Category: Chapter 6: Awareness Raising

6. Awareness Raising

Based on school testing in schools within the project “Joining Forces to Combat Cyber Bullying in Schools”, we are suggesting a holistic combined approach which we presented in the fifth chapter. It consists of four activities: Awareness Raising, No Blame Approach, Mediation Clubs and Creativity Groups.

And in this chapter, we will introduce you to our first activity: Awareness Raising. It is focusing on three target groups that are most involved in cases of cyberbullying in the school environment: student, school staff, and parents.

We are presenting two implementation plans of awareness raising with students – one that takes half to one working day and the other that can be implemented in a short workshop. We also prepared a program for school staff and another one for parents and at the end you can find suggestions for additional activities, that you can use if needed.

Methodological notes

The time of awareness raising activities will probably be short and the number of participants high. However, it is strongly suggested to find ways to interact and start a dialogue with the audience in order to engage them in the lesson and especially push them to come out with their own idea before we explain our point of view.

We recommend the use of some short videos to break the flow of the lesson and keep their attention on a high level. Some suggestions include:

  • the mind reader: (Virus, hacker, and data safety)
  • Little Red on Facebook: (privacy)
  • the sheep series: http://www.sheeplive.eu/
  • guess who:

6.1 Meeting with students 1

Duration:

4-5 hours
Program Time Material
Warm welcome, presentation of the trainer team, objective of the activity, presentation of the students Up to 30 min circle of chairs, flipchart, moderation material – should be organized beforehand!
Expectations of the day of the participants

Division into groups up to 4, 5 min discussion, group chooses 5 expectations and visualizes them on cards (per card only one expectation), Groups share their results – team wraps up

 15 min cards, markers, scotch, pin board
Overview of media usage and equipment
Oral exchange in a big circle:

  • what are you using regularly?
  • what are doing exactly? Playing, internet surfing, chats etc.?
  • which social networks are you using?
  • which websites are most interesting for you?

 10 min circle – plenary
Exchange of the danger of using the net – “to carve out” the disadvantages – group work:

  • What do I know – what can happen? What has happened already to persons I know, to me…?

Each group writes the experiences on a flipchart as a list or mind map and presents it
Alternative: pairs who will exchange experiences more in depth and then come together with another pair – they write the paper without telling the stories again – only facts – and then present

 30 min
markers and flipchart paper
Break 15 min
Transfer of perspectives – opinion barometer

Group will listen to statements and every individual decides which position reflects his/her personal opinion – the team will ask some students representing different positions for their reasons – the other students only listen – no discussion

After some statements and listening to arguments, the students will take their seats again and the team will raise open questions:

  • What have you experienced?
  • How did you assess the arguments of the others?
  • How come that perception is so different?

 30 min Prepared statements
line with comments
Verbalisation of a definition of cyber-bullying by listening to a little story – presented by the team

Plenary: what does cyberbullying mean?

Brainstorming and the team will pick the main elements to formulate the definition with the agreement of the students

 15 min Flipchart and the story in your country language
Deepening of knowledge of different perspectives:

  1. Show the video clip “ Let´s fight it together” for only 5 minutes and then stop. Cards of the different roles will be placed in the room and the students are asked to imagine the different roles (Joe, Kim, teacher, mother, bystander)

  • How does X feel in the clip?
  • What do you think what could be his/her wish?
  • What can he/she do to change the situation?

  1. Show the rest of the clip – notice the atmosphere in class and reflect the situation: “I observe you are a little bit shocked,…we will go on and you can express what you think.”

Students take turns to slip again into the different roles. The team doesn´t comment at this point.

Students who approach Kim´s card will be asked:

” Why is Kim doing this, what do you think?”

The question to the bystander role: “ Why do they join in, what could be their motivation?”

Question for the observers: “What hindered the observers to intervene in favor of Joe?

Summary of the team, students are asked to let go of the roles.

 20min

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

25min

 Internet-connection , beamerRole cards with the name of the actors of the videoclip
Long break

 

 30-60 min
Energizer 10 min
Development of strategies to react in situations of cyberbullying and prevention – students will be divided into two-three groups, parallel group work sessions and presentation – the other group can add ideas and propositions. 30min
Evaluation and feedback. How was the day – looking back to the expectations and giving space to express impressions and feelings? In addition, students could be asked to write a letter to themselves where they reflect how they will react in the future in case of cyberbullying. Letters will be collected by the team and send to them later by post.

The team will cordially thank the students for their participation and input.

 20 min Feedback questionnaires if wanted
Lists of links and material should be prepared for the students.

A follow-up session after 2-3 weeks would be appreciated to enhance the motivation to fight cyberbullying.

Possible questions:

  • Has the project day changed your attitude/perception?
  • Was the project day helpful to prevent cyberbullying?
  • Any other ideas to fight cyberbullying?

6.2 Meeting with students 2

Duration:

90 minutes
Aim:

  • Inform the students about the on-going project
  • Help students to realize how little they actually know about the web
  • Help students to think about the consequences of their on-line behavior
  • Inform students about “Cyber-bullying” and how we expect to face it through this project
Program Time Details
The project 10 min What is this European project about?
Which other countries are working together with us?
Introduction: what is the Internet? 15 min Question and interaction to warm up:

  • Is the Internet virtual or real?
  • Do we really know what the internet is?

(What is the “Internet”? When was the Internet born? How can the information “run” to the other part of the world in less than a second?…)

  • Is the internet good or bad?

(What are the best use and the worse?)

Conclusion and message:

The Internet is not virtual at all… it is the biggest communication network ever existed, based on a huge number of infrastructures (servers, fiber-optic cables, ocean cables, antennas…) and services companies with thousands of employees and billions of real people connected to it.
It represents the biggest archive of information ever and is constantly growing.

Good or bad? It can be both very good and very bad… it’s up to us, and the way we choose to use it. We all are responsible for making it a better and useful place.
Overview of the main “web-safety” issues 20 min Question to kids

  • What behaviors can be risky on the Internet?

Presentation (each topic may be associated with a catchy image and a keyword)

  • Virus
  • Privacy (image of the “social toilet”)
  • Personal data exposure (image of tooth-brush-passwords)
  • Masquerading (Do we know who is behind?)
  • Insulting and hate speech
  • Addiction
  • Outing (diffusion of embarrassing information and photos)

Conclusion with interaction and message:

  • Why do we take risks on the web?

(because we don’t know the consequences because we feel smarter because we follow the “crowd”, or the fashion of the moment, lack of EMPATHY…)
Cyberbullying 20 min Presentation of the topic

  • What is cyber-bullying?
  • What is the difference between traditional bullying? (why can the consequences be much worse)
  • How to protect ourselves
  • How to react (the role of the victim and of the group)
  • Examples (raising of empathy)

Conclusion and message:

Cyber-bullying is not a game. It can happen to anyone. Everyone is responsible for stopping / reporting it to reduce the damages. Empathy is a key point: if we put ourselves in the victims´ shoes than we can understand there is no excuse not to act against it.
Conclusions 15 min What we can do together:

  • The mediation club, soon to be active in school: a team of students who will be trained to support their classmates to solve conflicts non-violently by offering a mediation which enables students to find fair solutions in case of conflict.

(suggest not to mention NBA approach in this context since this is more useful for Teachers and Parents)

  • Promote a better climate in school
  • Promote a positive use of the web
  • Become a positive “digital-community”
Conclusions 10 min

  • Discussion of activity calendar
  • Question & answer time

6.3 Meeting with Teachers

Duration:

90 minutes
Aim:

  • Present the project to the teachers
  • Share with teachers an overview of the risks and the social issues related to web use
  • Inform teachers about cyberbullying issues and collect their opinion and stories
  • Motivate teachers to be an active part of the project
Program Time Details
The project 10 min What is this European project about?
Which other countries are working together with us?

Presentation of the general goals:

  • Promoting a better climate in the school
  • Promoting a positive use of the web
  • Become a positive “digital-community”
Introduction to topics and dialog 15 min  Question and interaction to warm up:

Are students more experts than adults in Internet use?

Is the Internet mainly a positive or a negative invention? Why?

Can we (as adults and educators) support students to prevent and solve problems related to internet misuse?

Conclusion and message:

The Internet has a great potential for students learning, but can also be a significant source of distraction and risk if not used with awareness, creative and constructive approach. Teachers and educators may have an important role in this field through a variety of strategies of promotion, prevention, and intervention.
Overview of the main “web-safety” issues 15 min Quick overview (each topic may be associated with a catchy image and a keyword)

  • Virus (mind your clicks)
  • Privacy (image of the “social toilet”)
  • Personal data exposure (image of tooth-brush-passwords)
  • Masquerading (Do we know who is behind?)
  • Insulting and hate speech
  • Addiction
  • Outing (diffusion of embarrassing information and photos)

Conclusion and message:

Why do students take risks on the web?

(Because they are in the “exploring” age because they don’t know consequences, because they feel smarter, because they follow the “crowd” or the fashion of the moment, because of lack of EMPATHY…)

Conclusion with interaction and message:

  • Why do we take risks on the web?

(because we don’t know the consequences because we feel smarter because we follow the “crowd”, or the fashion of the moment, lack of EMPATHY…)
Cyberbullying 25 min  Presentation of the topic 

  • What is cyber-bullying?
  • What is the difference between traditional bullying? (why can the consequences be much worse)
  • Examples (raising of empathy)

What can we do as educators (teachers or parents)?

  • talk about theuse of the digital media with youngsters: this can also help to keep updated with the technologies they use the most
  • Set rules (can be discussed together, but once approved should be followed)
  • Keep the dialogue open: besides the rules, youngsters should know they can refer to adults if something goes wrong, and they will get help, not blame.

    Conclusion and message:

    Cyber-bullying is not a game. It can happen to everyone.

    Every student should feel responsible for stopping / reporting it to reduce the damages.

    Empathy is a key point: if students put themselves in the victims´ shoes then they can understand there is no excuse not to act against it.

    It’s very important that kids know they can talk with adults when something happens: “we all are in the same boat!”
Project details 15 min The activities of the project:

  • The mediation club: a team of students who will be trained to support their classmates to solve conflicts non-violently by offering a mediation which enables students to find fair solutions in case of conflict.
  • No Blame Approach:a way to reduce bullying and cyberbullying acts and their consequences, by asking all the students involved (on different levels) to contribute to changing the situation of the bullied child to the better and take responsibility to restore a positive climate

This approach requires not to “blame” (= publicly accuse) the “bully”right away but rather try first to involve him in the problem solution. This is an important point which Teachers and Parents should discuss(especially) and agree on before starting to apply it.
Conclusions 10 min

  • Discussion of activity calendar
  • Question & answer time

6.4 Meeting with Parents

Duration:

90 minutes
Aim:

  • Present the project to the parents
  • Share with them an overview of the risks and the social issues related to web use
  • Inform parents about cyberbullying issues and collect their opinion and stories
  • Motivate parents to keep informed and be an active part of the project
Program Time Details
The project 10 min What is this European project about?Which other countries are working together with us?
Introduction to topics and dialog 15 min Question and interaction to warm up:

Are students more experts than adults in Internet use?

Is the Internet mainly a positive or a negative invention? Why?

Can we (as adults and educators) support students to prevent and solve problems related to internet misuse?

Conclusion and message:

The Internet has a great potential for students learning, but can also be a significant source of distraction and risk if not used with awareness and a creative and constructive approach. Teachers and educators may have an important role in this field through a variety of strategies of promotion, prevention, and intervention.
Overview of the main “web-safety” issues 15 min Presentation (each topic may be associated with a catchy image and a keyword)

  • Virus (mind your clicks)
  • Privacy (image of the “social toilet”)
  • Personal data exposure (image of tooth-brush-passwords)
  • Masquerading (Do we know who is behind?)
  • Insulting and hate speech
  • Addiction
  • Outing (diffusion of embarrassing information and photos)

Conclusion and message:

Why do students take risks on the web?

(Because they don’t know the consequences because they feel smarter because they follow the “crowd”, or the fashion of the moment, lack of EMPATHY…)

Conclusion and message:

Why do students take risks on the web?

(Because they are in the “exploring” age because they don’t know consequences, because they feel smarter, because they follow the “crowd” or the fashion of the moment, because of lack of EMPATHY…)

Conclusion with interaction and message:

  • Why do we take risks on the web?

(because we don’t know the consequences because we feel smarter because we follow the “crowd”, or the fashion of the moment, lack of EMPATHY…)
Into Cyberbullying 25 min Presentation of the topic

  • What is cyber-bullying?
  • What is the difference between traditional bullying? (why can the consequences be much worse)
  • Examples (raising of empathy)

What can we do as educators (teachers or parents)?

  • talk about theuse of the digital media with youngsters: this can also help to keep updated with the technologies they use the most
  • Set rules (can be discussed together, but once approved should be followed)
  • Keep the dialogue open: besides the rules, youngsters should know they

can refer to adults if something goes wrong, and they will get help, not blame.

Conclusion and message:

Cyber-bullying is not a game. It can happen to everyone.

Everyone is responsible for stopping / reporting it to reduce the damages.

Empathy is a key point: if we put ourselves in the victims´ shoes then we can understand there is no excuse not to act against it.

It’s very important that kids know they can talk with adults when something happens: “we all are in the same boat!”
Project details 15 min The activities of the project:

  • The mediation club:a team of students who will be trained to support their classmates to solve conflicts non-violently by offering a mediation which enables students to find fair solutions in case of conflict.
  • No Blame Approach a way to reduce bullying and cyberbullying acts and their consequences, by asking all the students involved (on different levels) to contribute to changing the situation of the bullied child to the better and take responsibility to restore a positive climate.

This approach requires not to “blame” (= publicly accuse)the “bully” right away but try first to involve him in the problem solution. This is an important point which Teacher and Parents should discuss (especially) and agree on before starting to apply it.
Conclusions 10 min

  • Discussion of activity calendar
  • Question & answer time

6.5 Activity Suggestion: Bullying – Gray area – No bullying

Duration: 

30 min
Target group: 

applicable for classes or groups of teachers, 5 – 25 persons
Aim: 

Participants will be stimulated to classify negative behavior patterns into 3 groups: bullying, gray area, no bullying. This is a preparatory activity for the introduction of the definition of (cyber)bullying. It intends to sharpen the ability to distinguish between negative behavior and bullying.
Materials:

prepared cards, each describing one behavior, moderation cards
Instruction for implementation:

The facilitators have prepared small cards, each describing a behavior pattern and distribute these among the participants. Depending on the size of the group participants receive one or two cards. They have also prepared moderation cards  which will be placed on the ground in order to separate three different fields: Bullying/  Gray area/ no bullying.  Participants are asked to read their card aloud and place it into the field they consider correct with a short explanation.

Behavior

  • insulting looks
  • to talk behind so. back
  • to exclude so. (e.g. from a soccer game)
  • to mock so.
  • to take  sth. from a classmate
  • to spread theembarrassing news
  • verbal threats
  • to have a negative view of things
  • to make jokes
  • to quarrel
  • to not invite so.
  • to inflict damage on so.
  • to incite classmates
  • to publish embarrassing material of another person on Facebook, Instagram etc.
  • not to go to a birthday party although he/she has been invited
  • physical attacks
  • to refuse to sit next to so.
  • to blackmail so.
  • to ridicule so. because of looks to damage books, pens … from so. else

to damage books, pens … from so. else

Evaluation procedure:

The facilitator will point out that there will probably be differences in the judgment of the participants what can be identified as bullying. The next step is to introduce the definition of (cyber)bullying, underlining the difference between a conflict/quarrel