Technology can be very useful within the classroom but can also allow for behavior that may not be found in other settings. Online bullying, or otherwise known as cyberbullying, has become an increasing issue over the years. Online bullying allows the person who is bullying to strike at a victim at any time. Most teens are too afraid to mention bullying like this to parents or school officials so the problems never seem to terminate. It is also very hard for parents and teachers to detect who is doing the bullying because it is not happening in front of their eyes, but instead behind closed doors. The Internet allows teens to exclude others, like for instance not adding someone to your buddy list. Which when seen happening in the classroom, exclusion is not tolerated. However since most of the networks are being used not for school purposes such as Myspace excluding a friend is not seen as unacceptable because it is part of that teens private life.
Hate group websites have been another issue over the past couple years. This allows users of those specific hate sites to post and send messages about hurtful discriminatory things. Leaders of these sites find that it has helped promote their organizations by being able to communicate to large amounts of people. They are able to send their messages out in a more efficient way, compared to when they used to use pamphlets and go door to door. Online hate groups also allow for members to target a different type of audience. They have began to target middle-class to upper-class teens who plan on attending college in the future. This resulted in an increase of hate sites, between 1997 and 1998 the amount of sites increased by 60%.
As teachers it is our job to always be aware of the danger the Internet can bring to a classroom. It is always important to remind students to use technology responsibly. You also want to educate your students about cyberbullying and what to be aware. Giving students options of who to seek if they need support because of a cyberbullying issue. As a school you should talk to your principal about including cyberbullying in the school's policy handbook which shows students that it is inappropriate and will not be tolerated. Within the classroom teachers should have a filtering software to prevent students from accessing certain sites. This can help prevent any type of online bullying that is happening in popular sites which you can choose to block.
It is also important for parents to always monitor what their child is doing on the computer. Children can access almost any subject or topic they wanted by just a click of a button. This can lead most children to inappropriate sites so it is always important for parents to also look into buying software that blocks or filters certain websites. Parents should also monitor how much time children spend on the computer. Most children do not have much use for the Internet except for doing research for a school project. There is no need for children to search the web for hours each day. With so many things out there they are sure to come across something they shouldn't. This also allows children to become more susceptible to being bullied or bullying online the more "free time" they have to search endless subjects the more likely they are to get involved in some type of bullying.
I learned how cyberbullying can range from not the most noticeable of things, such as not adding someone to your buddy list, to the most extreme cases, like Megan Meiers suicide case. Reading these articles also helped me realize how much more often cyberbullying really occurs because it is done behind closed doors where most people are not noticing it is happening. I also noticed a pattern through my articles that made mention to how cyberbullying as a legal issue of very complex. Which makes it difficult for most teens to seek help. I believe this is a serious issue and should not be taken lightly in schools. It can be very threatening to most students because they do not even know who may be bullying them. That is why it is so important to let students know they should go to someone they trust to seek help in a situation like that. Cyberbullying incidents have been occurring for a long time, even before I was in high school, and as a student I was never made aware of this type of harassment. As future educators it is important that we become aware of the issue and help spread the research among parents, peers, and students.
Links related to Cyberbullying, Cyberharassment, and Cyberstalking:
This site covers a news article about 50 year-old Drew and 13-year-old Megan Meiers. Drew was in court because she was being charged with cyberbullying Megan through a fake MySpace account, which later resulted in Megan committed suicide. This case we very popular because of MySpaces' legal terms and conditions. They concluded that MySpace can basically determine what is illegal on their site. This case was acquitted from court.
2. http://www.stopcyberbullying.org
This site covers the basic question of what cyberbullying is. Which they explain it as any type of tormenting, harassing, threatening or humiliation done through using the Internet or mobile phone. Cyberharassment and cyberstalking are done in the same manner but by adults. This site also covers the main topics of how cyberbullying works and what are ways to prevent it from happening. They believe that communicating with parents about online issues is the safest and most comfortable outlook for a child. This site also informs you about the laws to make your family and you aware of what can be done and what to look out for.
3. http://www.online-bully.com/index.html
I found this site to be very informational. There was a video located in a section labeled Where does it happen? This video covered an interview with an researcher who examines online bullying. The interviewee stated that cyberbullying first started happening in 1999 around the Columbine incident. He says that as technology becomes more sophisticated cyberbullying has become more prevalent. He also points out how teens and adults use technology for different purposes. Where adults use the Internet as a resource teens tend to turn to the Internet as a relationship tool.
4. http://www.usatoday.com/tech/news/2005-03-06-cover-cyberbullies_x.htm
This article is entitled Schoolyard Bullies Get Nastier Online. A young 14-year-old girl shares her experience with online bullying that started at a sleepover and lasted three months. The young girl shares how scared she was to even turn on her computer. The authors of this article make the point that cyberbullying has become so prevalent because they can strike a victim at any time which makes this problem having an escalating effect. The average age of teens who are involved with cyberbullying are between 9-14. At this age most teems feel the need to be accepted by their peers. Cyberbullying can occur just from excluding people from buddy lists which can leave a child feeling unaccepted.
5. http://www.cyberbullying.us/
The cyberbullying research center shares the top tips for educators and parents in how to respond and prevent cyberbullying. There are three quizzes you can also find on this site that teaches you what to do if you were to encounter cyberbullying, how to prevent and respond to bullying, and what research is out there on cyberbullying. At the bottom of this site they share a list of cyberbullying blog entries that bring attention to all the latest pages such as Facebook, Twitter, and Craiglist.
6. http://www.cnn.com/US/9902/23/hate.group.report/
This articles which was written in 1999 emphasizes how Internet hate groups are on the rise. They say that this targets a new audience which mostly consists of middle-class to upper-class teens. They also report that hate group websites have gone up 60% within one year. The hate groups say that technology has made sending their messages a lot easier. Also making it available to a larger audience.
7. http://www.ncpc.org/cyberbullying
The National Crime Prevention Council share a lot of useful information for parents and teachers on how teens are cyberbullied, how the victims react, how to prevent cyberbullying, and what other precautions you can take to be cyber-safe. They make mention to how cyberbullying can cause victims to react if a variety of ways such as seeking revenge, avoiding friends, and activities or cyberbullying back. All of these are unhealthy ways to seek help that is why it is so important for parents and teachers to build trust with teens so they feel like they have someone to turn to if a situation like this were to arise.
8. http://teenadvice.about.com/od/schoolviolence/a/cyberbullying1.htm
About.com gives advice to teens about cyberbullying. This site informs teens what cyberbullying is and if being bullied online how to cope with the bullies. The authors of this site share examples of cyberbullying and how is can effect anyone. They give an hypothetical example of how a student is being harassed at home be receiving threatening messages but yet when at school isn't experiencing any bullying. Leaving the victim feeling even more threatened because they are unaware of who is bullying them.
9. http://www.safekids.com/2009/07/14/how-to-stop-cyberbullying/
The authors of this site explain that cyberbullying should not be seen as an epidemic or something that is killing our children. They remind us that bullying has been occurring for many years. The only difference is the person bullying has more "power" over their victims because they are able to reach a larger audience with their ridicule. When a child is being cyberbullied parents can look for signs like, their child not wanting to use the Internet or their phone, or avoiding discussions about what they are doing online. They also may have symptoms such as depression, mood swings, change in eating habits, or disinterest in school. At the bottom of this site people can post ways they believe can help stop cyberbullying.
10. http://www.cbsnews.com/stories/2005/03/21/earlyshow/living/caught/main681867.shtml
CBS news shares stories from many young teens who have gone through cyberbullying. One 15-year-old girl shared that she was receiving hundreds of emails at a time stating the same derogatory statement. Although this young girl thinks she knows who it might have been, her mother explains that it was hard for them because there was no way to prove who did it. This article makes mention to the fact that many of these cases go dismissed by teens but should never be underestimated. John shares his story of how his 13-year-old son committed suicide due to his classmates harassing him though emails. The authors in this article suggest to prevent cyberbullying, parents should set up computers in areas of the house where they can monitor what is on the screen and parents should also set guidelines for using the computer.
Tuesday, November 3, 2009
Thursday, October 15, 2009
Reflective Blog #1
Educational Blogs
An educational blog I found interesting was entitled About Keyboarding Research at http://keyboarding.wordpress.com/about/. Postings here allow others to read and discuss ideas for teaching keyboarding in the classroom. Most of the discussions cover what research material would be beneficial for others to use in their classroom. I find this blog useful for middle to high school level teachers because many opinions are shared of how important it is to integrate keyboarding throughout middle school and high school curriculum.The Sizzle in Science at http://delamagente.wordpress.com/ is a great blog site for teachers, students, and parents who love to explore all the dimensions of science. This site has instructional videos, virtual tours and interactive activities. I found Edheads to be a very interesting link which allows students to perform virtual activities that deal with areas such as weather, machines and health (allowing students to interact with virtual surgeries). There is also a link to the top science blog for students in third grade and above who are interested in astrology. Towards the bottom of the page there are short articles about a variety of science topics such as robots, biology, evolution and the high-tech generation today that students can read and post their thoughts to.
Classroom Blogs
Get Lost... at http://guysread.typepad.com/getlost/ is a great blog that can be used to integrate into a geography lesson. This site was made by geography teachers who collected videos and pictures from all over the world. The entries include such categories as environment, food, history, movement and people from all across the world. Each entry allows students to get an inside view of different cultures. The site begins by giving a couple paragraphs of background information about the site. Below the introduction there is a list of links to entries that were voted the most popular by students. I would highly recommend teachers to review this site if they plan on covering culture in their curriculum.
Today a majority of the younger population is unaware of the current issues that are going on in our world. The Blurb found at http://guysread.typepad.com/theblurb/ is a great site to integrate into a middle school or high school level classroom. Recent posts on this site include topics such as immigrant children, wildfires in California and how students can help with the crisis of poverty. Each entry gives a very detailed description of what is really happening in the world that students or even adults may not be aware of. Each entry attracts the readers by not only giving descriptions but by adding pictures, poems, fun facts, maps and questions to consider. I find this to be a great site to integrate into a class at either the beginning of the day or as a final thought of the day. I believe it is important for all students to be informed about current issues and it can even help lead into a class discussion about their thoughts and ideas.
Today a majority of the younger population is unaware of the current issues that are going on in our world. The Blurb found at http://guysread.typepad.com/theblurb/ is a great site to integrate into a middle school or high school level classroom. Recent posts on this site include topics such as immigrant children, wildfires in California and how students can help with the crisis of poverty. Each entry gives a very detailed description of what is really happening in the world that students or even adults may not be aware of. Each entry attracts the readers by not only giving descriptions but by adding pictures, poems, fun facts, maps and questions to consider. I find this to be a great site to integrate into a class at either the beginning of the day or as a final thought of the day. I believe it is important for all students to be informed about current issues and it can even help lead into a class discussion about their thoughts and ideas.
Teacher Blogs
It is difficult to find videos to present to students that relate to math, in all of my years as a student I have never been showed a math video. The blog entitled Math Video Blog found at http://math-videos-online.com is a great site to find interactive math videos that go along with almost every topic in math. The interactive videos include some areas such as calculating money, algebra problems, geometry problems and probability. The videos walk through story problems step-by-step also allowing you to pause at any time. Each step is verbally read and the key points are highlighted with a variety of colors. This is great for both students and teachers to use in the classroom and at home. If students are having a difficult time with a certain concept they can work at home from their computer on a variety of sample questions that are given. They can even play some challenging math games. Teachers can utilize this site by sharing some of the videos in their lesson plans or they can even find lesson plans right on the site for them to use in class. There is even a daily word problem that can be integrated each day into the lesson. I recommend this site for students and teachers in the middle school to high school level. I believe this site would also benefit more if they added videos and activities for younger students as well, this is a great way to teach to students who are visual learners at any age level.
I found a great site for teachers that will help incorporate technology into the classrooms. Just A Techie Teacher 3.0, which can be found at http://scott.edtechteachers.com/, shares entries of websites and programs that can be useful with literature, science and geography. The author of this site talks about a program called Bitstrips that he uses with his students to help guide them with literature assignments. I found this to be really fun to work with and the videos on the site showed the students were having a blast. The purpose of this link is to allow students to create their own comic strip based on what they are covering. Another link I found interesting on this site was The Periodic Table of Videos. This allows students who are studying the elements to choose any element on the table and by clicking on it they are able to watch a short 5-10 minute video on that element. The authors also provide entries that support teachers with different programs they may use, what programs may be helpful for them, or helpful hints about a Mac or PC. Posted on this site was information about the Mid South Technology Conference held in Memphis, this is also a great resource a teacher could benefit from. I would recommend this site for any teacher who teaches fourth grade through high school.
I found a great site for teachers that will help incorporate technology into the classrooms. Just A Techie Teacher 3.0, which can be found at http://scott.edtechteachers.com/, shares entries of websites and programs that can be useful with literature, science and geography. The author of this site talks about a program called Bitstrips that he uses with his students to help guide them with literature assignments. I found this to be really fun to work with and the videos on the site showed the students were having a blast. The purpose of this link is to allow students to create their own comic strip based on what they are covering. Another link I found interesting on this site was The Periodic Table of Videos. This allows students who are studying the elements to choose any element on the table and by clicking on it they are able to watch a short 5-10 minute video on that element. The authors also provide entries that support teachers with different programs they may use, what programs may be helpful for them, or helpful hints about a Mac or PC. Posted on this site was information about the Mid South Technology Conference held in Memphis, this is also a great resource a teacher could benefit from. I would recommend this site for any teacher who teaches fourth grade through high school.
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