A sequel to "Notes from a conference on bullying," posted last week.... Cyberbullying incidents don't happen in a vacuum. I'm saying this because I keep running into signs that adults do think they are events that somehow happen in a vacuum or come in out of the blue. However, since Facebook activity is a reflection of users and their lives – and much of the focus of most teens' lives is … [Read more...] about Cyberbullying: What I’ve learned so far
school policy
Mobile learning’s growing momentum: Study
The tide against cellphones in school – for learning, not just communication – seems to be turning. Student engagement, tight school budgets (or reasonable technology that so many students already own), and the fact that students like using their own devices are the "driving factors," according to a study by Project Tomorrow, which conducts the annual national Speak Up Survey of students, … [Read more...] about Mobile learning’s growing momentum: Study
The freedom to *not* fit in
...and to be oneself is something every young person deserves, President Obama said this week, when he spoke of his sadness over the suicides of gay youth. "We've got to dispel this myth that bullying is a rite of passage, some inevitable part of growing up. It's not. We have the job of ensuring our schools are safe for all of our kids." Ensuring that every child not only has that freedom but is … [Read more...] about The freedom to *not* fit in
Follow-up to PA ‘school spying’ story
The Philadelphia-area school district that was sued for capturing thousands of photos of students in their homes has agreed to pay $610,000 to settle lawsuits filed by two students' families, according to a report in the Washington Post. The photos were captured by the Webcams in school laptops that went home with students in two of the district's high schools. In the cases, the district had … [Read more...] about Follow-up to PA ‘school spying’ story
Cyberbullying: Can schools intervene?
A heart-wrenching student's suicide thoughtfully reported in the Cleveland Plain Dealer illustrates schools' and families' struggles over bullying and cyberbullying. It's not clear how causative the bullying – of a beautiful Croatian student – was in her suicide two years ago, or how much the cruelty continued online, but the article and the accompanying video interview of the student's family … [Read more...] about Cyberbullying: Can schools intervene?