Cyberbullying

I feel that it is very important that educators and student counselors address cyberbullying in our schools.  Students are now living in a world where technology is all around them and always available.  The majority of students will carry cell phones that have access to the internet and in a lot of schools they are even allowed to take those phones to school with them.  When I was a teenager we had to actually call each other on a land line phone but now most teens communicate through text messages.  They are constantly sending messages back and forth.  Because of this increase in technology there has been an increase in cyberbullying.  I have often stated that I am so glad that Facebook was not around when I was in high school!  Parents and educators need to address cyberbullying with students and help them to become more aware of this problem.  I think this has changed the work of a school counselor because they now need to add cyberbullying to their curriculum, possibly through guidance lessons.  They will also be dealing with this issue more frequently through individual and group counseling.  Counselors will be counseling students who are engaging in cyberbullying and those that have been a victim of cyberbullying.  I believe those are the ways that I would address this problem in my school as well.  I would first add cyberbullying into my guidance lesson curriculum at the beginning of the school year to reach all students.  My lessons would be geared to the age level of the students.  I will work with the students to increase their awareness of the problem of cyberbullying and help them to develop strategies for resisting peer pressure and communicating in positive ways online.