Digital Citizenship Middle School Welcome to our third parent session on Digital Citizenship – Cyberbullying and Digital Drama.  Some of you joined us for our earlier sessions, in which we introduced the concept of responsible online behavior and explored the topics of digital footprints and internet safety.  We are glad to have you back and we are also thrilled to see some new faces here today. We appreciate your interest in helping your student become a responsible digital citizen.

Cyberbullying and Digital Drama Our Digital Citizenship topics today are Cyberbullying and Digital Drama.  Let’s begin by watching this brief clip from Common Sense Media. 

Reflect How would you describe the behavior in the video? Let’s reflect on the behavior we saw in the video. Scan the QR code and share your thoughts briefly on the Padlet. Think about how you would describe the behavior…Do you think there were examples of bullying and drama? Why or why not? (Give parents a few minutes to respond, then proceed to the next slide to show and discuss the responses on the Padlet.)

Reflect How would you describe the behavior in the video? Padlet Responses (Click on the link for the Padlet Responses and take a moment to review some of the thoughts from the parents. Emphasize that the brief clip was filled with bullying and drama.)  This was a series of clips from the popular Real Housewives shows. You may be wondering why we are watching this at a middle school digital citizenship session…Why do you think this video is relevant to our topic? (Call on a couple of parents to share, then build on their answers.)  This video is a part of Common Sense Media’s material on Cyberbullying and Digital Drama because it illustrates behaviors that tweens and teens are increasingly displaying online and it shows an adult in a social media war with a teenager and adult peers.

What is Cyberbullying and Digital Drama? Children, tweens, and teens—unfortunately—have always had to deal with bullying and drama. We did, our parents did, our grandparents did…and so on. Traditional in-person bullying and drama still exists. But our youth today also have to deal with bullying and drama online now because of how connected they have become with each other through technology. As discussed in our earlier sessions, your students don’t interact with each other simply in person or talking on the phone. They connect through texts, emails, online gaming, social media, and video chat.  These online arenas significantly increase the opportunities for bullies to strike and also creates a climate  where bullies can hide behind a digital tool (phone/computer/tablet) and feel more free and empowered to target people.  Let’s dig a little deeper into each topic.  Before we move to the next slide, look at the wordle and reflect on the terms that relate to cyberbullying and digital drama. 

What is Cyberbullying? Cyberbullying is the use of digital tools—computers, cellphones, ipads/tablets—to intentionally upset or harass another person. The most common examples of cyberbullying are sending hurtful messages, posting embarrassing or inappropriate photos/videos, and spreading rumors online. The bullying often happens repeatedly. Let’s watch this video to see an example of cyberbullying. (After the video, ask parents to share their thoughts.) 

What is Digital Drama? Digital drama is a term used to refer to the everyday disputes that occur between friends online. It can seem relatively harmless, but in reality this drama can easily escalate and can lead to more serious problems such as cyberbullying. What starts off as an innocent comment could transform and spread online to damaging rumors. This brief video will provide you with a better understanding of digital drama. (After the video, ask parents to share their thoughts.)

How Can We Help? Stop Tell Save Block As educators and parents, we can help our students handle cyberbullying and digital drama. Talk with your students about these topics and emphasize following four steps. 1) Stop—if there appears to be cyberbullying or even digital drama, tell your student to step away from his or her digital device. “Take a Break.” 2) Tell. Reassure your student that you love and support them, and that they should come talk to you—or another trusted adult—with any concerns. 3) Save. Print out comments or screen shot the disturbing material. 4) Block. Block the bully on the digital device to prevent him or her from texting/e-mailing/posting to your student. As with our other digital citizenship topics that we have covered, communication is key. Maintain an ongoing and open dialogue with your student about cyberbullying and digital drama.

Follow the Golden Rule Before we wrap up, let’s take just a moment to also touch upon the importance of talking with your student about their own actions towards others online. It is important to stress to students to always show respect and to think about how what they post, text, and share online might make others feel. In addition, students should feel compelled to report--not ignore—cyberbullying and digital drama.

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Resources Common Sense Media: Cyberbullying/Digital Drama https://www.commonsensemedia.org/ Stop Cyberbullying http://www.stopcyberbullying.org/ Stay Safe Online https://staysafeonline.org/ Cyberbullying Research Center http://cyberbullying.org/ Thank for taking the time to attend our session and learn about cyberbullying and digital drama. Please refer to the resources here—also listed on your parent handout. Are there any questions?