7-8th Grade November 3rd Warrior Pack

Well, I’ve got some good news. According to last week’s survey, approximately 70% of those who took the survey have neither bullied anyone on the internet nor been bullied on the internet. However, if you aren’t one of those 70%, don’t feel bad. There were only about 25 responses, so the survey isn’t an accurate reading of the entire school. Still, some people answered that they have been a victim of cyberbullying. So, let’s look at what cyberbullying is…
The No Name Necessary pack offered this definition: “A deliberate put-down of another by use of an online communication source.” The 307’s had a very complete and accurate definition, too: “Cyberbullying is using any type of technology to try and hurt somebody emotionally and mentally.” Car Ramrod got a little more specific by citing the following as sources of cyberbullying: “phones, texting, tweeting, sending embarrassing photos, internet, sending embarrassing photos to youtube, facebook/myspace, posting harassing things on social networks, impersonating someone else on a social network, skype, and webcams.” The formal definition of cyberbullying is intentional and repeated use of computer and cell phone networks by kids and teens to cause harm or distress to other kids and teens, but I think I like what our groups came up with better. If you have a moment, go check out what other groups posted on last week’s blog.

"Cyberbullying: Who me? Why should I care?"
What happens when you witness cyber bullying? Today we are going to look at one online behavior that could be considered cyberbullying: online videos. Some videos you find online serve a positive purpose, such as promoting good citizenship, education, entertainment, or social actions.

Here is an example of one that promotes Breast Cancer Awareness: www.youtube.com/watch?v=OEdVfyt-mLw

Here is another example of a video that is just for laughs: www.youtube.com/watch?v=YLDbGqJ2KYk

Unfortunately, some people post these videos for less positive reasons, such as to hate, ridicule, and embarrass others.

Consider the following situation:
Kevin sends his friend Jose a short video he made at home – a reenactment of a famous fantasy movie scene. Jose, laughing at how Kevin looks, shows it to some other boys at school. The boys laugh at Kevin, too, and decide to post it on a video-sharing Web site. Millions of people view Kevin’s video. Nasty comments are posted. Every day, Kevin goes online to check and sees more comments like “idiot” and “fat nerd.” Every day he goes to school and hears more cruel comments from his classmates.

Think about it: When kids intentionally embarrass another kid, that’s just plain mean. Embarrassing or humiliating another kid using the internet is cyber bullying. When Jose and the others posted the video online, they set up a cyber bullying situation. They made it easy for other kids in school, and kids all over the world, to join in with them and post hurtful words online – again and again.

Today’s post: Get in a group of 2 or 3 and create a post discussing the following: In this true story, many people contributed to the cyber bullying. But there were many times more kids knew about the situation but did not get involved. Kids who are not cyber bullying but who see, hear, or know about it are called bystanders. In this situation, kids in school who witnessed the abuse and kids online who viewed the video were bystanders. What would you do if you were a bystander? What could you do or say to Kevin? What would you say to Jose? What could you say to the other kids at school who viewed the video and left cruel comments?