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Learning objective
Students develop an understanding of cyberbullying and the implications of sharing information online.
Take home messages
Curriculum links
WA curriculum links
HPE: Staying safe
Skills to deal with challenging or unsafe situations:
- refusal skills
- initiating contingency plans
- acting assertively
International technical guidance on sexuality education
Key concept 4.1 (9-12 year olds):
Sexual abuse, sexual harassment and bullying (including cyberbullying) are harmful and it is important to seek support if experiencing them.
Materials
Before you get started
- Ensure a group agreement is established before beginning this lesson. For classes that have already established ground rules, quickly reviewing them can promote a successful lesson.
- Communicating sexually online or with a mobile phone is increasingly accessible and socially acceptable for everyone today. It is important that the positive aspects of online communication (such as influencing social development, maintaining long distant relationships with family and friends, forming relationships with like-minded people, documenting events and raising awareness of important issues) are highlighted as strongly as the potential issues. The most important key message for young people is that they know how to be responsible with technology use it safely. Refer to the Cyberbullying notes for further information.
- It is possible that a student has been involved in a traumatic experience relating to cyberbullying. It is important that teachers are familiar with the Essential Information: Managing disclosures and have a risk management strategy in place.
Learning activities
Cyberbullying quiz
15 min
- Divide students into groups of four. Provide each group with a blank piece of A3 paper and make a placemat with the word ‘cyberbullying’ in the centre. Have students conduct a placemat activity to create a definition on the term cyberbullying.
- Ask:
What is cyberbullying?
Cyberbullying are t he actions taken by an individual or group intended to embarrass, humiliate or intimidate a target using online technology such as the internet or a mobile phone. Whiteboard this definition.
- What forms can cyberbullying take? (can include a wide range of unacceptable behaviours including:
- sending abusive messages,
- posting or sending hurtful images or videos
- posting or sharing images of someone without their consent
- imitating others online
- excluding others online
- posting contact or other personal information in public forums
- nasty online gossip and chat
- Cyberbullying typically involves three different people, can you identify who they might be? (perpetrator - the person bullying online; target - the person being bullied; and bystander - someone who witnesses the cyberbullying behaviour)
- What are the differences between cyberbullying and other forms of bullying? (cyberbullying has possibly a much bigger audience, no closure and no escape from the person bullying, and the other people involved may not realise the impact and contribution they make. It can occur any time of the day or night and intrudes into spaces that were previously considered safe. The person bullying can remain anonymous and this can cause the person who is being bullied to distrust many people. Electronic content is hard to control, and the worry of content resurfacing can make it difficult for those who are bullied to move on. Also, a single incident can comprise multiple attacks, where one image is viewed numerous times.)
- Why do you think people bully others? (because they don’t understand the harm they are doing; they are reproducing behaviour that has been carried out on them; or to be popular with other people)
- How do you think you would feel if you were being cyberbullied?
- What is a bystander? (a person who is present at an event without participating in it. For example, somebody who sees another person send a bullying message to someone else.)
- What might a positive bystander do? (take safe action to help the target)
- What might a negative bystander do? (choose to do nothing, or actually become involved in cyberbullying, e.g. forward hurtful messages and posts sent by someone else)
- Why do you think someone might choose to be a negative bystander in a cyberbullying situation? (might fear being the next target or losing a friendship; wanting to stay out of ‘drama’; not feeling confident to confront the bully; not knowing what to do)
- If you are aware of someone being cyberbullied and do nothing, who are you supporting? (the perpetrator - person doing the bullying
Cyberbullying - thumbs up, thumbs down
10 mins
Is this an example of cyberbullying?
(1) Posting an offensive photo of someone online to embarrass that person.
(2) Creating a poll to embarrass someone.
(3) Spreading rumours about someone online.
(4) Creating a fake profile of someone that contains content that is hurtful to that person.
(5) Making threats to publish material that a person does not want to be made public.
(6) Not accepting a friend or follow request.
(7) Sending abusive messages.
(8) Digitally altering a photograph of someone to humiliate them.
Only (6) is not an example of cyberbullying. (If asked why, explain that people are allowed to control who sees their profile and posts.)
Cyberbullying consequences
30 mins
- View the Tagged video on the esafety.gov.au website [18:19min].
- In small groups, students respond to the following focus questions in preparation for a whole class discussion and reflection:
- Why do you think Kate posted photos of Chloe on her blog?
- Was it fair for Jack to retaliate by posting the photos of Kate?
- Why do you think Em chose not to stand up for Kate?
- In what way was Em’s behaviour helpful?
- In what way was Em’s behaviour unhelpful?
- What are the main messages from this video?
- If you were a friend of one of the characters in Tagged, how could you encourage them to make more appropriate choices? (choose at least two characters)
- What do you think might motivate someone to help a person who is being unfairly targeted online? (e.g. a desire to treat people fairly; empathy for the pain and stress this behaviour may cause)
- What strategies could you think of that might stop cyberbullying if you noticed it occurring?
3-2-1 Reflection
- Stress that helping friends and fellow students who are involved in cyberbullying early on, can save them a lot of pain down the track.
- Give each student a copy of the Teaching Resource: Positive bystander tips. Students select something positive they could do, or the option that they would feel safest in doing, if they witnessed:
- A friend receiving repeated abusive text messages from someone you know.
- A photo of someone in your year group which has received a lot of rude and hurtful comments.
- A friend repeatedly excluding someone in your friendship group from weekend gatherings and parties posted online.
- Students record their answers in written form.
