Education Sector

Most New Zealand schools are dealing with incidents of bullying or harassment online and in particular via mobile phone text messaging. Preliminary results of research suggest 2 out of 10 students have experienced text bullying and 1 out of 10, cyberbullying.

Schools will already have bullying/harassment policies in place so can make a comprehensive response appropriate to both perpetrator and victim. There are some distinctions to consider and serious implications when bullying goes online.

Bullying has always been around. What is different?

• The 24/7 impact of cyberbullying can be greater than face to face bullying. Children cannot get away from cyberbullying like they can with face to face bullying.
• Anonymous threats are more worrying and intimidating, even though statistically they are usually coming from someone known to the victim.
• Posting information on the Net means potentially having global distribution of that material, which can intensify the humiliation and hurt of having such information made public.

Some harrassment seems minor. What forms of harrassment and bullying are actually occurring in our schools?

• Bullying messages can range from the mild, ("You're the ugliest boy in class...") to the criminal, ("I'm going to kill you and your little sister.")
• Photos of individuals being posted on the Net in a negative context without permission (sometimes the photos are of an intimate nature and/or were taken surreptitiously).
• Websites set up about an individual with nasty (or sometimes even defamatory) content that often reveals personal details about the victim.
• Messages placed on message boards and passed on in chatrooms that contain false information about the victim (sometimes defamatory) and the victim's contact details. 
   

How should the school respond to such a wide range of incidents?

• Serious threats received by students or staff should be reported immediately to the police.
• Raise school community awareness of the issue and get the message across to "tell someone". (A British survey by NCH  found one in four young people reported being bullied via email or text messaging. Yet 29% didn't tell anyone about the harassment.) All staff need to be ready to respond appropriately.
• Encourage parents to keep an open communication with their child and to not immediately respond to a worrying incident by removing access to the technology. Anecdotal information suggests young people may be encouraged to "tell someone" if they know there will be a calm response. Fear of losing their technology or making the bullying worse are main reasons for not telling an adult.

What resources are available for prevention and intervention in bullying and harrassment?

Schools can call NetSafe toll-free on 0508 NETSAFE or email queries@netsafe.org.nz if they have questions about a specific incident.

The NZ Police, Vodafone New Zealand, Telecom and NetSafe are working together to raise awareness about online bullying. This campaign includes posters and brochures with helpful information for students and parents.
View the NetSafe/Vodafone NZ brochure on txt bullying. 

View Preventing and Responding to Bullying. European Schoolnet (EUN) is a network of 28 Ministries of Education in Europe dedicated to supporting schools in the effective and responsible use of technology in learning. They have collaborated with key players in industry in creating this website.

View external resources on cyberbullying.