Principal: Parents can help put stop to bullying

The hallways and classrooms at Fairfield High School are quite safe according to principal Aaron Becker, but he?s not so sure about the online terrain students have become immersed in of late.

Becker and Associate Principal Brian Stone said cyberbullying ? harassment via electronic media such as text message, email or Facebook ? has surfaced as students? number one complaint within the last several years.

?As far as any concerns that come to our attention,? said Becker. ?These are the majority.?

Becker sees this as the result of what he calls students ?digital citizenship.?

?They?ve been thrown into it,? said Stone.

?It?s the world that the kids live in,? said Becker. ?It?s a huge way in which they communicate.?

Becker and Stone plan to visit each classroom during the first week of school, and said they?ll be talking to students about Internet etiquette.

?We need to teach them proper use of technology,? said Becker. ?And we need to make sure kids feel comfortable coming to us if something arises.?

A slogan the principal uses often is ?pause before you post,? but he said, ?A lot of students are not pausing.?

Becker and Stone said some students are more naïve than malicious.

?Sometimes kids don?t realize all of the world can see their message,? said Becker.

Other times, he said ?They?re more confident behind the screen, they don?t have the same filter.?

Becker offered advice for bullied students, as well as a call for more parent involvement.

The first thing Becker tells students to do when they come to him is to cut off communication with the alleged bully. He also advises them to save evidence of past communication to give to a teacher or himself.

Since much online communication happens at home, Becker said ?Parents need to get involved.?

Becker said talking with kids about treating classmates with respect can help.

Becker personally recommends requesting account names and passwords from children to monitor their online accounts, a practice he uses in his own home.

?My kids know I?m checking on them,? said Becker. ?So it holds them accountable.?

Becker said parents may choose a different approach, but should get educated regardless.

?As administrators we need help,? said Becker.

Police Captain Dave Thomas underscored the importance of catching cases of bullying early. He said he gets two or three requests from FHS a month to address cases of bullying.

Thomas said although the police can?t charge a student with bullying, the behavior often qualifies as a misdemeanor, disorderly conduct, criminal mischief, or theft.

Thomas said most cases of physical fights started ?by phone or email, or out there in cyber space.?

He said juvenile punishment usually amounts to probation and community service, with a focus on rehabilitation.

?We try to teach them to stop breaking the law,? said Thomas.

Thomas said parents are much slower to report to the police than the school is.

?It?s usually addressed at the school level, and the parents and the kids are satisfied with that,? he said.