You hear about it every time you turn on the TV: “Teen commits suicide over cyber bullying” or “three arrested in cyber bullying case.” Cyber bullying is an epidemic sweeping the nations schools and The Albany Academies is no exception. Sure, we haven’t had any major incidents; nobody has been arrested, and nobody has taken it to the next level. But there is bullying.
Twitter has become the battleground, and words the weapon. So-called “Twitter fights” are seen daily on twitter. Students sending harassing tweets making fun of appearance, intelligence, and just about anything they can think of. It would seem that student’s creativity shines brightly in a negative way. These case are usually dealt with by the students or, if it continues, Mr. McIver and the FDC.
These tweets are usually between two friends taking shots at each other, but what happens when it becomes more than a joke? The victim might become depressed and feel alone, or worse, it could escalate into violence. The stress and embarrassment of the situation could cause even the most levelheaded kid to snap.
There are many repercussions of bullying on twitter. What happens when a college administrator sees that in the past you’ve bullied kids over the Internet? Any college administrator will tell you that cyber bullying can cause you to be wait-listed or denied altogether. The fact is, once you put something out there, it’s out there forever. You can’t take it back. What seems like a joke between you and a friend might seem like something totally different to an outsider.
Though the Academy hardly experiences the most severe problems associated with cyber bullying, the potential for trouble certainly exists, and that means that we as a community must keep our guard up.