Cure the Bullies

Cyber bullying fears rife among parents

7 March 2011

ONE in five Australian parents believes their child has been bullied over the internet, according to a new study.

(Courtesy of Greg Thom from Herald Sun)

Despite this alarming statistic, parents are in denial about their own children's capacity to monster others online.  Not one Australian mum or dad of the 1500 canvassed in the online survey was prepared to believe their own child could be a cyber bully.

Internet safety expert Robyn Trevaud said the contradiction was typical of the complex causes of bullying and how to treat what is a growing problem.

"Most parents want to believe their children are good kids," she said.  The fact that some cyber bullies had themselves been subjected to bullying behaviour at home, however, was a hidden factor in many cases.  "I have an old saying I use -- scratch the kid and find the parent," Ms Trevaud said.

The Vodafone Digital Parenting report found more than one in three children aged six to 18 spend at least 10 hours a week outside school hours on the net.  The study also revealed:

ONE in 10 parents acknowledged their child may have been a witness to online bullying.

MORE than 85 per cent of Australian parents believe they would recognise if their child was being harassed.

ABOUT 85 per cent of parents are confident their child is safe in cyberspace.

The study comes as national philanthropy network SchoolAid and the Vodafone Foundation have joined forces to launch curethebullies.com.au

The interactive website is aimed at educating and empowering children to recognise and take a stand against cyber bullying.

Father of three and SchoolAid spokesman Richard Sauerman said with one in four Australian children affected by cyber bullying, parents are still struggling to understand the issue. "You may not even be a bully in the playground, but could be fuelling the fire by passing on emails and things like that," he said.

Support from the Australian Primary Principals Association

18 October 2010

Leonie Trimper, President of the Australian Primary Principals Association show her support of SchoolAid's Cure the Bullies Campaign:

"SchoolAid has just launched its latest campaign around the growing issue of cyberbullying both within our schools and outside our school grounds.

CureTheBullies is a fun, interactive website designed to help kids identify potential bullying or "bystander" behaviour within themselves and helps them cure their "Bullies Virus" with the help of some special potions like Kindness or Friendship. The self-diagnosis quiz provides a great starting point for classroom discussions about the issue, such as whether being an onlooker constitutes approval of bullying behaviour and what steps kids can take to be courageous friends if the issue of cyberbullying arises.

SchoolAid is further supporting these classroom discussions by providing free teacher resources available for download from their website     I highly recommend you download them and choose some appropriate discussion points as a starting point for some important conversations in your classes"

Teachers! Take action!

12 October 2010

Is cyberbullying becoming an issue in your school?

You're not alone. Visit these websites to find information, resources and contacts. 

Check out these links:

ACMA's CyberSmart program

The Australian Federal Police's thinkuknow site in partnership with Microsoft

You can request a visit to your school by an expert in the issue and find out how to implement in-school programs to address this growing issue.

Download FREE classroom resources!

11 October 2010

Values education is an essential part of early childhood development, but sometimes it can be difficult to offer students tangible and engaging opportunities to demonstrate its relevance in the classroom.

At the same time, it can be challenging for teachers to find the time in their busy schedules to offer in-depth examination of philanthropic issues while fulfilling their other curriculum needs.

SchoolAid has engaged education experts at Macquarie University's Institute of Early Childhood to develop Springboards to Philanthropy - a set of tools and ideas you can use in the classroom to support values education and philanthropic development within your curriculum. These resources have been designed and written to align to relevant areas of the curriculum so that you can seamlessly and easily build values education into your daily teaching practice.

In the classroom, these Springboards (find them above in the 'Downloads' section) invite children to reflect on their lives and experiences of bullying through a range of scenarios. Teachers can encourage a sense of caring and compassion in children by encouraging discussion, storytelling and drama.

The intention of these Springboards is to provide a basis to encourage awareness in young people of the implications of bullying and ways to develop strategies to be strong and address issues that underpin bullying. An understanding of the diverse cultural identities of the Australian community is fundamental to addressing this issue. Philosophies that enhance and foster diversity and difference are critical in contemporary society, where bullying, especially cyber bullying, often based around difference, is of increasing concern.

The springboards reflect the values embedded in the Australian Government's National Framework for Values Education in Australian Schools (Department of Employment, Education and Workplace Relations).

About CuretheBullies

11 October 2010

For parents and teachers

Developed BY kids FOR kids, CureTheBullies is a fun, interactive awareness-raising campaign, which focuses on a completely new approach to the issue - targeting the 'bystander' - kids who may witness bullying behaviour or even act as an accomplice to bullying behaviours, through their use of email, social networking or text messaging.

Aimed at children between eight and 12 years of age, the campaign helps children identify passive bystander behaviour in themselves and offers them tools and advice on how to rid themselves of their "Bullies Virus".

Six cyberbullying behaviours have been turned into disgusting, slimy Bullies Viruses. Kids can visit the website   and take a fun self-discovery test to "diagnose" their Bullies Virus. If infected, kids use a "cure" such as Understanding or Courage to pickle their Bullies Virus!

Meet the Bullies Viruses

Gang Green
Symptoms: Ganging up on someone on Facebook, blogs or forums
Cure: Friendship

Forwarditis
Symptoms: Forwarding emails, pictures or messages that could make someone feel bad
Cure: Understanding

Onlookerosis
Symptoms: Doing nothing at all when someone is being bullied on emails, blogs or Facebook
Cure: Courage

Meet the rest of the disgusting Bullies Viruses!

Frequently Asked Questions

11 October 2010

How did you develop the campaign?

This is truly a campaign BY kids FOR kids, addressing the audience not from an adult authoritative perspective, but a peer-to-peer behaviour awareness perspective.
 SchoolAid and the Vodafone Foundation have worked closely with various groups of primary school-aged students through focus and advisory groups in the development of the campaign. We asked about the kinds of technology they used, any cyberbullying they had encountered, and the ways they had thought of to counter it. We met with the groups at different stages of the campaign to attain feedback about the Bullies Virus characters, the quiz and the Pickling Gallery.

I have done the quiz and even though I think I am a nice person who NEVER bullies anyone, I have been diagnosed with Onlookerosis! Why?

Most kids don't engage in bullying behavior. But those that do, rely on others to stand back and do nothing (or even encourage them) to feel powerful. Most kids we have spoken to do admit to sometimes being a bit too scared to speak out about bullying behavior, whether it happens to them, someone they know, or even a stranger online.
Just because you have been diagnosed with one of the viruses doesn't mean you aren't a great friend. In fact, by acknowledging that you may sometimes show 'bystander behaviours ', you understand that you can fix these behaviours and become an even better friend! Maybe next time you see someone being bullied, you'll feel more confident about speaking out!

Are you saying that everyone is a bully?

We realise that most kids do NOT engage in active bullying behavior, however when onlookers remain silent, bullying behaviour is allowed to continue. Our discussions with kids have indicated that most kids DO admit to occasional aspects of 'bystander behavior' ie they don't report bullying behavior to teachers, or they are too scared to speak up when they see someone else being bullied. This 'bystander behaviour' is what we are targeting with this campaign and it is where we believe true cultural change around the issue of cyberbullying can occur. By providing a safe and fun space for kids to identify in themselves their own behaviours, they can then choose to take a stand and pledge their commitment to stamping out cyberbullying by pickling their Bullies Virus.

How do I find my Bullies Virus in the gallery?

For Privacy and Child Protection reasons, we have chosen not to include in the same place the names of children with their school on the pickled Bullies Viruses in the gallery. You can find your Bullies Virus by hovering over the pickled viruses with the magnifying glass and searching for your initials. Don'tforget to check out the Leaderboard to see where your school ranks in terms of bravery for having the most pickled Bullies Viruses!

My child's school is near the top of the leaderboard - does this mean they have a bullying epidemic?

Don't forget, the pickled Bullies Viruses represent bullying behaviours that have been cured! Our research indicated that most kids do occasionally show some aspects of 'bystander' or 'onlooker' behavior and these are the actions we are 'curing' with this awareness-raising campaign. The schools at the top of the leaderboard can show that they have addressed the issue of cyberbullying, whether it is active or passive behavior - and that it is something that the kids themselves are working on. Leading the way in means your school has the greatest number of kids who have taken a stand against cyberbullying!

I am a parent, where can I find out more?

Find out more about SchoolAid's commitment to the development of philanthropy in primary-aged students.

I am a teacher. I would like to discuss this issue further in the classroom. Can you provide me with any information?

SchoolAid has engaged education experts at Macquarie University's Institute of Early Childhood to develop Springboards to Philanthropy - a set of tools and ideas you can use in the classroom to support values education and philanthropic development within your curriculum. These resources have been designed and written to align to relevant areas of the curriculum so that you can seamlessly and easily build values education into your daily teaching practice.

Find them in the 'Downloads' section above.

The cyberbullying epidemic

10 October 2010

Bullying, in its many forms, is a human rights issue and a serious problem in society today. It is something many children and young people experience as they progress through the education system.

The effects of bullying are widespread, not only for those who are bullied and their families but also for teachers, communities and for those who bully.

According to Galaxy Research (2008) up to 25% of children will experience cyberbullying in their time at school.

This campaign provides children with ownership of their experiences and investigations to build their understanding of their role as responsible members of the community.