Tech

Anti-Bullying Apps Are Popular. But Do They Work?


Despite nationwide efforts put in place fundamental measures to prevent bullying — including annual campaigns like National Bullying Prevention Month—Bullying remains a serious public health problem. Tech developers responded to this crisis with, predictably, more technology. From apps that help parents educate their children about bullying, to technology to instantly record and track incidents, there’s no shortage of downloadable solutions for anyone looking. find a solution to this problem.

I graduated from high school in New York City at the time first anti-bullying law enacted in 1999. In the recent quarter-century since the state of Georgia took the lead in criminalizing bullying, all 50 states, in one form or another, take action to solve this problem. While I am pleased to see the progress being made on this front, it is still too late for those who move through school with goals on their backs, as I have been. It is because of my own experience that I follow discussions about anti-bullying efforts with great interest — and with a healthy dose of skepticism.

The technology-based elephant in the room

As an educator, I’ve seen firsthand how school administrators often talk about a good game when it comes to school’s “no nonsense” or “zero tolerance” bullying policies. surname. Entering any school, you are likely to see at least one anti-bullying poster hanging in the halls, some even created by the students themselves. But as a teacher and survivor of severe abuse at the hands of some of my former colleagues, I know that modern anti-bullying laws, policies, and applications are only effective when adults are willing to enforce them.

It remains true that not all school officials take complaints of bullying seriously, as the case of a California school district was recently discovered. complicit in a digital bullying campaign against one of his students. The school district was ordered to pay $1 million in damages to the teen victim. According to NBC News, “The egregious negligence of the School, Teacher, Principal, and District resulted in serious psychological and physical trauma to Plaintiff.”

When I come across stories like this, I can’t help but wonder how anti-bullying technology can make a difference and can make a difference for victims and their aggressors alike. . According to Kati Morton, licensed marriage and family therapist, media personalityand author of the book Vulnerable: Identifying, Understanding, and Coping with PTSD and Emotional Stress, in relying on technology to address bullying, we look outward to find solutions that can be turned inward. “I don’t really see the technology working. We need to have more conversations, and this needs to be said directly to parents. We also need teacher intervention,” she said. With online bullying identifying so many ways children are being bullied today, Morton believes “we need to implement solutions offline. “

It seems that some technology has put the opportunity to find a solution right in the hands of the target. Asking victims to do more to achieve safety in spaces that need to be safe (such as schools) doesn’t seem right to some mental health professionals. “We are placing this responsibility on someone who was hurt by downloading an app and taking these extra steps. We need to deal with people who are bullying. There needs to be consequences,” Morton said.

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