School Bullying Council

Central Dauphin School Board on Aug. 20 adopted an Internet safety and cyberbullying plan with the goal of protecting students online and saving the school district money.

The board voted unanimously, with Brian Faleshock and Chris Judd absent, for the policy that sets up programs for students in kindergarten through 12th grade. The programs, to be taught mostly by guidance counselors, will help students make responsible choices while using online computer programs, said Shirley Hunter, district director of curriculum instruction and assessment.

Cyberbullying is the use of technology to harass, threaten, embarrass or target another person. Much of it takes place on mobile devices, usually used away from adult supervision.

View full sizeDAN GLEITER, The Patriot-News, 2009The Central Dauphin School District administration building on Rutherford Road in Lower Paxton Township.

“A number of incidents have come up in schools about cyberbullying,” Superintendent Carol Johnson said. “We believe we have to educate students and get parents involved.”

Having the policy will allow Central Dauphin to receive federal funding through the E-Rate Program for Internet service, Internet access and internal connections.

Under the Protecting Children in the 21st Century Act, districts seeking to be part of the E-Rate Program for their elementary and secondary schools must offer Internet safety education. Programs must include lessons on cyberbullying awareness, response to it and appropriate online behavior on social networking sites.

Being in that program will save Central Dauphin from $150,000 to $200,000 annually.

The Central Dauphin program offers different lessons for different grades, including awareness of and introduction to the cyber community and cyber citizenship for kindergarten through second grade; recognizing cyberbullying and predator identification for seventh grade; and recognizing and reacting to cyberbullying/harassment in 10th grade.

The policy includes Internet safety tips for parents and guardians.

Cyber safety is nothing new in the midstate.

Palmyra Area School District has been offering a cyber safety curriculum for two years to all students. The program focuses on digital citizenship, security, communication and media. Elementary school students are taught that computers are property and should be respected. The learn basic Internet safety rules.

Middle school students focus on cyberbullying, privacy and plagiarism. High school students learn about sexting, texting while driving and more in-depth copyright issues.

Camp Hill School District has a cyberbullying policy as part of its antibullying philosophy. The policy prohibits all forms of bullying and has consequences for violations ranging from counseling in school to detention, suspension, expulsion, counseling outside of school and referral to law enforcement officers.

http://www.pennlive.com/midstate/index.ssf/2012/08/central_dauphin_school_distric_44.html

Brandon DeMarco is an average teenager in an ordinary High School that becomes the target of relentless harassment and vindictive cyberbullying. His story’s been seen by thousands of students all over the globe.

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Students across the county are back in school this week, and some school officials, along with the police, are making it a point to address the issue of cyber bullying at the start of the year.

The Bakersfield Police Department says there’s a growing trend among teens to cyber bully and engage in sexting.   In a presentation geared specifically toward students, Michaela Beard of the BPD addresses issues including the importance of keeping Facebook profiles private, the dangers of sexting, and the potentially devastating impacts of cyber bullying.

Beard’s first presentation to high schoolers was at liberty high and told students “sexting” is illegal in California.  She says depending on the charges, consequences include a fine, jail time, and registering as a sex offender.

“It is so common,” said Michaela Beard.  “They said, ‘everybody does it, everybody does it and they don’t think twice about it.’ They said, ‘are you sure it’s illegal? Are you sure?’  I say, absolutely.”

“If there’s a case that comes up and we start doing our investigations, Facebook, MySpace, texting – all of that is going into the investigation so it can be used against the student,” said Bill Richardson, Dean of Discipline at Liberty High.

Some students, like Dane Marchman thought the most useful information was about making online profiles private, not just to avoid stalkers, but to ensure future employers don’t see something online that could hurt their chances of a job.

Officials at Liberty say they want to be proactive about social networking.  They plan to have more presentations addressing the issue throughout the year.

 

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