California Law Updated to Include Cyberbullying by Students Through Social Networking Sites

Bullying in school has been an issue for as long as anyone can remember. Each and every parent had their own method of teaching their child how to deal with this inevitable right of passage. “ignore them” or “be a man and stand up to them” was often advised by parents. Whatever technique was preferred, you could rest assured that most of the bullying from classmates stopped once you got home. Unfortunately today, thanks to technology, this is not the case. Bullying can continue nonstop through text messages, e-mails, chat rooms, and blogs. This can be psychologically draining to the teen that looks for some solace outside of school. The persistent harrassment via technology is called Cyberbullying, and has quickly become the preferred way to bully. Often times the content can be more psychologically damaging because it is done through a portal in which one can speak more freely without facing immediate repercussions and also the content can spread faster or “go viral” since it is usually made public. The recent tragedies due to cyberbullying has many been a catalyst in states enacting several anti-bullying laws.  

To emphasize the seriousness of cyberbullying prevention, California has updated a law that gave schools the right to suspend, or expel students who use the internet or electronics to bully, by explicitly including social networking sites. Social networking sites such as Facebook and Twitter have soared in popularity since 2009, when the law was first enacted, making it all the more neccessary to include these sites into the bill. To learn more about the bill, click here to read the full article.