How empowerment technologies can bring awareness to people about the effects of cyber bullying, Lecture notes of Computer science

Download How empowerment technologies can bring awareness to people about the effects of cyber bullying and more Lecture notes Computer science in PDF only on Docsity! How empowerment technologies can bring awareness to people about the effects of cyber bullying. The objective of our topic is to let the guardians of the students to be aware in what is happening on their children so that they can protect and guide them and to improved strategies and responses to the incidences of bullying that will address the causes of bullying and to avoid these kinds of situations. 1. Although there are three main groups that are affected by bullying – the students who are bullied, the students who bully and the bystanders who see it happen, bullying encompasses and affects the entire school community, families and friendship groups. Bullying creates a culture of fear and has a negative impact on everyone involved. Being bullied can seriously affect a person’s physical, emotional, academic and social well-being. Many sufferers of bullying lack confidence, feel bad about themselves, have few friends and spend a lot of time alone. Bullying is a very stressful ordeal, one that many people find it hard to speak about. Those being bullied continually ask why me? They may feel ashamed and embarrassed that they are not standing up to the bully and deal with what is happening to them. Bullying can have devastating effects on a person which can last into adulthood. At its worst, bullying has driven children and young people to self-harm and even suicide. 2. Bullying is a social phenomenon that has seen in schools, colleges and workplace across the world. This is an unwanted aggressive behavior of someone towards the other one. Bullying behavior involves the perceived power imbalance that has been found harmful on the targeted person and this is frequent aggressive behavior that is less favorable for the victims. This harm can be seen in form of physical, verbal, psychological, mentally, social and educational harm. The aggressive behavior also denotes the bullying behavior that may be repeated on the victim. Bullying has been received a great deal of attention that highlights the effects of bullying behavior on academic, social and emotional outcomes. The teacher bullying is humiliation form that degrades the students in front of other. The aggressive behavior of teacher actually harms the students. The quality of student-teacher relationships has been documented a strong positive impact on student’s behaviors and on peer relationships. While on the other side, conflictual student teacher relationships have been associated with higher levels of peer victimization. Peer relationship has the capability to influence student’s aggressive behaviors. Students who experience rejection or being bullied by peers usually show more aggressive behaviors and in turn strong disconnect from the class and them experience low levels of social preference. The teacher bullying behavior refers to any form of overt communication intended to psychologically damage a student who is motivated to avoid such treatment, including verbal or nonverbal attacks on the self-concept of a student. In other words, bullying behavior actually disturbs the students learning ability. Student and teacher relationships are meaningful and there is emotional and relational connection between them. Stuhlman et al. had found that this type of relationship has the ability to influence each other. An increasing number of literatures have been found in case of student-teacher relationships The bullying behavior of the teacher has been found in terms of abuse of power that is very chronic situation for the students. When the students are bullied from their teachers then this thing compels them to distract from their work. The bullying behavior of teacher influences the communication pattern between the students and the teachers. The disengagement factor leads to the student resistance and participation in the class room. Due to aggressive behavior of the teacher the student remains silent. Resultantly, a communication gap exists between the teacher and the students due to bullying behavior of the teacher. Student disengagement due to bullying behavior has been little addressed in communication research. Research studies have been done regarding the effects and consequences of student-teachers relationships on bullying. Roth et al. found that there is long lasting impact of teacher behavior on the students’ academic involvement and success. The classroom environment is best option for the study of bullying behavior because this is important part of student’s life where a lot of time has been spent on networking with teachers and students. Hence from previous studies a problem has been identified that bullying behavior of the teacher and peers affect the student’s class activities that is need to address in this current study. 3.Impact on students who are bullied • Students who are bullied are more likely to: • feel disconnected from school and not like school • have lower academic outcomes, including lower attendance and completion rates • lack quality friendships at school • display high levels of emotion that indicate vulnerability and low levels of resilience • be less well accepted by peers, avoid conflict and be socially withdrawn • have low self-esteem • have depression, anxiety, feelings of loneliness and isolation • have nightmares • feel wary or suspicious of others • have an increased risk of depression and substance abuse • in extreme cases, have a higher risk of suicide, however, the reasons why a person may be at risk of suicide are extremely complicated. • Contributing factors to being bullied may include: • depression • family problems • history of trauma • belonging to a minority group, where isolation or lack of community support is an issue. • Impact on bullies • Students who frequently bully others are more likely to: • feel disconnected from school and dislike school • get into fights, vandalize property and leave school early. • In addition, recent Victorian research has shown that bullying perpetration in Year 10 is associated with an increased likelihood of theft, violent behavior and binge drinking. educate him at home. This individual would not fit the bill for what most people would say looks like a victim. He was often taller and heavier than his peers. Now in his early thirties, he tells his story with such energy that it is obvious that the pain and trauma he suffered as a result of the vicious acts continues to affect him. He told me that he dreaded the bus rides to school. He told me that kids would pull and twist his nipples on a daily basis so that, at times, his nipples would bleed. This individual noted that his parents made the decision to homeschool him because they could no longer endure the pain they experienced in seeing their son tortured and humiliated. I also recall conducting one of my first interviews as a new assistant principal. We were interviewing for a hall-security position. The applicant, in expressing harrowing tales of his experiences as a bus driver, shared a story with us about when a teenage girl was raped on his bus while he was driving. Obviously, we did not hire this individual. However, we thought about the child who had had to deal with that trauma and humiliation at the hands of others. Although the perpetrators were dealt with, that certainly could not have provided much relief to the victim. She will always possess the memories of that trauma. As we dig deeper to the root causes of bullying, several issues should be considered: • Can bullying cause traumatic stress? • Why does bullying occur? • What measures can schools take to stop bullying? Tying Bullying to Traumatic Stress Van der Kolk, McFarlane, and Weisaeth (2007) state, “Trauma in childhood can disrupt normal developmental processes. Because of their dependence on their caregivers, their incomplete biological development, and their immature concepts of themselves and their surroundings, children have unique patterns of reaction and needs for intervention.” Many of the children who are affected by traumatic stressors such as bullying can have their developmental processes and parts of their brains affected by the traumatic events (Ziegler, 2002). If the child also lacks family support, the effects can be more devastating. As the child attempts to make sense of the traumatic event, new behavioral problems can emanate from re-experienced traumatic events. In addition, some children affected by traumatic events may disassociate themselves from the traumatic situations and absorb themselves in behaviors that generate negative attention. These new behavioral adaptations may become so potent that opportunities for typical development and growth are ignored as the child attempts to ensure her own safety. For instance, a child who has been repeatedly bullied on the playground may exhibit oppositional behaviors in class or may turn in incomplete work just to ensure that she has to stay inside while others are on recess. The child doesn’t pay attention in class, and her thoughts revolve around staying away from the playground. The fear of reprimand for the behavior is less than the fear of being bullied at recess. The number of youths who experience bullying is alarming. In a recent survey of 1,965 students in seventh through twelfth grades, 48 percent reported being harassed in some way (Anderson, 2011). Since many cases of bullying include violent actions intended to create fear (name-calling; physical attacks; acts of humiliation, denigration, and mistreatment), bullying can cause traumatic stress responses. With these acts of bullying being continuous and going unnoticed, many children who are bulled can in fact develop symptoms of posttraumatic stress disorder (van der Kolk, Weisaeth, & McFarlane, 2007). Understanding Why Bullying Occurs Numerous researchers, educators, and psychologists have theories about why bullying occurs. Although these groups have different semantics for explaining why bullying occurs, there is always a common theme: power and control. From my own experience of dealing with students who have been bullied and students who behave as bullies, it’s clear to me that dominating others provides an element of control to the individual doing the bullying. As Wolk (2010) noted, “Bullies are about power and control, and confronting them or stepping in to stop them usurps their sense of power.” Unfortunately, in many instances, school officials deal with incidents of bullying much too late. By the time intervention occurs, the psychological damage and pain has become almost indelible. This damage affects not only the bully and the target(s), it also affects the bystanders. Wolk (2010) states, “Most bystanders do not like witnessing another person being bullied. It puts one into an uncomfortable psychological state known as cognitive dissonance to witness a bullying incident and do nothing about it. Cognitive dissonance occurs when our actions do not match our internal code of ethics and morality.” Steps Schools Can Take to Stop Bullying School officials must take time to review how they respond to acts of bullying. Wolk (2010) states that “harassment in schools violates Title VI and Title VII of the Civil Rights Act of the Education Amendments of 1972.” And in addition to the legal violations, there are emotional and traumatic costs to the individuals involved in bullying situations. Bullying needs to be addressed swiftly. The consequences should include recommendation for counseling for the bullies. As noted earlier, many bullies have themselves faced terrible difficulties of their own. Some of these difficulties may be abuses (physical and verbal), violent episodes at home, chaotic lifestyles, and other disturbing experiences. As a result of these factors, these individuals displace their pain on others. (Such factors, incidentally, are also linked to self-harm behaviors.) It is also powerful for school officials and counselors to perform reflective interviews with bullies. Reflective interviews can involve placing the bully in the shoes of his victim and asking him to think about how his actions have affected the victim. I have found it especially helpful as a school principal to meet with the bully first, and to have him process and reflect on the situation. I then invite the victim to my office and have the bully and the victim meet. Making things right with the victim lessens the bully’s sense of power and control over the victim. This process also allows me to empower the victim and provide him with new tools of confidence and assertion. Victims must be encouraged to report the acts and actions of bullies. School leaders and/or leaders in other settings that support youths should be vigilant in sending a clear message to bullies that bullying is not tolerated in their setting. They must also send a clear message to victims that failure to report a single act of bullying will ultimately give bullies the notion that it is okay to continue to bully. 6.Bullying behavior impacts the whole-school community. Bullying has detrimental effects on students' health, wellbeing and learning. It can make students feel lonely, unhappy and frightened. It’s not just the students being bullied who are affected. Most students say they don’t like seeing bullying in their school – it makes them feel worried and uncomfortable. Students who bully others are also more likely to have problems and be unhappy. Being bullied can affect everything about a child: how they see themselves, their friends, school, and their future. Students who are bullied often experience depression, low self-esteem that may last a lifetime, shyness, loneliness, physical illnesses, and threatened or attempted self-harm. Some students miss school, see their marks drop or even leave school altogether because they have been bullied. Verbal and social/relational bullying can be just as harmful as physical bullying. Students who engage in bullying also risk poor long term outcomes, including leaving school early. Some students engage in bullying for a short time only and then stop either because they realize it’s wrong or they are supported to learn more appropriate behavior. A small group of students continue to bully others over many years. Parents, whānau and schools need to support those who bully others to learn more appropriate ways to get on with others and deal with conflict and social challenges. Although most research in this area focuses on the impacts of bullying on initiators and targets, bullying may also have a negative impact on bystanders, those who witness bullying. Even if a child isn’t being bullied, they can be affected by it. No one can do well when they feel unsafe. Addressing bullying effectively has benefits for the future of everyone. 7. The effects of bullying can be long-lasting for victims including fear and anxiety, depression and thoughts of suicide. Some people say that kids who are bullied need to toughen up ... that's not true. It would happen no matter how thick-skinned kids are. Some people think that bullying is "just a fact of life" or "a rite of passage" and they don't take it seriously ... until someone they know is hurt by bullying. • 1 out of 5 kids are bullied [1] • Every 7 seconds a child is bullied. • Depending on the age group, up to 43% of students say they have been digitally harassed • 5.4 million students skip school at some point in the year due to bullying [2] • 9 out of 10 LGBT students experienced harassment at school [3] • Child and teen Bullying and Cyberbullying are both a growing problem. • Some kids are so tormented that suicide has become an alternative for them. However, most suicides are not just a result of bullying. There are usually other factors involved. • It can mess up a kid's future. Bullies are more likely to skip school, drop out of school, smoke, drink alcohol, get into fights and be arrested at some point in their life. 60% of boys who were bullies in middle school had at least one criminal conviction by the age of 24. • Decreased academic achievement—GPA and standardized test scores—and school participation. They are more likely to miss, skip, or drop out of school. • A very small number of bullied children might retaliate through extremely violent measures. In 12 of 15 school shooting cases in the 1990s, the shooters had a history of being bullied. Victims of bullying can experience: