Safety Comes First
Friday, April 26, 2013
Anyone who uses any type of digital technology should be educated on the safety issues. There are too many occurances where people explore into areas they are not aware of and end up becoming a victim on the internet. Some people get their identity stolen, others get taken advantage of financially, while many become the center of a mean and unfair joke or prank at the same time being harassed or threatened (cyberbullying).
Digital safety should be taught at home as well as in school. Anyone can become a victim; children, parents, students, teachers, etc...
My group and I worked on the topic of cyberbullying. Cyberbullying has become one of the more popular topics in the last decade. Cyberbullying can be defined as, " sending mean messages or threats to a person's email account or cell phone; spreading rumors online or through texts; taking unflattering pictures of someone and spreading them through cell phones and the internet..." (bullyingstatistics.org,2009). It's basically the act of hurting someone through the use of digital technology. Sometimes these hurtful acts can go too far and the person targeted becomes depressed, isolated, emotionally disturbed, and develops a low self esteem, which can drive them into a more serious problem.
The more popular social network sites are usually where most of the cyberbullying activity occurs. Once you become a victim, you can become exposed to thousands of viewers that can add more negative feedback. Cyberbullying can start at school and follow a child once they get home. It's a rippling effect that takes only a few seconds for it to happen. And sometimes, it could be your so called best friend that is the culprit. So be aware of who your true friends are. Anyone who has a social network account should familiarize themselves with the settings and options they feature. Users should also beware of people they don't recognize when they are requesting to add them on their friend list. If you don't know the person, don't add them. You never know what problems lie ahead with this unknown individual.
There are different ways to help prevent cyberbullying at home. At a young age, parents should educate themselves and their children on cyberbullying or any form of bullying. They should be taught the golden rule, " treat others the way you want to be treated." Ross (2009), discusses other methods of prevention, " consider installing filtering and blocking software; keep your computer visible like the living room or kitchen; model the behavior you want to see in your child; talk to your child about on-line activities; keep records of any type of cyberbullying, etc.." One of the most important things to keep in mind if your child happens to be a target or a victim is to stay calm and listen to them. Help them through the moment instead of arguing and finding faults in their on-line behavior. Show your child if there's anyone they should trust, that it's you. Safety and security starts at home and it starts with the parents educating children.
References
Bullying Statistics, (2009). Cyber Bullying Statistics. Retrieved April 29, 2013, from website: http://www.bullyingstatistics.org/content/cyber-bullying-statistics.html
Ross, M. (2009). Cyber Bullying Articles and Facts: Cyber Bullying is Technology Powered. Retrieved from: http://kamaron.org/Cyber-Bullying-Articles-Facts
AZAtornneyGeneral. (2008,May 16). NetsSmartz.org on Cyberbullying. [Video file]. Retrieved from http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xGKmlTtZnSk
Hi:
ReplyDeleteNone of the prompts were used to write this essay, though it is well written.
-j-