Shaheen Shariff tackles the nuanced subject of cyberbullying in her book, Cyber-bullying: Issues and Solutions for the School, the Classroom and the Home (Routledge, 2008). We asked her how educators can work with students, and within their own communities, to stem this troubling concern. How does cyberbullying differ from traditional bullying? It's an extension of traditional bullying in that there's always a power imbalance, and there's harassment, which is always unwanted and relentless. Young people tend to tease each other, but they need to recognize when it crosses the line from teasing to bullying, which is not mutual. Cyberbullying is also isolated and excludes someone, the person who is the victim. And there's always some kind of justification for the bullying. In that regard it is somewhat similar to traditional bullying. In cyberspace, however, it can be anonymous so perpetrators can hide behind screen names, a student might not know who is doing it, so victims go back to class and they don't know who is responsible. It's also out there for an Internet audience, and an Internet audience can participate. And it can be permanent because ISP providers are not required to take this information down because they're categorized as distributors, not publishers, although that is starting to chang e and they're having some pressure to take down. Are children the only victims of cyberbullying? Two forms have emerged in the last couple of years. There is peer against peer, which is not just kids, but also adults who engage and sometimes model this, where it's directly one against one, or a group against one. An interesting one is a form of antiauthority. Although, kids are denying this is cyberbullying because they're not directly targeting the victim. In social networking sites they will either post pictures, or videos, or discuss these authority figures in demeaning ways, saying they're gay or a pedophile or by modifying a photograph and putting it up there. The interesting thing about social networking sites is that young people consider themselves to be in a private conversation between them. But because it's accessible by authority figures, when they're suspended or expelled, some young people and their parents claim their rights to free expression have been impinged. So the boundaries of supervision are quite blurred. And there's a policy vacuum to the extent to which schools are responsible and parents can intervene. How does the media play into this? One element of this that most people don't consider, even most researchers, is the way in which the media shapes and influences instances of cyberbullying. When they report on it, they generally sensationalize it—to be heard above the noise. They sensationalize them to be in a war and in a battle between teachers and students. The implication is the Internet is helping kids get out of control and kids need to be brought back into control. It just perpetuates a reactive response by schools to ban social networking sites, to ban the technology, thinking if it's banned, we can control them, which is obviously not true. Because they can get access in other ways. Is cyberbullying growing? It's just easier to recognize. More is being recorded, obviously. In a study we conducted last year, we found 60 percent of kids in grades seven to 10 in Quebec schools said that they wouldn't report instances of cyberbullying because they felt adults wouldn't do anything about them or know what to do. And they felt they would have their privileges withdrawn if they reported them. There was a Pew Internet study that recorded similar findings. One of the reasons is that we overformalize kids when they're very little, even with sports, such as Little League. It's very formalized. The Internet provides them a place to be free, where it's also harder to be supervised. So they see it as their own private space, and actually resent adult intervention. They see the Internet as a place where they can be themselves. But we need to help them to find ways to be accountable and responsible in addressing it, and stand up against this kind of behavior by their peers. How can educators and adults best help students deal with cyberbullying? The American Library Association has been active in very positive ways to address this. Librarians are one of the most overlooked resources in dealing with this problem. When looking for curriculum to address this cyberbulling, they are an incredible resource because they're trained in online resources. They can work with parents, teachers, and kids, and give workshops for parents and educators. When should we begin talking to our students about this issue? We should be talking with them all along. What I am trying to convey to people is the bigger context. We're not going to find an easy solution. Obviously we need to be monitoring what they're going to be doing online. But that's really all about good parenting, and less to do about technology. Families who regularly communicate with their kids will know instinctively how to deal with it, and their kids will trust them and talk with them when there are problems or they're feeling guilty. You have to have a dialogue with the kids.