1. Please make sure you have signed your Student Acceptable Use Policy / Responsible Use Agreement and handed it back to your Homeroom Teacher.

2.

3. Please watch the below video and discuss the questions with your classmates. Here are some vocabulary terms related to cyber-bullying that you may need to know.

Vocabulary Terms: 

harassing: bombarding someone with messages over digital media, or repeated contact when it is least expected

deceiving: using fake names, posing as someone else, or creating a fake profile about someone else

flaming: saying mean things, usually in ALL CAPS, and often in a public forum with the intention to humiliate

hate speech: a verbal attack targeting someone because of their race, gender, religion, ability, or sexual orientation

Stacey’s Story

 

Questions for discussion:

1. Why did the girls start to harass and threaten Stacey online in the first place?
2. When do you think the girls’ behavior “crossed the line”?
3. Stacey says, “People talk really big, when there’s, like, miles between you.” What do you think she means by this statement?
4. In what ways might the online context make the situation worse than if the bully had harassed Stacey offline?
5. Stacey’s mom says that Stacey should call the school and report the incidents. Stacey responds that it would “just make it worse.” Do you think this is true? Why or why not?

Case Study #1: Attacked from all sides

Eric gets a lot of pressure from his parents to do well in school. Other kids in school tease him
because he works so hard but still gets poor test scores. He gets instant messages and text messages
during the day and at night about his poor grades. The word “loser” is in most of them, and the
language becomes stronger every day. Today he received a text from a number he did not recognize,
with a photo of his body with a turkey’s head. A thought bubble above the picture reads: “Why am
I so STUPID? What a *!*#&** I am.” Eric thinks Alexis, the most popular girl in the eighth grade, is
behind the message.

 

Questions for discussion:

1. What forms of cyberbullying did the students use on Eric? What is your evidence?
2. How do you think Eric feels? What elements of this situation make him feel this way?
3. Do you think Eric should tell his parents about the cyberbullying?
4. What qualities do you think a “trusted adult” should have? Who are these people in your life? In what ways can a trusted adult actually be effective?
5. If Alexis was the bully, what could school personnel, such as the principal, do or say to Alexis to make her realize that her behavior is wrong?
6. Have you ever been part of, or heard of, a situation similar to this? If so, share the story with the group without using names or details.

Case Study #2: Election Sabotage

Tanya is pretty popular. She is running for class president. The election is a week away, and Tanya is neck and neck with Sara. Sara’s friends decide to sabotage Tanya. They create a fake social network page for Tanya. They use a photo of Tanya for her profile picture, and for her interests, they write: “partying, making fun of anything ASIAN, loving myself.” Most of the students at the school are Asian, and rumors start to spread that Tanya is a racist. As election day nears, Sara’s friends start to flame Tanya with texts that say things like “racist” almost every hour.

 

Questions for discussion:

1. What forms of cyberbullying did Sara’s friends use on Tanya? What is your evidence?

2. Do you think there is ever a good reason for impersonating someone else online or creating a profile about them?

3. Do you think Sara knew what her friends were doing? What is Sara’s responsibility in this?

4. What do you think the consequences should be for Sara and her friends if the school finds out?

5. If you found out about what happened, would this be a reason not to vote for Sara?

6. Have you ever been part of, or heard of, a situation similar to this? If so, share the story with the group without using names or details.

All content courtesy of Common Sense Media