Cyber-bullying Presentation by YOW and CYN

According to Wikipedia, the definition of Cyber-bullying is the use of Information Technology to harm or harass other people in a deliberate, repeated, and hostile manner.With the increase in use of these technologies Cyber-bullying has become increasingly common, especially among teenagers.  Cyber-bullying can be, and has proven to be for many victims, destructive and sometimes fatal.  But how do we stop it?  For many who work in the education, justice and social development fields, it is believed that educating our young people is vital to reducing the instances of this negative activity.

Kim Kendell, Youth Outreach Worker (YOW) with Mental Health and Addictions, teamed up with the Community Youth Network (CYN) to deliver a presentation on Cyber-bullying at École Notre Dame du Cap on Tuesday, January 28^th, 2014.  Staff and administrators at the school are very concerned about instances of cyber-bullying, and are not alone in attempting to reduce the instances of bullying among their youth.

The Canadian Teachers Federation commissioned poll (2008) showed that 34% of Canadians surveyed knew of students in their community who had been targeted by cyber-bullying in the previous year while one in five were aware of teachers who had been cyber-bullied.  The poll also showed that almost one in 10 knew someone close to them who had been cyber-bullied.  Canadian Teachers ranked cyber-bullying as their issue of highest concern from the six listed options with 89% suggesting bullying and violence are serious problems in our public schools.

The poll is now 6 years old – eons in technology time.  Since this poll was completed, technological advances in instant communications have skyrocketed and now youth are connected more than they ever were before.  With the increase in connectivity, the potential for, and instances of, cyber-bullying has increased dramatically.

Bullying and cyber-bullying are serious problems with no easy solution, and not a struggle that can be met by one service or organization alone.  Tackling this destructive activity must be done though coordinated and cooperative measures that include youth, parents, educators, service providers and community.  The adage of “It Takes a Community to Raise a Child” in bullying terms can be said to be “It Takes a Community to Save a Child”.   We all have a part to play.

For more information on the session facilitated at École Notre Dame du Cap, please contact Kim Kendell, YOW, at 643-2247 or Mary Barter, CYN, at 642-5519.

“One of the threads tying their deaths together is a cause-and-effect link made by the media, politicians and parents between persistent bullying and the victim’s decision to end their life — a phenomenon that generated its own buzzword — “bullycide.” Maclean’s

 

http://www2.macleans.ca/2013/12/15/link-between-cyberbullying-and-teen-suicides-oversimplified-experts-say/