Parents and carers play an important role in guiding young people to recognise and respond to online bullying.
Cyberbullying often happens on personal devices that young people have continuous access to. This means it can happen anywhere and at any time, so it can feel like it’s hard to escape.
Here we give carers some helpful suggestions to empower them to help their young people:
1. Have Open Conversations about Life Online
Encourage open and honest communication with young people regarding online bullying. Let them know that they can come to you, or another trusted adult, if they experience or witness anything online that worries or upsets them, including online bullying. Create a safe and non-judgmental space where they feel comfortable sharing their concerns.
With young people, we suggest a good way to maintain open communication is to:
- Ask your young person to tell you about the sites they like to visit and what they enjoy doing online.
- Ask them about how they stay safe online. What tips do they have for you, and where did they learn them? What is OK and not OK to share?
- Ask them if they know where to go for help, where to find safety advice, privacy settings, and how to report or block the services they use.
- Encourage them to help. Perhaps they can show you how to do something better online, or they might have a friend who would benefit from their help and support.
2. Help them to Identify Online Bullying
Because young people are not always aware of how their activities might be unsafe online, it is crucial that caretakers begin to teach young people how to identify signs of online bullying.
Carers might ask them how they would feel if they received bad messages, spread things that are not true, or experienced someone sharing embarrassing or unkind content on the internet about them.
This may foster further awareness and encourage online responsibility in a safer and more empowered manner. To help young people identify common bullying situations and understand healthy digital conduct, it helps to develop scenarios and get their feedback on how to resolve them.
This will allow young people to recognise and respond to negative online conduct by reporting it on the platform and chatting with a trusted adult.
3. Empower them to Seek Help
We advise caretakers to assist young people in recognising the warning signs of cyberbullying. These might include sudden shifts in mood or behaviour, reluctance to use electronic gadgets, withdrawing from social activities, or a drop in academic achievement.
Encourage them to seek help if they think they or someone else is being bullied by discussing their feelings with a trustworthy adult. Carers are encouraged to treat the young person with respect by acknowledging their thoughts and feelings and to seek professional help as appropriate.
4. Encourage Empathy and Kindness
Teach young people the importance of empathy and kindness online. Encourage them to treat others with respect and compassion and to stand up against online bullying when they see it happening.
Remind them that what they say and do may have a big influence on other people. By showing up online with positivity and a desire to help build a healthy digital environment, they are making the internet a safer and more empowering place for all of us.
5. Create a Family Agreement
Childnet’s family agreement is a practical tool that carers may use to facilitate communication about online bullying and staying safe online. This is an excellent tool for exploring how your entire unit can work together to create a safe online experience through digital resilience and kindness.
By taking a moment to think before getting involved in any online activity, young people can make smarter choices and help create a safer and more responsible digital space. Providing a place for open discussion between carer and young person may help to provide guidance and a path for any concerns presented by the young person.
We at Childnet stand for kindness for all, especially online, and if you would like to explore more resources that can help you join our mission to create a safe online world for children, please click here.
