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ASU prevention center combating cyber-bullying trends


After months of bullying, 15-year-old Phoebe Prince from South Hadley, Mass., committed suicide in January, bringing the new face of bullying into the national spotlight.

Although bullying itself is not a new problem, cyber-bullying, which includes online interaction and text messaging, has become increasingly wide-spread, said Ruby Hernandez, program coordinator at ASU’s Arizona Prevention Resource Center, which implements anti-bullying programs at schools throughout Arizona.

The center trains teachers and school staff various bully prevention techniques and how to diffuse confrontational situations.

“Those types of arenas are really starting to increase because it allows for that bully to have a certain level of anonymity that really, they wouldn’t have had in any other form of bullying,” she said.

The Arizona Prevention Resource Center has implemented the Olweus Bullying Prevention Program in more than 160 schools throughout the state for roughly six years and has seen positive results to the program, Hernandez said.

Through the prevention program, the center has collected data on bullying throughout the state of Arizona, finding bullying by girls has become more direct and more aggressive.

The use of cyber bullying has also increased over the last five years.

“Girls use cyber-bullying a lot more than boys, as well as direct bullying that includes physical bullying,” Hernandez said.

In the case of Phoebe Prince, who was bullied both physically and through online media, criminal charges were filed against nine students in connection to the bullying. Three of those students were arraigned Tuesday, all pleading not guilty to various charges.

While this case was particularly severe, first-year education graduate student Alan Bird said bullying isn’t the most serious issue for young students in Arizona.

“Bullying is a serious problem that can lead to depression … but it isn’t the biggest problem facing school-age children right now,” said Bird.

“Some kids can’t concentrate in school because they haven’t eaten in two days and are hungry,” he said.

ASU education students are taught to diffuse bullying by guiding students to appropriate behavior, through courses like Classroom Management, he said.

“Personally, if I saw bullying happen in my classroom, I would address it immediately … in a way that it becomes clear to all my students that bullying and any kind of hate behavior will not be tolerated,” Bird said.

Reach the reporter at anatwood@asu.edu


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