Nowadays, cyberbullying is a widespread problem, which more and more people are trying to solve in order to make the world more peaceful. Studies have shown that this type of bullying is more common among teenagers and it’s a problem that can destroy their lives. From our point of view, we are all responsible for stopping the Cyberbullying.

In our opinion, if we’re suffering from Cyberbullying, we should talk to someone about the problem. If we keep it to ourselves, the problem will never be solved. Therefore, we have to tell our parents, teachers, or someone close to us and ask for their help.

It is also important to note that, to avoid Cyberbullying, we should be very careful with what we post on social media, or the things that we send to people over the internet. For example, always think, is this going to offend someone? Moreover, you need to put your security first and remember that everything that you put on the internet is never permanently deleted. Our final point is that if we know a person that bullies others, we should make them stop, for instance, by explaining how bullying affects others psychologically. Giving speeches/campaigns about Cyberbullying and how this can destroy someone would also be a good idea. If you are a parent and see that your child is bullying someone, you should punish them, like not having access to the computer/mobile phone; not doing the activities the person/child have planned for a period of time, so that the child/person realizes that bullying is wrong.

In short, we believe that we can all do small actions to help stop Cyberbullying.

Madalena Miguel and Madalena Damas, 10.º10.ª

[Edited by Inês Vieira Ferraz]

Cyberbullying

Cyberbullying takes place over digital devices, like cell phones, computers and tablets. It can occur through texts, messaging apps or on social media, where the bullies are more used to embarrassing the victim. This includes sending, posting, or sharing negative, harmful, false or mean content about someone else. It can include sharing personal or private information about an innocent person, causing feelings of humiliation and embarrassment.

Cyberbullying can often be more dangerous than traditional forms of bullying, because it can not only take place anywhere but also at anytime. Moreover, the bully doesn't need to be face-to-face with their victim(s), which means that attacks can be more cruel and vicious. On top of that, the victim might not know who the bully is, or why they are being targeted.

This type of bullying, or any type of bullying, can be incredibly damaging to a person’s self-esteem, social skills and confidence. Cyberbullying has serious consequences on a person's mental health. Most of the time the effects are depression, stress, difficulty concentrating, nervousness, fear, feelings of anger and frustration, amongst others. In addition, cyberbullying can be physical too, in cases where the people have depression or are really sad about it and think of hurting themselves: suicide is the most extreme consequence of cyberbullying.

All in all, cyberbullying is very prejudicial for those who are suffering from it, especially teenagers, so we all must help in the fight against cyberbullying or any type of bullying. Otherwise, there can be a lot of suffering in our society.

Gabriella DiFede and Tomás Meira, 10.º10.ª

[Edited by Inês Vieira Ferraz]

Cyberbullying - dangers and consequences

Cyberbullying is a type of bullying that is practiced using digital devices, mainly on social media, with the intention of psychologically and physically harming the victim.

We can observe changes in behavior due to cyberbullying, which can be divided into two areas: alone and with people.

Some examples that can be strong indicators of when the victim suffers alone are: avoiding interactions with friends, decreasing school performance, being quieter than usual, and losing interest in activities that they normally enjoy. Other indicators that will stand out in the social part are: snowing anger and expressing dark thoughts or emotions online.

Problems such as the cyberbullying can lead to suicide if the person already has psychological problems and past problems.

Ever since Taylor Swift was in high school she has been a victim of cyberbullying. She found a healthy way to deal with this by expressing her feelings through her music. According to Taylor, it makes her forget about what's going on and focus on her composition.

All in all, cyberbullying often has consequences and dangers that should never be disregarded. Both the bullies and those being bullied should receive psychological support. If you suspect that someone is being bullied, don't wait until it becomes a huge and overwhelming problem.

Joana Brito & Lara Nunes, 10.º10.ª

[Edited by Inês Vieira Ferraz]

Cyberbullying is bullying made on the internet. It can happen through comments, messages, or photos on social media. You may be made fun of because of your posts and photos, which is as awful as bullying «in person».

Cyberbullying can have many consequences on its victims, such as struggling with self-esteem, feeling inferior to other people, being afraid of posting on social media, self-harm and, in the worst-case scenario, suicide.

It is a widely known fact that it is «easier» to practise cyberbullying because the bully can hide behind a screen, using a fake profile, which means they don’t need to deal with the consequences in a more personal way. For example, Amanda Todd, whose goodbye video where she explained her story and suffering we saw, was cyberbullied for 3 years and after so much suffering, she decided to end her own life on October 10 th , 2012.

We believe that no one should end their life because of mean comments and posts and Amanda Todd was proof of that. Her story is a great example of the worst consequences of cyberbullying, and a wake-up call to people who don’t realize the impact cyberbullying has on its victims.

To conclude, we believe that everyone, online and in real life, should respect each other, otherwise people will end up hurt.

#CreateNoHate 

Marta Cerqueira and Tomás Veiga, 10.º8.ª

[Edited by Inês Vieira Ferraz]