Cyberbullying

With bullying awareness month upon us a new critical issue has risen to the surface; Cyberbullying. According to new statistics released by the “No Bullying Movement” fifty-two percent of teens report that they have been cyberbullied.The question still remains though, what is cyber bullying? The dictionary definition is “the act of harassing someone online by sending or posting mean messages, usually anonymously.” This envelops everything from social media sites such as Facebook and Twitter to over forms of anonymous web surfing such as Tumblr.

This issue doesn’t go unnoticed either. The No Bullying Movement reports that fifty-five percent of teens have witnessed cyberbullying and ninety-five percent of them claimed to ignore the behavior. Teens are choosing to disregard the issue, believing that it’s “not their problem” or they simply wish to avoid conflict. There is a better way though. Schools, including Penn High School, encourage students to contact counselors and staff about issues they see online.

Organizations such as the Freshman Mentor Program and Kingsmen Tutor Initiative are set up not only to help students with their studies but also serve as a link between student and staff. These students are trained to be approachable role models for their peers.

Cyberbullying is an ongoing issue that can no longer be ignored. It affects thousands of teens everyday and with the growing popularity of social media that number will only grow. The first step to ending online bullying is speaking up and stepping forward.