Issue link: http://digital.copcomm.com/i/58727
Under existing law, school districts can only discipline students if the attacks are likely to cause a "substantial disruption" in the school's learning environment. In January, the U.S. Supreme Court left intact two lower court decisions that said schools could not discipline students who satirized their principals online. In those cases, Pennsylvania high school students created online profiles of principals suggesting one was a pedophile and another used illegal drugs and was gay. Neither of those cases was considered a "substantial disruption" in the learning environment. The Supreme Court let stand a ruling that allowed pun- ishment of a student who harassed a class- mate online. Nancy Willard notes that previous rul- ings define a "substantial disruption" as something that jeopardizes school safety and interferes with students being able to receive an education. This leaves school districts unable to mete out punishment for cyberbullying of staff in many cases. Schools may not always be able to suspend students who cyberbully teach- ers, but teachers can file lawsuits against students and their families. Grounds for lawsuits might include defamation of character, invasion of privacy, intentional infliction of emotional distress, or repre- sentation in a false light. "All of these things take a long time to prove and a lot of money, and law- suits will continue the dispute for a very long time," says Willard, author of the soon-to-be published Cyber Savvy, Digital Safety and Civility. "Yes, you might win and prove your point that the student did something wrong, but is it worth it?" (To see a story about a CTA member who sued, see facing page.) For teachers who are harassed, it can be frustrating to see students go unpunished. "There were no consequences," says Kelly Kiech, the Santa Rosa teacher who had been the subject of obscene Face- book allegations. "The girl wasn't even suspended. There needs to be some kind of consequences, so kids will know that is not OK." What can be done? Most cyberbullying is done anonymously, but it can be possible to find out who the culprit is using the process of elimination. For example, if there is a Facebook hate group for a teacher, says Nancy Willard, discern which "friends" are receiving the postings, and then see who, from that social group, is "missing." That person is likely behind the online attacks. "These are teenagers," says Willard. "They leave a lot of digital footprints. Lots of students know who they are at school. And one of these students will be willing to confidentially tell the principal what is going on." Students often can't be suspended, so Willard suggests that schools hold an "investigation" of the incident and also a "restorative intervention" between the teacher and student conducted by a neu- tral party, preferably a counselor or school psychologist from another campus. In this format, the student could talk about why he was angry at the teacher in the first place, and the teacher could tell the stu- dent how the cyberbullying incident hurt his feelings and affected his life. The goal, she says, is to mend the relationship, have the student be held accountable and then move forward. "Punishment from a legal perspective can get a school district into trouble, but if we throw our hands up in the air and do nothing, that's not good either," she says. David Hernandez, an anti-bullying trainer from CTA's Community Outreach Department, believes perpetrators should be strongly encouraged — perhaps with parental help — to issue an apology both verbally and in writing to the teacher and perhaps the school community. Students could also be asked to issue a public apol- ogy at an anti-bullying assembly on cam- pus or perform community service. "It's not going to erase what has hap- pened, but at least it will make the student think about what they did," says Hernan- dez. "And it will send a message to other kids that this behavior is not acceptable and will not be tolerated." Tell your principal. If you feel you have grounds for a lawsuit, call your CTA primary contact staff. Contact Facebook, MySpace or the Internet provider in question, and ask them to remove the page or profile immediately. Do not personally retaliate online. Keep evidence of an incident by not deleting text messages, e-mails etc. Take a screen capture of materials including URLs or Web addresses. Look at the "friends" or others to whom the posting was sent, and see who is missing from that social circle. Ask students who received the messages to name the offender confidentially. Ask your administrator to discuss the situation with the student's parents and request an apology. Schedule a training about cyberbullying from CTA's Community Outreach Department. Hold an anti-bullying assembly at your school. March 2012 / www.cta.org 21 A few suggestions... If you have been cyberbullied: