Cyberbullying

Cyberbullying has become one of the biggest problems for people over the past few years.  It happens in every age group, from early teens to adulthood, people are constantly being cyberstalked or bullied online.  The tragedy of cyberbullying, is that too frequently it leads to teenagers committing suicide, and the victims parents usually don't have a clue of what led to such a drastic act (Jessica 2013).  Social media has come a long way over the past ten years, especially with Facebook expanding exponentially every year, and with its growth comes more cases of cyberbullying.  The main question is how do teachers and adults put a stop to it?  How do we stop cyberbullying?  I remember several years ago, when I was still living in New Jersey, there was a young man who was eighteen years old at the time, who was a very shy person.  He indulged himself in music, and was actually the top violinist in the state at the time.  I don't remember what college he was attending at the time, but he was constantly bullied online about his homosexuality.  Eventually he committed suicide by jumping off the Tappan Zee Bridge.  It was a very sad case, because he had a great relationship with his parents, who supported him in everything he pursued.  Bullying has always been an issue inside schools ever since they were first created.  The difference now, is that there is very little a person can do to fight back against cyberbullying.  Many law enforcement agencies are starting to press criminal charges on people who harass others online, but again there's little they can do about it, because not all cyberbullying cases are immediately reported (Jessica 2013).  School children have very easy access to all forms of technology, and educators have difficulty regulating the way they are used.  I don't know of any cyberbullying cases in my school district, but I do know that Dare County has a zero-tolerance policy when it comes to bullying of any sort.  Being bullied physically by someone at school can usually be put to a stop, either by telling a teacher about it, or (I do agree with this to an extent) by fighting back.  A person who is bullied online can't fight back or stand-up for themselves when there's little they can do to prevent the bully from harassing them.  They can block them from accessing their social media account, ignore them or they can call the authorities.  It is definitely an issue that has become more and more pronounced as technology has advanced.  Technology has gotten to the point where has surpassed our culture and society in advancement, because there are many people in the world who do not know how to use technology responsibly.

Bibliography:
Jessica, "The Frightening Phenomenon of Cyberbullying" November 18, 2013.  retrieved from: http://www.i-lawsuit.com/cyberbullying/