Brief Presentation on Text Bullying for Educators

1. What Educators
Should Know and
Do to Improve the
Lives of Students

2. “Text bullying is sending mean,
embarrassing, untrue, or hurtful
messages to or about someone
using cell phone text messaging.
This can also include sexting, or
sending sexually suggestive text
messages to someone or about
someone” (wordpress.com, 2016).

3. 9 out of 10
teens have a
cell phone
1 in 5 teens
will be
victims of
text bullying
1 in 10 teens
engage in text
bullying
Text bullying
is more
common than
traditional
bullying and
less reported
(wordpress.com, 2016)

4. Text bullying is happening at a younger age and
projecting later into life. “In a recent survey, more
than half of fifth grade students had smartphones”
(The Times in Plain English, 2013).
Text bullying can lead to depression, anxiety,
social withdrawal, violence, and suicide
(bullyingstatistics.org, 2016).
“It can happen 24 hours a day, even at home, which is
usually a refuge from bullying, so it can feel
inescapable” (bullyingstatistics.org, 2016). It is also
harmful to the bullies as it can lead to legal action
against them and follow them into their careers.

6. In a Positive School Environment Students….
 Do better academically.
 Attend school more regularly.
 Feel better about themselves.
 Engage in fewer risky behaviors like drinking alcohol or using drugs.
 Engage less in bullying and other problem behaviors
In a Positive School Environment that Supports Connectedness Amongst
Staff…
• Teachers and staff feel valued and are more likely to become
involved and intervene in a bullying situation.
• Teachers and paraprofessionals report greater comfort levels
intervening in a bullying situation.
 Feelings of comfort in being willing to intervene are correlated to:
• Knowing effective intervention strategies
• Knowing that others in the school also are likely to intervene
(Safe and Supportive Schools, 2016)
(Safe and Supportive Schools, 2016)

7. •Set the tone of the classroom
•Involve students in establishing classroom norms and expectations
•Inform students of the dangers of text bullying and other forms of
bullying and set guidelines for reporting and consequences
•Discuss differences in a respectful way, offer examples, and model
appropriate behavior
•Give students opportunities to role play or apply respectful
behavior and attitudes in realistic situations
•Enforce a strict zero-tolerance attitude and policy for cell phones
and bullying
(Safe and Supportive Schools, 2016)

8. Educators
•Model appropriate behavior
•Keep consistent behavior
between all classrooms and
staff
•Be available to listen
•Be positive and authentic
•Consistently reinforce fairly
with positive and negative
consequences
Instruction
•Raise awareness of ideas
and strategies
•Give students
opportunities to discuss
uncomfortable feelings of
bullying in each role- bully,
victim, bystander
•Give opportunities for
students to brainstorm
common bullying situations
and possible solutions
•Encourage communication
skills and dialogue

9. An educational movement
that focuses on the systematic
development of 5 core social
& emotional skills that help
students more effectively
handle life challenges and
thrive in both their learning
and their social environments,
incorporated into the daily
curriculum (CASEL, 2015).
(blog.remind.com, 2016)
Research suggests that school-based prevention
programs can be effective. The Task Force on
Community Preventive Services stated that
universal school-based programs designed to
prevent or reduce violent behavior, including
bullying, significantly reduced rates of violent
behavior and aggression for all grade levels
(CASEL, 2015).

10. Self-Awareness and Self-Management Skills
Recognize and manage emotions in order to respond to conflict in calm and
assertive ways. In order to handle conflicts effectively, children need to be
able to recognize when they are getting angry, and learn to calm themselves
before reacting (CASEL, 2015).
Social Awareness
Be tolerant and appreciative of differences, and interact empathetically
with peers. Children often lack empathy for the victims of bullying, and that
they view being different from the social ideal, or social norm, as the cause
of bullying. When active bystanders intervened, feelings of empathy for the
victim and concern for the well-being of others were motivating factors.
(Swearer & Cary, 2007 and Rigby & Johnson, 2006 as cited by CASEL, 2015).

11. Relationship Skills
•Initiate and sustain friendships and other relationships. Victimized children tend
to have fewer friends, friends who are also victimized, and have more enemies.
Many are socially withdrawn and lack confidence and skills in effectively interacting
with peers. Interventions that help peer-rejected children learn how to positively
communicate with peers can help them be more accepted by peers, less likely to be
bullied, and more likely to be assisted by peers if targeted by a bully.
•Resist social pressure to enable, encourage, or directly participate in bullying, and
actively defend victims. When bystanders see bullying, they spend most of their
time either actively participating in the act or passively encouraging the aggressor
by serving as an audience.
•Be able to seek help from peers or other adults when needed. Victims and
bystanders typically do not seek help from peers or adults when they are unable to
solve the problem on their own, rather they “suffer in silence” and blame
themselves.
Quoted from CASEL, 2015

12. Responsible Decision Making
“Think through and resolve social problems effectively and ethically.
Effective social problem-solving requires an accurate assessment of the
situation. Research indicates that children who frequently bully tend to
misinterpret social interactions as being more hostile, adversarial, or
provocative than their peers do. These children also tend to hold more
supportive beliefs about using violence and are less confident about
using nonviolent strategies to resolve conflict” (CASEL, 2015).

13. Bullying typically
stops in 10 seconds
when a student
intervenes
(Safe and Supportive Schools, 2016)

14. Areas of Social
Emotional
Curriculum
Development &
Implementation
Assessment
Awareness
and Training
Rules &
Reporting
Procedures
Discipline
Policy
Adult
Supervision
Adult
Models of
Behavior
Promoting
Positive Peer
Interactions
Classroom
Climate
InterventionsParental
Involvement
Professional
Development
(CASEL, 2015)

15. STOPit phone app:
allows user to report
anonymously and
deter themselves
from bullying
KnowBullying app:
offers advice and
communication skills
to talk about online
bullying
Stopbullying.gov:
offers students
videos & games
about bullying &
prevention
OnlineGuardian:
allows parents to
monitor social
networking sites &
block messages with
bullying phrases
NearParent: sets up
network of adult
help & forwards
questionable
content to them
(Crabtree, 2014 and DiProperzio, 2016 and School Tipline, 2011)
Schooltipline.com:
allows students to
anonymously and
easily report bullying
to school staff

16. Give parents information on the dangers of bullying as well as
identifying and preventing it via a school website link, newsletter,
monthly school supported brochure, etc. When the appropriate
people have a knowledge base they can be proactive to bullying
situations or take action when needed.
Parents can:
•Discuss bullying, bullying scenarios, and converse with children
about acts they have had a role in
•Encourage teens to think critically of the consequences, including
possible legalities before sending certain texts.
•Collaborate with school personnel to enforce consistent
consequences, stay up to date on information, and create
solutions to bullying issues
•If your child doesn’t have a cell phone, wait until they are socially
and emotionally mature enough (Bullyingstatistics.org, 2016)

18. Blog.remind.com. (2015). Social Emotional Learning.
Retrieved from
http://blog.remind.com/wp-
content/uploads/2015/02/social-and-
emotional-learning-core-
competencies.png
Clipshrine.com. (n.d.). Modern Touch Phone
Mobile Clip Art. Retrieved from
http://www.clipshrine.com/modern-
touch-phone-mobile-13580-
medium.html
Hubbell Incorporated. (2016). Hubbell Control
Solutions. Retrieved from
http://www.hubbell-
automation.com/products/omni_vaca
ncyoccupancy_sensor_product_line
Imgarcade.com (n.d.). Gallery Images for
Teenagers Texting Retrieved from
http://imgarcade.com/1/teenagers-
texting/
Metcalf, Anne. (2013). Family Search Blog. Retrieved
from
https://familysearch.org/blog/en/research
-lessons-added-familysearchorgjanuary-
2013/
Sonnenburg, Dr. Mandy. (2014). Welcome Back
Kotter: Why High School Classrooms
Need a Makeover. Retrieved from
http://parseprofessor.blogspot.com/2
014/03/welcome-back-kotter-why-
high-school.html
The Times in Plain English, (2013). Cyber bullying
Taking Place Among Younger Children.
Retrieved from
http://www.thetimesinplainenglish.co
m/cyberbullying-taking-place-among-
younger-children/

19. Bullyingstatistics.org. (2016). Bullying Statistics: Anti-bullying Help, Facts, and More. Retrieved from
http://www.bullyingstatistics.org/content/text-bullying.html
CASEL: Collaborative for Academic, Social, and Emotional Learning. (2015). Social and Emotional Learning
and Bullying Prevention. Retrieved from
http://static1.squarespace.com/static/513f79f9e4b05ce7b70e9673/t/5367958ee4b0dbc1364dbb
7b/1399297422536/3_SEL_and_Bullying_Prevention_2009.pdf
Crabtree, Carolynn. (2014). Fight Cyber Bullying with Dialogue and Technology. Retrieved from
https://www.fosi.org/good-digital-parenting/fight-cyberbullying-dialogue-and-technology/#!
DiProperzio, Linda. (2016). Best Apps and Products to Prevent Cyberbullying. Parents. Retrieved from
http://www.parents.com/kids/safety/internet/best-apps-prevent-cyberbullying/
School Tipline. (2011). School Tipline- School Safety Simplified. Retrieved from
http://www.schooltipline.com/
The Times in Plain English, (2013). Cyber bullying Taking Place Among Younger Children. Retrieved from
http://www.thetimesinplainenglish.com/cyberbullying-taking-place-among-younger-children/
Safe and Supportive Schools. (2016). Creating a Safe and Respectful Environment in our Nation’s Classrooms.
[PowerPoint]. Retrieved from https://safesupportivelearning.ed.gov/creating-safe-and-respectful-
environment-our-nations-classrooms-training-toolkit
STOPitcyberbully.com. (2015). STOPit. Retrieved from http://stopitcyberbully.com/