5)+Cyber+Bullying

Cyberbullying media type="youtube" key="mgxad5EpnbQ" height="537" width="672"


Cyber bullying is the harassment, threats to and victimization of students by means of the internet or other communication technologies. This can take the form of sending abusive texts, posting provocative pictures, emailing threats or disclosing embarrassing personal information. The consequences are real and sometimes fatal. Whereas traditional bullying is sometime easy to see, cyber bullying sometimes has “a cloak of invisibility and a lack of external cues” (Dillon, 2008). Cyber bullying has two distinct dimensions that traditional bullying does not. “The first of these dimensions is where the internet is used as the primary tool of the harassment behavior…The second dimension of such activity is where information and communication technology is used to facilitate the harassment” Gillespie, A. 2006, p 124.


Cyber bullying is, of course, harassment and that alone violates many laws. The First Amendment, the Tinker standard and Title IX are the areas of focus most relevant to schools and cyber bullying. As stated earlier, the freedom of speech is an American treasure. However, true threats are not warranted the protection of the First Amendment, which is one form of cyber bullying. Further, in the Tinker decision, the school may take action against speech that is a substantial disruption to school operation or the invasion of a person’s rights. Related to the Tinker case is the Boucher standard, where the school leaders can act if a “reasonable forecast” of disruption exists. The Tinker and Boucher standards can be applied, because cyber bullying is both a disruption to the school and the violation of a student’s rights. With respect to the school, in light of standardized testing and the compliance to the No Child Left Behind Act of 2001, cyber bullying can and often leads to a “material and substantial interference with school work and discipline”. (Tinker, 1969) From the individual’s perspective, the interference with their civil rights applies. The individual’s rights of life, property, and privacy are in jeopardy when cyber bullying occurs. One last note is that while policing the internet for cyber bullying is not the primary responsibility of the school, school administrators may be held liable for not addressing cyber bullying under Title IX, as in the Davis v. Monroe County Board of Education.


The school district’s AUP is the first line of defense in the war against cyber bullying. “Including cyber-bullying in your district’s definition of bullying gives school administrators a platform which to impose appropriate consequences for use of social media to intimidate, harass, threaten, or otherwise bully others” (Broek, K., Puiszis, S., & Brown, E., 2009, p. 21). This should also include a protocol for teachers in reporting cases of cyber bullying, similar to the protocol of bullying. The teacher must be aware of the policy and the protocols that are applicable .