Cyberbullying...
"Don't Be Mean Behind the Screen"
"Youth can find positive peer support in social media, or they can experience increased depression and risk for suicidal behaviors as a result of cyberbullying." (Bickham et al., 2020)
When I was reading this week's required reading and looking through the resources, this quote stood out and stuck with me. The students we encounter on a daily basis, and this includes our own personal children as well, will not be able to escape the realities of social media. But, they can either be positively influenced or negatively influenced by social media experiences. It's up to us, as parents, friends, role models, and professionals to help guide students in the right direction and teach them how to navigate the world of social media. We must stress the importance of good digital citizenship so we can hopefully help students find positive aspects of social media and avoid instances that create negativity, comparison, and self-doubt. As adults, we've all been there. I think of my own personal social media usage and how I have lived in both a world without internet and social media, and stepped into the world wide web and America Online at thirteen years old. I have scrolled social media and been uplifted and encouraged and also found endless positive influences from fellow teachers, librarians, home decor influencers, and book enthusiasts. However, I have also scrolled social media and felt left out, forgotten, and let comparisons drive negative thoughts and create bad moods. So, the question is, how do we help tweens and teens who are just jumping into the social media scene, navigate this digital world safely and in a healthy way?
There are an abundance of resources, lesson plans, and curriculum being shared for digital citizenship, and one mentioned in a reading this week is a curriculum called Screenshots from Youth Media Literacy. You can find out more information at Screenshots . "Screenshots is a nine-lesson, in-class, middle school curriculum that uses educational and behavior change strategies based on media literacy, TPB, and Habits of Thought to teach students how to think critically about the social media messages they create, receive, and disseminate. It delivers lessons that help youth manage online conflict, recognize how online behavior contributes to mental health problems, practice empathy, and explore the role of digital media in peer pressure that can lead to bullying and substance abuse." (Bickham et al., 2020) Screenshots aligns with Common Core State Standards as well as ISTE standards. This is definitely a selling point for librarians and teachers. Incorporating lessons and curriculum into the library is a fantastic way to share the importance of good digital citizenship and equip students to be successful and safe while using the internet.
One of the resources shared this week was a collection of videos. I love sharing videos with students because I think it's a great way to hook them, engage their minds, and create discussion. I used short videos all the time when I was teaching ELA standards, so I really love this list of videos for cyberbullying. I think a great way to generate discussion is to show one of these videos before library class and discuss how we can be positive internet users. Here is one example shared in the video resource list. This video really portrays how students have the power to create a positive or negative influence when using social media and how fast their interactions spread.
This week for our digital curation project, I actually chose the topic "Digital Citizenship". I focused on the broad term of digital citizenship as I believe it can encompass many facets from internet safety, digital footprint, cyberbullying, spotting fake news, finding credible and reliable sources, etc. There are many topics that fall under the umbrella of digital citizenship. I added a subtopic to my digital curation project for cyberbullying so that I could save this week's resources. Feel free to check out my Wakelet to find more resources for digital citizenship. Digital Citizenship Curation
What lessons or curriculum do you use or have your heard of to use for digital citizenship including cyberbullying?
Citations
Bickham, D. S., Moukalled, S., Inyart, H., & Zlokower,
R. (2020). Assessing Screenshots: An in-school evaluation of a middle-school
digital citizenship curriculum (Preprint). JMIR Mental Health.
https://doi.org/10.2196/26197
Hi Emily,
ReplyDeleteFirst of all, I love the quote that you opened up with. It hooked me into reading your blog immediately. I also enjoyed hearing the perspective of someone who grew up without the Internet and learned to use it as you grew older. I grew up with the Internet, so I have never known a world without it, and I cannot imagine what it was like. I cannot wait to check out your project on digital citizenship.
Hi Emily,
ReplyDeleteYou are right that it is up to us to teach our students and children about the dangers of social media and the Internet. I did not understand these dangers and had to deal with my child having suicidal and dangerous behaviors because of this. I wish I had been more proactive in teaching my child about these dangers. He is now 25 and still struggles with depression. I think every school should have programs similar to Screenshots that can educate students about cyberbullying, how to avoid doing it, and also how to cope with it. Everyone, not just students. needs to realize that what they see on social media is not reality.