Hot Topic: Cyberbullying: What Parents and Educators Can Do

U.S. Senator Frank Lautenberg (New Jersey) has introduced legislation what would require colleges to adopt a code of conduct prohibiting bullying and harassment. The Tyler Clementi Higher Education Anti-Harassment Act is named for the 18-year-old Rutgers University freshman who committed suicide in September after an incident of cyberbullying. The legislation would require colleges that receive federal money to adopt policies that prohibit harassment based on a student's sexual orientation, race, gender and other factors, and provide funding for schools to establish or expand programs to prevent harassment of students.

Both parents and educators who work with young people are concerned about the dangers of cyberbullying. In response to the national focus on these issues, CYFERnet continues to focus on cyberbullying and sexting—what parents and educators need to know and what they can do to help young people in their families, schools and communities.

Teens & Internet Safety
This fact sheet from the University of Florida describes Internet risks, including cyberbullying, and outlines ways to protect youth from harm.
http://edis.ifas.ufl.edu/pdffiles/FY/FY84800.pdf

Breaking the Code: A Bullying Prevention Simulation
Breaking the Code (BTC) is a research-based prevention simulation developed by the University of Illinois Extension that highlights the existence and harmfulness of a hidden and unchallenged bullying social structure. It incorporates social issues such as shunning, intimidation, gossiping, lies, discrimination, threats, physical abuse, and making fun of others. The purpose of BTC is to impact the beliefs and attitudes middle and high school students have about bullying.
http://engage.illinois.edu/entry/2425

Adolescent Bullying
Researchers have found two types of adolescents involved in bullying. The first are bullies, or those who victimize others. The second are victims, or those who are the targets of such behavior. This fact sheet from Virginia State University Cooperative Extension provides suggestions for parents and educators from youth development experts on how to stop bullying.
http://pubs.ext.vt.edu/350/350-852/350-852.html

Bullying: Resources for Parents
This fact sheet from Kansas State University provides suggestions for parents to help their child cope with being bullied at school.
http://www.k-state.edu/wwparent/programs/bullying/Issues_for_parents.pdf

Tips for Parents: Dealing with the School Bully
This fact sheet from the University of Georgia Cooperative Extension describes how to know if your child is being bullied and what to do about it.
http://www.fcs.uga.edu/ext/pubs/chfd/CHFD-E-19-28.pdf

Children and Bullying: A Guide for Parents
This guide from Montana State University Extension describes the interactions of bullies and children who are bullied (across various ages) and how parents can respond.
http://msuextension.org/publications/HomeHealthandFamily/MT200307HR.pdf

BullyingInfo.org: Bullying Prevention and Response
(Federal Partners in Bullying Prevention Summit)
Youth, parents, schools, communities, and others have a role to play in building positive, supportive environments for children and youth, promoting acceptance and respect among all individuals, and ultimately, fostering youth development and learning. This FindYouthInfo.org website, BullyingInfo.org: Bullying Prevention and Response, provides a "one-stop shop" to federal resources, programs and research on bullying.
http://www.findyouthinfo.gov/spotlight_bullyingSummit.shtml

Creating Safe Spaces for all Youth: Working with Gay, Lesbian, Bisexual, Transgender and Questioning Youth
This publication focuses on what educators can do to create safe learning spaces for all youth. It provides an overview of the developmental model for sexual identity, links to resources and definitions of gay, lesbian, bisexual, transgender and questioning youth.
http://extension.umaine.edu/publications/4428e/

Mobilizing Educators, Parents, Students, and Others to Combat Online Social Aggression
A comprehensive website with information for parents, educators and students on cyberbullying.
http://www.cyberbully.org/cyberbully/

Educator’s Guide to Cyberbullying, Cyberthreats & Sexting
There are increasing reports of children and teens using these technologies to post damaging text or images to bully their peers or engage in other aggressive behavior. There are also reports of teens posting material that raises concerns that they are considering an act of violence against others or themselves. More recently concerns of sending provocative nude or semi-nude images, a practice called “sexting” have emerged. This guide provides educators with insight into these concerns and guidelines to prevent and respond. The author, Nancy Willard, M.S., J.D. is the director of the Center for Safe and Responsible Internet Use.
http://www.cyberbully.org/documents/documents/educatorsguide.pdf

Is Your Child Sexting? What Parents Need to Know
Short article on what parents need to know about the risks, emotional as well as legal, of sexting.
http://www.education.com/magazine/article/child-sexting-parents/

Tips to Prevent Sexting
Sexting usually refers to teens sharing nude photos via electronic media, such as cellphones and the Internet. This fact sheet outlines some of the legal and psychological consequences.
http://www.connectsafely.org/Safety-Tips/tips-to-prevent-sexting.html

Gay, Lesbian and Straight Education Network
Gay, Lesbian and Straight Education Network, is the leading national education organization focused on ensuring safe schools for all students. Established in 1990, GLSEN envisions a world in which every child learns to respect and accept all people, regardless of sexual orientation or gender identity/expression.
http://www.glsen.org/cgi-bin/iowa/all/home/index.html

Cyberbullying Among Children and Youth: Best Practices for Prevention and Intervention (video)
Cyber bullying among children and youth is a relatively recent phenomenon that has received considerable attention in the last couple of years by educators, policy makers, and the general public. Although research on the phenomenon is still in its infancy, recent studies have begun to reveal the nature, prevalence, and possible effects of cyber bullying. Susan Limber provides an overview of the current research literature and discusses best practices to prevent and address cyberbullying for adults who work with children and youth.
http://www1.cyfernet.org/cyfar2010/keynote.html#sl

Protecting Adolescents from Bullying, Harassment and Emotional Violence (video)
Millions of kids suffer each year from physical and emotional violence in the form of bullying, harassment, stalking, intimidation, humiliation and fear. Sticks and stones and bullets may break their bones, but words can break their hearts. Jim Garbarino's presentation focuses on how a school's social system plays a decisive role in the process of bullying, sexual harassment and emotional violence in the lives of teenagers. We need to avoid the temptation to see bullying as a personal problem and instead look for the workings of the school as a social system, and our response strategies, including character education, better feedback from students, and more explicit demonstration of adult caring in the school.
http://www1.cyfernet.org/cyfar2010/keynote.html#jg

Factsheet: Bullying and Gay Youth
This fact sheet provides an overview of the challenges of being a teenager, gay, lesbian, bisexual, and transgender (GBLT) teens in terms of having to deal with harassment, threats, and violence.
http://www.nmha.org/go/information/get-info/children-s-mental-health/bullying-and-gay-youth

Cyberbullying: What Adults Can Do
In recent years, technology has given children and youth a new means of bullying each other. This fact sheet provides tips that parents and other adults can use to recognize, prevent and stop cyberbullying.
http://stopbullyingnow.hrsa.gov/adults/cyber-bullying.aspx

Cyberbullying Research Center
The Cyberbullying Research Center provides information about the nature, extent, causes, and consequences of cyberbullying among adolescents.
http://www.cyberbullying.us/

Preventing Cyberbullying: Top Ten Tips for Educators
This fact sheet from the Cyberbullying Research Institute provides 10 tips for preventing cyberbullying in schools and communities.
http://www.cyberbullying.us/Top_Ten_Tips_Educators_Cyberbullying_Prevention.pdf

Cyberbullying: National Crime Prevention Council
A public advertising campaign aimed at preventing cyberbullying. Online bullying, called cyberbullying, happens when teens use the Internet, cell phones, or other devices to send or post text or images intended to hurt or embarrass another person. Cyberbullying is a problem that affects almost half of all American teens.
http://www.ncpc.org/cyberbullying

Anti-bullying Resources
Through research-based interventions, GLSEN provides resources and support for schools to implement effective and age-appropriate anti-bullying programs to improve school climate for all students. This website provides programs and resources to help all members of the school community address bullying in inclusive and effective ways.
http://www.glsen.org/cgi-bin/iowa/all/antibullying/index.html

PACER's National Center for Bullying Prevention
The mission of PACER Center (Parent Advocacy Coalition for Educational Rights) is to expand opportunities and enhance the quality of life of children and young adults with disabilities and their families, based on the concept of parents helping parents. PACER's National Center for Bullying Prevention unites, engages, and educates communities nationwide to address bullying through creative, relevant, and interactive resources.
http://www.pacer.org/bullying/sap/index.asp

Stop Bullying Now! Webisodes
A series of animated short stories about how friends deal with kids who bully at their school. Includes suggested discussion questions to use after viewing the webisodes.
http://www.stopbullyingnow.hrsa.gov/kids/webisodes/webisode-05.aspx

Bullying: What Parents and Teachers Should Know
A study conducted by the Kaiser Foundation found that 86% of children ages 12-15 said they get teased or bullied at school - making bullying more prevalent than smoking, alcohol, drugs, or sex among the same age group.
http://www.focusas.com/Bullying.html

Helping Kids Deal with Bullies
This website describes how to recognize bullying and how parents can help their child cope and get help. Available in English and Spanish.
http://kidshealth.org/parent/emotions/behavior/bullies.html#

What Parents Can Do About Childhood Bullying
This resource is aimed at helping parents recognize the signs that a child is a bully, as well as the signs of one who is being victimized. Includes information focused on children who have a learning disability (LD) or Attention-Deficit/Hyperactivity Disorder (AD/HD), conditions that can make children more vulnerable to bullying.
http://www.greatschools.org/special-education/health/what-parents-can-do-about-childhood-bullying.gs?content=825

How Parents and Agents Can Address Bullying with Youth
This article by Rosemary V. Barnett, University of Florida, presents a series of steps that extension agents, parents, and educators can take together to encourage involvement in creating a safe and fear-free learning environment.
http://edis.ifas.ufl.edu/fy778

Bullying Prevention Skills and Techniques for Children
This article describes the characteristics of bullying, how parents can recognize if their child is being victimized and what parents can do to help. The author, Mark Lakewood, is a bullying prevention expert, author, and speaker with over 20 years of clinical experience as a family therapist.
http://www.parenting-journals.com/114/bullying-prevention-skills-and-techniques-for-children/

Bullying: A Big Problem with Big Consequences
This guide (available on CD) was developed by University of Minnesota Extension to help parents understand how to identify a wide range of bullying behavior and understand reasons these behaviors occur; develop strategies to help teens handle bullying behavior-whether a bully, bullied, or a bystander; and learn appropriate steps to take if a teen is a bully, bullied or bystander.
http://www.extension.umn.edu/distribution/familydevelopment/DE8212.html

A Guide for Educators: Bullying-What Educators Can Do About It
This 12-page publication offers advice to educators on what they can do about bullying. It includes sections on different forms of bullying, strategies for teachers and schools, references, classroom activities, and children's books related to bullying.
http://pubs.cas.psu.edu/freepubs/pdfs/ui367.pdf

What Families, Schools, and Communities Can Do to Support Healthy Social and Emotional Development in Children and Youth
This resource was designed for professionals or volunteers who work with families, or caregivers of a child who has behavior problems or has experienced bullying. This program addressed the development of social and emotional strengths in children and youth and provided resources and practical ideas to reframe how you work with children and families. View archived presentation by David Osher, Ph.D., American Institutes for Research at
http://www.extension.iastate.edu/parent/

Afterschool: A Strategy for Addressing and Preventing Middle School Bullying
This research brief examines critical issues facing middle school youth and the vital role afterschool programs play in addressing these issues. Afterschool programs, with their unique position as a less formal and more open learning environment, can provide middle school youth with the knowledge and attitudes necessary to combat bullying both in school and online, leading to healthy youth development and a happier generation of students.
http://www.afterschoolalliance.org/issue_51_bullying.cfm