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Minister for Education Norma Foley TD has welcomed the news that over 600 teachers have undertaken training to address incidents of cyberbullying.
The online training to address cyberbullying is being provided by Oide, the Department of Education’s professional development service for school leaders and teachers.
The online courses were developed with Webwise in September 2022 to provide teachers with a clear understanding of what cyberbullying is and how to deal with it. Teachers are updated with the most recent research on cyberbullying in Ireland on the courses. They also advise teachers about how to address a cyberbullying incident and communicate with those involved, as well as how to identify opportunities to teach about cyberbullying through the curriculum.
So far, 210 teachers at primary level and 438 at post-primary level have undertaken the courses.
Minister Foley said: “It is so important that every child and young person can feel happy, safe and included in school. We know, however, that they can experience bullying – which can rob them of their sense of self-worth and have a lasting negative impact. Where bullying happens online, it can feel particularly difficult to escape. Just one nasty and hurtful online message can constitute cyberbullying, as messages can be quickly viewed and shared by so many others.
“As we look ahead to the coming school year, I would like to thank all the teachers and school leaders who work to help address bullying in all its forms. I particularly welcome all of those who have undertaken the training courses provided by Oide. The courses have been designed to help support teachers to understand and respond to incidents of cyberbullying and their effects. In addition, they provide opportunities to practice integrating teaching on the topic so pupils and students are empowered to recognise and know how to respond most appropriately should they encounter an experience of cyberbullying.”
These courses are continuing to run and are available to teachers at any time. Unlimited places are available, with teachers who undertake the training receiving a certificate on completion. The Department is currently planning additional courses to be made available in the future to further support teachers and school leaders in their work with pupils and students.
The training aligns with Minister Foley’s focus on working to prevent and address bullying in schools and ensuring wellbeing is at the core of school life, as reflected in the Cineáltas Action Plan on Bullying. The programmes deliver on a key objective of the Cineáltas Implementation Plan to provide school staff with the knowledge, resources and confidence needed to teach about cyberbullying and also to deal with cyberbullying incidents as they arise.
The recently-published Bí Cineálta Procedures to Prevent and Address Bullying Behaviour provide schools with a range of resources and guidance on how they can support students and help to prevent and address bullying behaviour. The procedures can be accessed on Gov.ie, while a copy will also be with all schools in the coming weeks. Their implementation will be supported by a suite of professional learning resources and information sessions for school staff, board of management members and parents, with further information on these to be made available in early September. Further resources to support teachers in integrating online safety and learning in their schools is also available from Webwise.
Teachers and school leaders can access the courses provided by Oide at the following links:
ENDS
Bullying is targeted behaviour, online or offline that causes harm. The harm caused can be physical, social and/or emotional in nature. Bullying behaviour is repeated over time and involves an imbalance of power in relationships between two people or groups of people in society.
‘Cineáltas: Action Plan on Bullying’ was published on 1 December 2022. Cineáltas is the Department’s whole-education approach to preventing and addressing bullying in schools. Cineáltas is dedicated to the prevention and addressing of bullying, cyber bullying, racist bullying, gender identity bullying and sexual harassment, among other areas, in schools.
It is centred on a child rights-based approach and provides a collective vision and clear roadmap for how the whole education community and society can work together to prevent and address bullying in our schools. Cineáltas incorporates each of the nine components of UNESCO’s Whole Education Approach to prevent and address bullying.
An implementation plan for Cineáltas was published on 10 April 2023 and commits to implementing each of the 61 actions contained in Cineáltas within a five-year period.
An Implementation and Evaluation Group has been established to oversee implementation of the actions and the publication of annual implementation and evaluation reports, informed by feedback from children and young people, parents, school staff, education partners, key stakeholders and relevant agencies. It is expected that the first implementation and evaluation report will be published in the coming months.
Significant progress has been made in implementing the 61 actions contained in Cineáltas. The Department is currently piloting a programme of counselling supports for primary schools. In addition, it has established a Student Participation Unit in the Department, published the Bí Cineálta procedures to prevent and address bullying behaviour and is developing training resources to help schools prevent and address bullying behaviour.
A Cineáltas flag was given to all schools as a symbol to remind the whole school community of the importance of kindness, respect, equality, and inclusion. The Cineáltas flag recognises the good work that schools are already doing, and will do, to prevent and address bullying behaviour and to promote equality, inclusion, diversity and wellbeing.
A Cineáltas showcase event is planned for 25 September in Croke Park. The event will provide an opportunity for schools to show what they have already done to promote Cineáltas in their school community and the impact that it has had on the life of their school. Schools have also been invited to nominate individuals or groups who through their personal leadership, participation, or achievements have made an outstanding contribution to preventing and addressing bullying behaviour and promoting equality, inclusion, diversity and wellbeing in their school community.
For further information see ‘Cineáltas: Action Plan on Bullying’ here .
Webwise is a part of Oide and is funded by the Department of Education and the EU Internet Safety Initiative. It promotes the autonomous, effective and safe use of the internet by young people through a sustained information and awareness strategy targeting school leaders, teachers, parents and children themselves.
On completion of the courses, participants should be able to:
• Define what cyberbullying is and gain a clear understanding of what constitutes cyberbullying
• Describe the legal framework on cyberbullying including the Harassment, Harmful Communications and Related Offences Act 2020 and examine the most recent research on cyberbullying in Ireland
• Promote a preventative whole-education approach in addressing cyberbullying
• examine school policy which deals with cyberbullying, in particular, the Anti-Bullying Policy and the Acceptable Use Policy
• Identify opportunities to teach about cyberbullying through the curriculum and whole-school community based initiatives
• Recognise the roles and responsibilities that apply to school personnel when dealing with a cyberbullying incident
• Address a cyberbullying incident and communicate with those involved
• Use the resources available to get parents involved in supporting anti-bullying prevention