Experts: Distance-learning could make bullying better — or worse

Cyberbullying could worsen during distance learning unless districts focus on positive online environments for kids, experts say.

The specific factors exacerbating potential threats include more access to technology, less adult supervision and fewer distractions, said Sandra Chafouleas, a professor at the University of Connecticut’s Neag School of Education.

With these challenges, families and school personnel must actively monitor what happens online, she said.

It is too early to say how distance learning impacts bullying, reporting and investigations, but at-home learning could either ease bullying and the anxiety victims feel, or worsen cyberbullying and the accompanying isolation.

For two attorneys who specialize in education law, all is relatively quiet on the bullying front.

Andrew Feinstein, a special education attorney in Mystic and member of a statewide collaborative on social and emotional learning, said his clients have told him their kids are less anxious about school.

“There are a number of real advantages to distance learning,” he said. “There may be cyberbullying, but it’s not near the consequence that it was when kids were in schools.”

Before the closures, many districts saw a “startlingly high” number of families who asked for inhome tutorials for either physical health or mental health reasons, said Michelle Laubin, whose Milford-based firm represents about 30 school districts across the state.

“One of the silver linings is now everyone is learning from home, and the immediate crisis of ‘We’re having a hard time with school and we need tutorial instruction for these reasons’ was abated,” she said.

For districts, this lining cuts in two, equally worrying, ways: Some kids may not want to return, while others are desperate to and struggle with isolation, she said.

Peter Yazbak, a spokesman for the Connecticut Department of Education, said the process for bullying reporting is the same as in-school, with districts talking to parents and teachers who report cases.

Districts are also being asked to assess behavioral issues related to increased technology use, which will inform the department’s work on school discipline, he said. The CSDE also offers webinars to families and students that address cyberbullying as well as sharing inappropriate content.

“We’re being very proactive in this space as well as keeping children safe as they spend more time online,” Yazbak said.

Reporting

Districts are required by law to investigate cases of bullying that students, teachers and families report.

Pre- and post-coronavirus, investigating a case of cyberbullying relies on someone showing administrators screenshots and online links of the bullying.

“Families should keep records of what happened, including if and how they responded to prevent continued attacks — and be comfortable reaching out to school administrators for assistance,” Chafouleas said.

Brandi Simonsen, another UConn professor at the Neag School of Education, said online learning could be an opportunity to practice recording positive behaviors, since teachers’ attentions are less divided.

In the classroom, a teacher may have trouble tracking and rewarding positive behaviors, so many schools rely on office referrals to decide if students need support, she said.

Without office referrals, schools will need new metrics.

“What I’d love to see is if teachers pivot to tracking positive behaviors,” Simonsen said.

Using the summer

Whatever school looks like this fall, “winging it” will no longer be possible, Chafouleas said.

Educators and districts have to make plans to cultivate positive behaviors online, all while closely tracking positive and challenging behaviors, said Simonsen, who co-directs the national Center on Positive Behavioral Interventions and Supports.

Some teachers already are “exceeding what we’re thinking of,” she said.

The PBIS center promotes teaching good behaviors and skills for addressing negative situations, rather than focusing only on reacting to challenging behaviors, she said.

Online or in-person with masks, educators will have to be intentional about establishing a positive environment through virtual spirit weeks or verbal praise when facial cues are obscured by masks.

“The basic practices that have always worked will work,” with slight tweaks, Simonsen said.

Educators will also have to develop plans for teaching “netiquette” knowledge and skills, Chafouleas said.

Transitioning back

Whenever kids return to school, those who temporarily felt safe from their bullies will likely feel anxious.

“Right now, we really don’t know very much about what the medium and long-term impact of this will be, on any aspect of student functioning (academic, social, emotional, behavioral, physical),” Chafouleas said. “There is limited past experience to draw from, and much of existing work related to the pandemic has focused on adults.”

While she does not advocate to prepare for the worst for any situation, including bullying, she said districts should increase supports for every student and staff member during the transition.

School psychologists teach that supporting students in transition periods, such as getting to and from school and going to lunch, can impact how children perceive school.

For example, lunch is a transition between morning and afternoon instruction. A well-managed transition — with appropriate lunch times, quick lines, enough activities and without taking away lunch recess as a punishment — makes school a more positive experience, and eases kids back into learning in the afternoon.