I really enjoyed all of the videos we had to watch this week on cyberbullying because they were creative and interesting. They showed real life people talking about their troubles with either victimizing others through the Internet or being bullied themselves. The first video was very insightful because it is true that gossip is just like the feathers in the folktale,"once tossed out into the road the wind would spread them wide and far."(NetSmartz Workshop, 2010) It would be too difficult to catch all the rumors going around so it is important not to spread lies in the first place. The next video is important because it talks about a website that was designed to rate girls based on their attractiveness. The boy in the video did not realize that the information you provide on the Internet can be used in all different ways. One must be careful not to provide information that can be harmful to yourself or others. He realized a little too late that he was bullying these girls by rating them on the Internet. In the next video about giving your password to someone, it goes to show how information on the Internet can fall into the wrong hands. It is important for teachers to share this knowledge with their students and give them a list of things that are safe and unsafe for the Internet. Harassing someone in any way is harmful and unacceptable but on the Internet it can seem more powerful and discreet because you think your words and actions are anonymous. But it is key to know that anything you do on the Internet can be accessed by everyone, traced back to you and can be used to harm yourself or others. When I watched Julie's Journey I was surprised to see that no one was monitoring her computer or that she would agree to meet with "Tom the 56-year-old."(NetSmartz Workshop, 2010). Teachers need to enforce the netiquette of the Internet and show students scenarios that are safe and unsafe. I really believe that if teachers show these videos to students they will grasp the concept of safety on the Internet and that cyberbullying is wrong.
Netsmartz Workshop.(2001-2010)Real life stories Retrieved from http://www.netsmartz.org/resources/reallife.htm
I watched Julie's Journey too and I was just as shocked that her computer time was not being monitored. I feel that teaching kids what is proper information to share as well as what can be dangerous information to share is very important for the safety of children today who may be naive to the internet and internet users.
ReplyDeleteExcellent post, nice use of APA. I agree with you and think it is a good idea to share these videos with your students (assuming your students are at the appropriate age and can understand the concepts presented on the videos).
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