Impersonation is a form of identity change that occurs online or is perpetrated via technology. This type of intimidation has increased in recent years, thanks to children spending more time online, both for academic purposes and socialisation.
Many reports state that a large number of students have been the victims of traditional bullying all over the world. It can be particularly challenging for educators to prevent, as it can’t be seen in academic institution hallways and can occur of college or school grounds and after class hours. Despite this, impersonation still impacts students and can be an in-house problem. Preventing it often involves education, both for potential cyberbullying victims and perpetrators. Nowadays cyberbullying takes place on social media, through videos and texts, or as part of online games.
Obviously, it is generally defined as involving an imbalance of physical or emotional power, intent to cause physical or emotional harm, and behaviour that is repeated or likely to be repeated. It occurs online frequently through social media or other forms of digital communication. We live in a world now where bullying doesn’t begin and end with school bells, but rather it encompasses a kid’s entire life. Cyberstalking can be hard for both educators and parents to recognise because they don’t overhear or see it occurring, and it might take place in private text chains or on message boards that adults don’t monitor frequently.
In fact, students may also be reluctant to admit that it is happening. To prevent cyberbullying, students should be taught digital citizenship and literacy. These lessons and activities should emphasise online safety, remind students to think before posting, that posts are permanent, and that there are important implications to that permanence.
Eventually, other key steps are for academic leaders to prioritise empathy education. That way, if cyberbullying does occur, caregivers of both the victim and the perpetrator can be enlisted to help put an end to it. While some educators and parents might be inclined to ban technology use as a way to protect students from cyberbullying, which is not the answer because technology is part of kids’ lives. Educators and parents need to teach children how to use technology responsibly and guard themselves against the negative effects of cyberbullying.
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