Bullying Through the Use of Electronic Media and the Responsibility of Schools in Regulating it

1. Bullying Through the Use of Electronic Media and the Responsibility of Schools in Regulating it Alicia Kellier CBSE 7201T Fall 2012

2. Table of Contents: • Introduction • Statement of the problem • Hypothesis • Literature review • Methods • References • Appendix A- Principal consent • Appendix B- Teacher consent • Appendix C- Parent consent • Appendix D- Student survey • Appendix E- Teacher survey

3. Introduction: The use of electronic media, such as cell phones and computers, to bully others is steadily on the rise. It is a problem that has gone into unchartered territory, as we are now seeing the full ramifications from it. Children and teenagers are the ones that are highly affected by this. The problem arises when students use electronic media to bully their classmates. Where then does the responsibility lie when trying to curb this specific behavior, the school, parents, or law enforcement?

4. Statement of the Problem: • The incidences of bullying through the use of technology is on the rise. There is a call for school administrators to try to rectify, or police, the growing problem. Many question whether it is a problem that schools are able to adequately handle, as the majority of this type of bullying happens outside of school. A student’s right to free speech is also in question as well as their right to privacy.

5. Hypothesis: Hypothesis 1: If strict rules were to be put into place, such as expulsion, and it could be proven that a child used electronic media to bully another child, then that would be a way to take action within the school limitations. Hypothesis 2: School administrators are possibly infringing on the rights of students in regards to freedom of speech and it can also be an invasion of privacy. What a student does in his/her free time outside of the confines of the school is their own business, most would say. Thus, it is not a problem that can be monitored by schools officials.

6. Literature Review: Theorists: • The general strain theory was proposed by criminologist Robert Agnew. The nature of the theory is that it examines the possible causes of strain in society, particularly amongst youth. (Raskauskas, J., Stoltz, A.D. 2007), (Feshbach, N., Roe, K. 1968) Legalities: • Need for setting legal boundaries for schools in terms of internet use and bullying. It suggests that every entity, including schools and the social sites, should be held liable for any acts of cyber bullying once they are made aware of it. (Ybarra, M., West, M.D., Leaf, P. 2007), (Worthen, M. 2007), (David-Ferdon, C., Feldman-Hertz, M. 2007), (Hoff, D.L., Shariff, S. 2007) , (Brown, K., Margaret, J., Wanda, C. 2006) Strategies: • Developing appropriate strategies : (Hoff, D.L., Shariff, S. 2007), (Dilmac, B. 2009) • Encourage university research and implement teacher training and staff development. (Willard, N. ) • Empowerment of youth in using critical thinking skills: (Boneva, B.S. 2006), (Agatston, P., Kowalski, R., Limber, S. 2007), (Raskauskas, J., Stoltz, A.D. 2007), (Valkenburg, P., Schouten, A., Peter, J. 2005)

7. Literature Review: (cont’d) Health and Safety: • According to the Center for Disease Control’s findings, bullying through electronic means, is becoming an emerging health crisis. (David-Ferdon, C., Feldman-Hertz, M. 2007), (Gross, E., Juvonen, J., Gable, S. 2002), (Siegle, D. 2010), (Krcmar, M., Valkenberg, P. 1999), (Huesmann, L.R.1986) Media: • In the article by Smith, Mahdavi, Carvalho, Fisher, Russel and Tippet, it targets students aged 11-16 in its research. It compares traditional and cyber bullying methods. The article by Kowalski and Limber tackles the issue of electronic bullying amongst middle school students. This article ascertains that this is the demographic that is mostly affected by cyber bullying. (Gross, E.F. 2004), (Gentile, D., Walsh, D. 2002), (Boneva, B.S. 2006), (Raskauskas, J., Stoltz, A.D. (2007),

8. Methodology: Participants: Three schools, two elementary, one junior high, will be used to survey 90 students aged 9-14 and 10 teachers. Instruments: Consent forms surveys

9. References: • Agatston, P., Kowalski, R., Limber, S. (2007). Students’ Perspective on Cyber Bullying. Journal of Adolescent Health ,41,S59–S60. • Boneva, B.S. (2006). Teenage Communication in the Instant Messaging Era. Information Technology at Home. Oxford University Press. 612–72. • Brown, K., Margaret, J., Wanda, C. (2006). Cyber Bullying: Developing Policy to Direct Responses That are Equitable and Effective in Addressing This Special Form of Bullying, 57. • David-Ferdon, C., Feldman-Hertz, M. (2007). Electronic Media, Violence, and Adolescents: An Emerging Public Health Problem. Journal of Adolescent Health,41 (6), S1-S5. • Dilmac, B. (2009). Psychological Needs as a Predictor of Cyber Bullying: a Preliminary Report on College Students. Educational Science: Theory and Practice, 9(3), 1307-1325. • Dooley, J.J., Pyzalksi, J., & Cross, D. (2009). Cyber Bullying Versus Face-to-face Bullying. A Theoretical and Conceptual Review. Journal of Psychology, 217(4),182-188. doi: 10.1027/0044-3409.217.4.182 • Feshbach, N., Roe, K. (1968). Empathy in Six- and Seven-Year-Olds. Child Development, 39,1: 133–45. • Gentile, D., Walsh, D. (2002). A Normative Study of Family Media Habits. Applied Developmental Psychology. 25, 157–78. • Gross, E., Juvonen, J., Gable, S. (2002). Internet Use and Well-Being in Adolescence. Journal of Social Issues. 58:1, 75–90. • Hinduja, S., Patchin, J. W. (2011). Cyber Bullying: A Review of the Legal Issues Facing Educators. Preventing School Failure: Alternative Education for Children and Youth, 55(2), 71-78.

10. References: • Hoff, D.L., Shariff, S.(2007). Cyber Bullying: Clarifying Legal Boundaries for School Supervision in Cyberspace. International Journal of Cyber Criminology 1(1), 76-115. • Huesmann, L.R. (1986). Psychological Processes Promoting the Relation between Exposure to Media Violence and Aggressive Behavior by the Viewer. Journal of Social Issues 42,125–39. • Kowalski, R.M., Limber, S.P. (2007). Electronic Bullying Among Middle School Students. Journal of Adolescent Health 41 S22–S30 • Krcmar, M., Valkenberg, P. (1999). A Scale to Assess Children’s Moral Interpretations of Justified and Unjustified Violence and Its Relationship to Television Viewing. Communication Research. 26:5, 608–34. • Merrell, K., Gueldner, B., Ross, S., & Isava, D. (2008). How Effective are School Bullying Intervention Programs? A Meta-analysis of Intervention Research. School Psychology Quarterly, 23(1), 26–42. • Patchin, J. W. & Hinduja, S. (2011). Traditional and Nontraditional Bullying Among Youth: A Test of General Strain Theory. Youth and Society, 43(2) 727-751.. • Raskauskas, J., Stoltz, A.D. (2007). Involvement in Traditional and Electronic Bullying among Adolescents. Developmental Psychology. 43:3, 564–75. • Siegle, D. (2010). Cyber Bullying and Sexting: Technology Abuses of the 21st Century. Gifted Child Today, 33(n2) 14-16.

11. References: • Smith, P. K., Mahdavi, J., Carvalho, M., Fisher, S., Russell, S., & Tippett, N. (2008). Cyber Bullying: Its Nature and Impact in Secondary School Pupils. Journal of Child Psychology and Psychiatry, 49, 376–385. • Valkenburg, P., Peter, J., Schouten, A. (2006). Friend Networking Sites and Their Relationship to Adolescents’ Well-Being and Social Self-Esteem. CyberPsychology & Behavior. 9:5,584–90. • Willard, N. (2007). The Authority and Responsibility of School Officials in Responding to Cyberbullying. Journal of Adolescent Health, 41(Suppl):S64–S65. • Worthen, M. (2007). Education Policy Implication From the Expert Panel on Electronic Media and Youth Violence. Journal of Adolescent Health, 41,S61–S63 • Ybarra, M., West, M.D., Leaf, P. (2007). Examining the Overlap in Internet Harassment and School Bullying: Implications for School Intervention. Journal of Adolescent Health,41:S42–S50.

12. Appendix A: Date__________ Principal Consent Form My name is Alicia Kellier and I am a graduate student at Brooklyn College. I am currently conducting an action research project that delves into the topic of bullying through the use of electronic media. I am seeking your permission to conduct interviews through surveys with the students in your school. The surveys are completely voluntary and would involve a parental consent letter beforehand. I assure you that all data that will be collected will only be used for the purpose of my research paper and will be shared with the students and faculty at Brooklyn College. It is a completely anonymous survey that will not include the school’s name, teacher’s name, or the names of the students that participate. The procedure involves the cooperating teacher administering a 10 minute survey to the students that they are to answer openly and honestly. There is no compensation involved and is strictly to help me garner information for my research. Your assistance in this academic endeavor is greatly appreciated. Should you require any additional information please contact me at 718-916-8172. Permission granted: Yes___________ No___________ Signature__________________________________

13. Appendix B: Date__________ Teacher Consent Form My name is Alicia Kellier and I am a graduate student at Brooklyn College. I am currently conducting an action research project that delves into the topic of bullying through the use of electronic media. I am seeking your permission to conduct interviews through surveys with the students in your class and through you taking a brief survey as well. I have already attained permission from the principal to interview some teachers, and I seek your permission as well. The surveys are completely voluntary. I assure you that all data that will be collected will only be used for the purpose of my research paper and will only be shared with the students and faculty at Brooklyn College. It is a completely anonymous survey that will not include the school’s name, or your name. The procedure involves the cooperating teacher administering a 10 minute survey to the students that they are to answer openly and honestly. It also involves your participation in a brief survey. There is no compensation involved and is strictly to help me garner information for my research. Your assistance in this academic endeavor is greatly appreciated. Should you require any additional information please contact me at 718-916-8172. Permission granted: Yes___________ No___________ Signature__________________________________

14. Appendix C: Parental Consent Form My name is Alicia Kellier and I am a graduate student at Brooklyn College. I am currently conducting an action research project that delves into the topic of bullying through the use of electronic media. I am seeking your permission to conduct a survey with your child. I have already attained permission from the principal and your child’s teacher, and I seek your permission as well. The surveys are completely voluntary and anonymous. It will be conducted in class along with other students. The survey should take no more than 5-10 minutes. I assure you that all data that will be collected will only be used for the purpose of my research paper and will only be shared with the students and faculty at Brooklyn College. It is a completely anonymous survey that will not include the school’s name, your name, or your child’s name. The procedure involves the cooperating teacher administering the survey to the students that they are to answer openly and honestly. There is no compensation involved and is strictly to help me garner information for my research. Your child’s academic record will not be affected. Your assistance in this academic endeavor is greatly appreciated. Should you require any additional information please contact the school or myself at Likellier@aol.com. Permission granted: Yes___________ No___________ Signature__________________________________ Date______________

15. Appendix D: Student Survey 1. Do you have a computer at home? Yes ____ No____ 2. Do you have a cell phone? Yes ____ No____ 3. Do you know what the term bullying means? Yes ____ No____ Not Sure_____ 4.Have you ever bullied another student? Yes____ No____ maybe_____ 5. Have you ever hit anyone on purpose? Yes____ No____ If yes, how many times? 1___ 2-3 ___ 4+____ 6. Have you ever knowingly kicked anyone? Yes____ No____ If yes, how many times? 1___ 2-3 ___ 4+____ 7. Have you ever pushed/slapped/or tripped someone on purpose? Yes ____ No____ If yes, how many times? 1___ 2-3 ___ 4+____ 8. Have you ever seen another student getting bullied? Yes ____ No ____ If yes have you ever stepped in to help them? Yes____ No____

16. Appendix D: (cont’d) 9. Have you ever bullied someone on the internet? Yes ___ No____ 10.Have you ever bullied someone by texting them? Yes ____ No____ 11. Have you ever bullied someone on facebook, youtube, twitter, or myspace? Yes_____ No ____ 12. Do you ever say mean or unkind words to people so you can hurt their feelings? Yes____ No____ Sometimes___ 13. Have you ever participated in bullying someone online? Yes ____ No____ 14. Have you ever been bullied? Yes____ No____ If yes, how? Online___ By phone___ in person___ 15. How old are you? ______

17. Appendix E: Teacher Survey 1. Have you ever witnessed bullying in school? Yes ____ No ____ If so, how often? 1-3/week___ 4-7/ week___ 8+/week___ 2. Do you know any students that have been bullied through the use of electronic media? (i.e., computers, cell phones) Yes____ No ____ 3. Do you think that bullying through the use of electronic media is a problem in schools today? Yes____ No ____ 4. Do you think that traditional forms of bullying is a problem in schools today? Yes_____ No_______ 5. Do you think that it is the obligation of schools to implement rules in regard to traditional forms of bullying? Yes ____ No ____ 6. Do you think that it is the obligation of schools to implement rules in regards to bullying through the use of electronic media? Yes ____ No ____ 7. Whose legal responsibility is it to protect kids from being bullied on the internet? (you may choose more than 1 answer) Parents____ Teachers____ School administration___ Police___ Whose moral responsibility is it? Parents____ Teachers____ School administration___ Police___ 8. Does your school currently have a plan in place to punish children who are found to have bullied children on the internet or through cell phones? Yes ___ No___ Don’t know ___ Does your state? Yes____ No ____ Don’t know ____ 9. Does your school currently have a plan in place to punish children who are found to have bullied children, through traditional methods, in schools? Yes ____ No ___ Does your state? Yes ____ No ____ 10. Comments on electronic bullying vs. traditional bullying: