Should educators be responsible for addressing incidents of cyberbullying that occur outside of school?

1. CYBERBULLYING:
IF YOU SEE IT, YOU OWN IT
Michelle Grant
migrant@upei.ca

2. DEFINING THE ISSUE
According to CyberSCAN (2013),
“bullying is when someone repeatedly
tries to hurt another person's body,
feelings, self-esteem, reputation, or
property. Cyberbullying is when
someone uses technology to bully
someone else…bullying messages can
be text messages, e-mails, social
media posts, or embarrassing photos
or videos.”
Source: Office.com Clip Art

3. RESPONDING TO CYBERBULLYING
• Most educators would agree that any
instances of bullying that occur at school
must be dealt with by teachers and
administrators.
• But what about when the bullying happens
outside of school hours and/or off school
grounds? Are educators obligated to
address these cases?
Source: Office.com Clip Art

4. SOME SAY NO
“When the mother of a seventh-grade boy in Fairfax
County, Va.,… sent his principal the savage e-mail
messages and Facebook jeers that six boys posted about
her son, the principal wrote back that although the
material was unacceptable, ‘From a school perspective
this is outside the scope of our authority and not
something we can monitor or issue consequences for.’ ”
(Hoffman, J., 2010).
Source: Office.com Clip Art

5. WHY NOT?
More often than not, laws and policies around the issue of
cyberbullying are unclear, incomplete or simply non-existent,
especially when educators are faced with incidents that occurred
outside of school. This ambiguity leaves school officials uncertain
about what authority they actually have, making them hesitant to take
action.
“I have parents who thank me for getting involved,” said Mike
Rafferty, the middle school principal in Old Saybrook, Conn., “and
parents who say, ‘It didn’t happen on school property, stay out of
my life.(Hoffman, J., 2010).

6. BUT FOR ME, THE ANSWER IS
YES
• In 2013, Nova Scotia became the first province in
Canada to pass legislation that protects victims of
cyberbullying and makes cyberbullies accountable
under the law.
• This legislation included amendments to the
Education Act, making it clear that it is the duty of
school staff to report known incidents of
cyberbullying and that administrators must
investigate and respond to these incidents,
including those that occur after school hours and
off school grounds, if they impact students or
school climate.
• In other words, if we see it, we have to own it.

7. WHICH IS GREAT, EXCEPT…
• This new legislation erases the doubts about whether or not
school officials have the authority to deal with cyberbullying
that takes places outside it’s walls, empowering educators
to take definitive action.
• However, school officials can only own what they are aware
of, and since teachers and administrators have little access
to the places where cyberbullying occurs, they have few
opportunities to witness incidents firsthand.
• The implication is that we must effectively encourage
students to come forward and report cases of
cyberbullying.

8. FINAL THOUGHTS
• It is every educators’ responsibility to ensure a secure
and positive learning environment for their students.
The act of cyberbullying might not occur at school, but
if it’s impact is felt at school, then it becomes the
school’s problem. To take a hands off approach to
cyberbully is unethical.
“ ‘Educators are empowered to maintain safe
schools...The timidity of educators in this context of
emerging technology is working to the advantage of
bullies.’”(Hoffman, J., 2010).

9. REFERENCES
CyberSCAN, (2013). Nova Scotia Cyber Safety. Retrieved from
http://cyberscan.novascotia.ca/#first_blue
Government of Nova Scotia, (2013). Cyber-safety Act.
Retrieved from
http://nslegislature.ca/legc/bills/61st_5th/1st_read/b061.ht
m
Hoffman, J. (2010). Online Bullies Pull Schools into the Fray
Retrieved from
http://www.nytimes.com/2010/06/28/style/28bully.html?pa
gewanted=all&_r=0