Topic Description: Cyberbullying is a growing problem among teenagers. In fact, Vogels (2022) reports that 46% of teens have experienced some form of online bullying or harassment. To make matters worse, 8 out of 10 students who are being cyberbullied report also being bullied at school (Hinduja, 2018). These students feel that they have no escape and report that it negatively impacts their ability to learn. As a dual credit success coach who partners with students, parents, and school counselors, I have a duty to uphold students’ academic goals and lead students toward a successful future. To accomplish this, I must respond appropriately to both students and parents when they show signs or make claims of being bullied or harassed online.

Audience: The target audience for this legal guide is high school counselors. This would be a strong resource for them as they plan, organize, and implement their comprehensive school counseling programs and provide support to parents, students, faculty, staff, and administrators in their districts.

Hinduja, S. (2018). Federal commission on school safety. Cyberbullying Research Center. https://cyberbullying.org/federal-commission-on-school-safety

Vogels, E. (2015, December 15). Teens and cyberbullying 2022. The Pew Research Center. https://www.pewresearch.org/internet/2022/12/15/teens-and-cyberbullying-2022/

Villanueva-Moya, L., Herrera, M. C., Sánchez-Hernández, M. D., & Expósito, F. (2023). #Instacomparison: Social comparison and envy as correlates of exposure to Instagram and cyberbullying perpetration. Psychological Reports, 126(3), 1284–1304. https://doi-org/10.1177/00332941211067390 

Emerging Issue:
The first application to prevent bullying was created about 10 years ago, and countless others have followed. However, large social media sites like Instagram are using a new type of technology to combat cyberbullying at the source: Artificial Intelligence (Lee, 2019). Not only can Artificial Intelligence prompt the perpetrator to rethink their comment before posting, but it can also help the victim filter the responses it receives without having to unfollow or block the original post. Although there is some question as to how this will impact the bullying applications parents have installed to monitor their children, it will continue to develop as the use of Artificial Intelligence becomes more commonplace and better understood.

 

Lee, D. (2019, July 8). Instagram now asks bullies: 'Are you sure?'. BBC News Services. https://www.bbc.com/news/technology-48916828

American School Counselor Association. (2022). The school counselor and bullying/harassment prevention and the promotion of safe schools. (Adopted 1994/2000, Revised 2005, 2011, 2016, 2022). https://www.schoolcounselor.org/Standards-Positions/Position-Statements/ASCA-Position-Statements/The-School-Counselor-and-the-Promotion-of-Safe-Sch 

·  Of youth ages 13 to 17 years old, 95% say they use social media often and more than 33% of them admit to constant use of social media platforms.

·  The use of social media outlooks can have both positive and negative impacts.

·  Parents, adolescents, policymakers, and technology developers should all recognize how social media use affects youth and how to minimize the risks.

·  Adolescent social media use may be contributing to the national youth mental health crisis.

·  He petitions those in authority to create stronger safeguards to protect youth from online bullying, harassment, and adult content.

·  Implementing strong digital and media literacy in schools can address cyberbullying and technology addictions.

Arundel, K. (2023, May 24). Surgeon General: More safeguards needed to protect youth from social media misuse. K-12 Dive. https://k12dive.com/news.surgeon-general-social-media-advisory/651105/ 

Merod, A. (2023, January 11). Seattle Public Schools sues social media companies amid youth mental health crisis. K-12 Dive. https://k12dive.com/news/seattle-schools-sues-social-media-mental-health/640159/ 

U.S. Const. amend. I. https://www.archives.gov/founding-docs/bill-of-rights-transcript#toc-amendment-i

Bullying Prevention Policies and Procedures, Tex. Educ. Code § 37.0832. https://statutes.capitol.texas.gov/Docs/ED/htm/ED.37.htm#37.0832 

Frisco Independent School District. (n.d.). David’s law: Preventing bullying in Texas schools. https://www.friscoisd.org/docs/default-source/guidance-and-counseling/davidslaw.pdf

 

Tinker v. Des Moines Independent Community School District, 393 U.S. 503 (1969).  https://casetext.com/case/tinker-v-des-moines-independent-community-school-district?q=Tinker%20v.%20Des%20Moines%20Indep.%20Community%20Sch.%20DisL&sort=relevance&resultsNav=false&tab=keyword&p=1&type=case 

Kowalski v. Berkeley County School Schools, 652 F.3d 565 (4th Cir. 2011). https://casetext.com/case/kowalski-v-berkeley-county-sch/ sort=relevance&resultsNav=false&tab=keyword  

·  Examples of what bullying might look like.

·  A list of electronic devices / technology that may be used for cyberbullying.

·  How to report bullying.

·  A link to anonymously report bullying.

·  Possible consequences, including when law enforcement might be notified.

·  Implications related to using technology off-campus to harass, discredit, or bully another student.

·  Counseling options.

Gainesville Independent School District Board of Trustees [GISD Board of Trustees]. (n.d.). Gainesville ISD student handbook: 2022-2023 school year.  https://www.gainesvilleisd.org/cms/lib/TX01000879/Centricity/Domain/62/GISD%202022-2023%20Student%20Handbook_English.pdf

American School Counselor Association. (2022). ASCA ethical standards for school counselors. (1984, revised 1992, 1998, 2004, 2010, 2016,
2022). https://www.schoolcounselor.org/getmedia/44f30280-ffe8-4b41-9ad8-f15909c3d164/EthicalStandards.pdf 

Lieberman, M. (2021, February 16). What educators should know about digital self-harm during hybrid and remote learning. EducationWeek. https://www.edweek.org/technology/what-educators-should-know-about-digital-self-harm-during-hybrid-and-remote-learning/2021/02 

·  Post a QR code that connects to the anonymous reporting line in clearly visible spaces throughout the school so that students and parents know how to report an incident and are reminded that this tool is available.

·  Implement group counseling sessions to teach students coping strategies related to social media misuse, cyberbullying, and ways to respond when they witness or experience online harassment. Group counseling could also help students know that they are not alone and that they have a voice in this matter.

·  Hinduja (2018) suggests developing a positive school climate that makes students feel welcome and creates a safe space to be themselves. This would include involving coaches, teachers, administrators, and other staff members in a school-wide effort to improve school spirit and to encourage strong peer relationships, tolerance, and respect.

·  Share information daily via the school-wide announcements each morning that focus on the positive impacts of social media and ways students can use it for good.

·  Organize a student-led task force to lead an anti-bullying campaign (Hinduja, 2018). They are the experts when it comes to which technology applications and social media sites may be the most popular or the most harmful, and counselors should elicit their support to develop prevention initiatives and appropriate ways to respond when students witness such incidents online.

·  Develop teacher trainings that present data unique to your school about reports of students who have reported incidents of bullying, number of hours students spend on social media per day, disciplinary measures the school took to respond, and a variety of qualitative data based on student surveys that ask questions about student involvement and victimization. Counselors should also provide resources for teachers to be able to recognize signs of cyberbullying and explain the steps of how they should address it.

·  Incorporate information about cyberbullying into parent information sessions so that they are aware of its prevalence, understand the school’s role, the law, and the consequences for their children. Make them aware of specific technology applications that are most popular with students and teach them strategies they can use to address cyberbullying in their homes.

·  Review the school’s student handbook yearly to ensure that the policies on bullying and the acceptable use of personal devices include clear definitions of cyberbullying and acceptable use of technology and clearly outline the consequences for participating in this behavior, including the parent’s duty and responsibility if their child uses their electronic device for transferring illegal images, sending harassing messages, etc.

 

Hinduja, S. (2018). Federal commission on school safety. Cyberbullying Research Center. https://cyberbullying.org/federal-commission-on-school-safety