added the policy will also be applied to videos posted by public officials – a distinction that could set YouTube apart from its competitors. Twitter, for instance, has long exempted public figures from its hate speech policies, to the dismay of critics who have argued that President Trump repeatedly violates those policies. Instead, Twitter said in June that it would flag tweets from public figures that were violating its policies labeling the violation as such.

TikTok officials confirmed that, at one point, platform moderators were instructed to suppress videos it says were "susceptible to bullying or harassment," including those featuring people with body weight “issues,” facial disfigurement, autism, or Down syndrome, according to a report appeared in German magazine Netzpolitik. “While the intention was good, the approach was wrong and we have long since changed the earlier policy in favor of more nuanced anti-bullying policies and in-app protections," a TikTok spokesperson told Netzpolitik.

Oregon high-school social studies teacher Patrick Griffin uses Western States Center's ‘Confronting White Nationalism in Schools’, an online tool kit to help counter white nationalism, offensive stereotypes and racist messages from hate groups. In an interview transcript from NPR, Lindsay Schubiner, one of the kit's co-authors, says the need for this type of material is growing, as neo-Nazi websites are targeting children as young as 11. The toolkit helps teachers discuss different scenarios and provide greater context, while helping students feel safe to engage in these conversations.

TikTok, a social media app where users post short funny videos, is enjoying a surge in popularity among teenagers around the world and has been downloaded 1.4 billion times, according to SensorTower. Now high schools are joining the TikTok trend with clubs to dance, sing and perform skits for the app — essentially drama clubs for the digital age, but with the potential to reach huge audiences. And unlike other social media networks, TikTok is winning over some educators, like Michael Callahan, a teacher and drama club advisor at West Orange High School in New Jersey, who had never heard of TikTok before his students told him about it. He loves how the app brings students from different friend groups together. “You see a lot more teamwork and camaraderie,” he said, “and less — I don’t want to say bullying — but focus on individuals.”

Integrating a social-emotional learning in school curricula could help to encourage digital civility and curb cyberbullying, according to Mandy Manning, who was National Teacher of the Year in 2018. Now back in the classroom, Manning says she is focused in part on helping students make human connections and learn to have positive, healthy relationships -- online and in real life.

Looking for parent, teacher or school resources on bullying prevention and cybersecurity? Take a look at this list from Tech & Learning online. The resources includes links on how to obtain posters, tip sheets and brochures about bullying for your school, information on Cyber Security Careers, and even a short guide to cryptology that helps students understand the importance of a strong password.

What does it mean to be a good online citizen? Marialice Curran, founder of the Digital Citizenship Institute, proposes that it is less about a list of do’s and don’ts, and more about treating one another with humanity, compassion and respect. She believes the term “digital citizenship” is not the best way to get people’s attention. For her, digital citizenship is human connections. It is bringing back the humanity into interactions online and not using the online world to harass, bully and intimidate others.

If you’ve got a crafty side and want to speak out against bullying, there is a way to contribute to the cause and show your “anti-cyberbullying” outlook. Lion Brand Yarns has partnered with BeStrong, a global antibullying organization, to rally consumers to knit or crochet blue hats and share them on social media with #HatNotHate to build awareness and support the efforts to stop bullying. Why blue hats? Blue represents awareness and solidarity, and is the color to wear in support of bullying prevention.

According to Today, one-off programs such as guest speakers and school assemblies are ineffective at addressing the complexities of bullying. Schools may think they have checked off their responsibility to combat bullying by holding these kinds of programs, but they rarely have much effect.  Some schools are making progress through research-backed programs that adopt anti-bullying classes and establish a framework for what to do when bullying situations arise. This includes setting goals and procedures that are properly communicated to the staff, students, parents and the community. Experts agree that any anti-bullying program is only as strong as a school's commitment to it, and to get results, students, teachers and administrators have to put in the time.

School leaders in the United Kingdom are warning about a new social media trend -- sadfishing -- in which students are seeking to garner sympathy online by often exaggerating and “oversharing” details of their emotional health. Instead of getting sympathy, the behavior can have negative effects on students, they say, including cyberbullying.