About 30 percent of South African teachers have experienced or know a colleague who has been “cyberbaited” – a growing phenomenon in schools, according to a new survey by a global internet security firm.
Cyberbaiting is pupils taunting their teachers to capture the distressed reactions on cellphone videos.
The survey also showed that in South African households where rules exist regarding online use, the children “stay relatively safe”, with 68 percent having had a negative experience online.
However, in households where there are “rule-breakers” the percentage of children who reported having had negative experiences increases to 95 percent.
The report said 72 percent of South African parents had house rules about how much time their children could spend online, and only 49 percent had set parental controls on the family computer.
“Parents are setting ground rules for online use, which helps kids have a more positive experience,” said the report.
In cases of cyberbaiting, pupils first rile their teachers, irritate them or “bait” the teacher until they “crack”, then film the incident on a mobile device before posting the footage online to embarrass the teacher and the school.
The latest Norton Online Family Report identified cyberbaiting as a “growing phenomenon” among youth.
It said that 30 percent of teachers in the country had personally experienced cyberbaiting, or knew another teacher who had experienced it.
“Perhaps because of cyberbaiting, 69 percent of South African teachers say that being friends with students on social networks exposes them to risks. Still, 31 percent continue to ‘friend’ their students,” said the report.
It added that 55 percent of teachers said their school had a code of conduct for how teachers and students should communicate with each other through social media.
“Eighty-seven percent of teachers call for more online safety education in schools, a position supported by 80 percent of parents,” said the report.
The surveys were conducted in 24 countries between February 6 and March 14 this year by StrategyOne.
A total of 19 636 online surveys were issued among 12 704 adults. The results revealed that there were a surprisingly high number of children “taking liberties” with their parents’ credit cards for online shopping.
It said that globally, 23 percent of parents who let their children use their debit or credit cards to shop online said they had overspent.
The report said 78 percent of children reported having had a negative online experience, with 61 percent having had a seriously negative experience – receiving inappropriate pictures from strangers, being bullied or being a victim of cyber crime.
Vanessa van Petten, the author of Radical Parenting, said children were developing their online identity at an earlier age. “And they need parents, teachers and other role models to help them figure out where to go, what to say, how to act and perhaps most importantly how not to act,” she said in the report.
Marian Merritt, Norton Internet Safety Advocate, said parents and teachers on this year’s Norton Online Family Report showed “a real need for further education”.
“While 79 percent of South African parents say they talk to their kids about online safety, 57 percent still secretly check their children’s online use and 37 percent look at their social network use behind their backs.” Merritt said open dialogue with children in a safe environment could be much more effective. - Cape Argus