The AntiBullying Alliance

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The Anti-Bullying Alliance Founded by the
National Childrens Bureau and NSPCC in
2002 Alliance of 63 members Aim to reduce
bullying and create safe environments Lead in
developing consensus around effective
anti-bullying practice Wide range of experience
in schools and local authorities
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Cyberbullying
Name of Regional Adviser Rita Adair Date 6th
November 2008 This presentation is based on
Cyberbulling. Safe to Learn Embedding
anti-bullying work in schools (DCSF, Sep,
2007) www.teachernet.gov.uk/publications
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Cyberbullying

• Understanding cyberbullying
• Preventing cyberbullying
• Responding to cyberbullying
• Cyberbullying Lets Fight it Together
• Key advice for young people
• Key advice for parents and carers
• Resources

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Cyberbullying
Cyberbullying can be defined as the use of
Information and Communications Technology (ICT),
particularly mobile phones and the internet,
deliberately to upset someone else (DCSF, 2007)
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Quotes

• Quote from a pupil
• I felt that no-one understood what I was going
  through, I didnt know who was sending me these
  messages, and I felt powerless to know what to
  do.
• Quote from a parent
• Having my daughter show me text messages from
  nearly everyone in her class all saying
  derogatory things about her was devastating.
• Quote from a staff member
• The accusation about me which the students put
  on their website was horrendous. Within hours it
  seemed that the whole school had read this
  message.

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Cyberbullying Types of technology

• Mobile phones
• IMS
• Chatrooms and Message Boards
• Email
• Webcams
• Social network sites
• Video-hosting sites
• Virtual Learning Environments (VLEs)
• Gaming sites, consoles and virtual worlds

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Cyberbullying Forms it can take

• Threats and intimidation
• Harassment or stalking
• Defamation
• Ostracising/peer rejection/exclusion
• Identity theft, unauthorised access and
  impersonation
• Publicly posting, sending or forwarding
  personal or private information or images
• Manipulation

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Why dont young people tell?

• Scared of making situation worse
• They had been threatened not to tell
• They feel ashamed about their own behaviour
• If it was something rude, they often did not want
  to tell their mum
• Worried it might be their fault and they would
  get punished
• Worried grown ups might not understand
• Worried grown ups would be dismissive of
  cyberbullying

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Cyberbullying Different type of bullying

• Impact large audience, rapid, long-term
• Targets and perpetrators
• Location - Any place, at any time
• Anonymity
• Motivation for bullying
• Evidence

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Cyberbullying Research
22 of 11-16 year olds had been a victim of
cyberbullying (ABA and Goldsmiths College) 11
of teens had experienced cyberbullying (MSN) 34
of 12 15 year olds had been cyberbullied (DCSF)
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Cyberbullying

• Research York study
• 2002 2005
• 11,227 participants, age 7- 10 years
• 14.9 - nasty texts and/or emails
• More females reporting
• Frequency rose over time
• 2002 13.5/2005 16.6

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Cyberbullying
York study Examples of emails and text messages
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Cyberbullying Preventing cyberbullying

• Whole school approach
• School policies and procedures
• Educate staff, pupils and parents
• Monitor e-communications on school site
• Block harmful websites to students
• Secure systems - prevent images/ information
  about pupils or staff being accessed
  outside school
• Partnership work (often the students
  themselves!)
• Evaluate impact of prevention activities

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Cyberbullying Responding to cyberbullying

• Recognise all forms of cyberbullying as bullying
• Support the person being bullied. Technologies
  can be blocked
• Investigate the incident. Preserve the evidence
• Work with all perpetrators involved in the
  incident and apply sanctions

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Cyberbullying Lets Fight it Together

• Available free to schools 0845 60 222 60.
  Reference 00239-2008PCK-EN
• Summary guidance document can also be ordered
  free. Ref 0068SLEF-EN
• Non maintained schools can order the film free
  from Childnets website www.childnet.com/order
• There is a postage and handling charge

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Cyberbullying Key advice for young people

• Respect others
• Protect yourself especially with images and
  personal info
• Dont retaliate or reply
• Save the evidence
• Make sure you tell an adult you trust, or call a
  helpline like ChildLine on 0800 1111 in
  confidence
• ICT provider can help you
• School they have a duty to protect you
• Finally, dont just stand there support others
  

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Cyberbullying Key advice for parents and carers

• Learn how to use ICT
• Educate yourself and your children on safe use
• Report cyberbullying if it occurs
• School legal duties to protect pupils and can
  regulate off site behaviour
• Police harassment includes use of ICT

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What are we doing to address in the east?

• Cambs 6 presentations to parents across county,
  guidance on mobile phones
• Peterborough cyberbullying presentations at
  school AB conference, workshop at local
  safeguarding e-safety conference, highlighted and
  summarised Safe to Learn guidance to all schools
  and distributed
• Suffolk e-safety group, cyberbullying
  presentation as part of AB conference, all
  schools received DCSF Guidance, one school has
  developed an e-safety scheme of work in PSHE re
  Bebo for pupils

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What are we doing to address in the east?

• Luton cyberbullying e safety group. Included
  cyberbullying in AB strategy. Workshop at AB
  conference and workshop at behaviour conference.
  YP have produced a leaflet to help others.
• Norfolk E-safety conferences to school leaders
  and practioners, parents conference, e-safety and
  cyberbullying group set up, draft guidance on
  e-safety for schools, LSCB e-safety training and
  further training planned for parents
• Essex e-safety group. Conference on
  cyberbullying last year. Included in all A-B
  training and Know IT All CD Rom promoted

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What are we doing to address in Beds?

• 40,000 e-safety leaflets (Childnet International)
  distributed to every middle and upper school.Some
  parents given parent leaflets
• Delivered CEOPs Ambassador Training to 40 schools
  
• Cyberbullying conference (March 08)
• Poster campaign with element on cyberbullying
• Using VLE nearly 100 student postings on the
  Netmedia Learning Platform sharing views and
  approaches about anti-bullying

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Lessons learned

• Need for mapping exercise of what exists as lots
  can be happening which you may not know about
• Challenge of e-Safety groups - Takes time to be
  joined up because of people working from
  different professional backgrounds
• How do we know if we have got the messages
  through to young people, parents and school
  staff? Need for further work to evaluate our
  activities

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Cyberbullying Resources
DCSF Safe to Learn guidance. Cyberbullying
(www.teachernet.org.uk/wholeschool/behaviour/tackl
ingbullying) Secondary teachers can download an
information pack from (www.stoptextbully.com)
DVD on consequences of chatting online
(www.childnet-int.org.uk) DVD for parents Know
IT all (www.childnet-int.org.uk) Lesson plans
for teachers (www.cybersmartcurriculum.org)
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Thank-you!

• Rita Adair
• Anti-Bullying Alliance Eastern Regional Adviser