Cyberbullying

A very good morning to the honourable judges, the wise time keeper, respected teachers and last but
not least all my fellow listeners. In this opportunity, I would like to present to all of you, my speech
about Cyberbullying.

Ladies and gentlemen,

What is cyberbullying? According to Oxford dictionary, cyberbullying is defined as the use of

electronic communication to bully a person, typically by sending messages of an intimidating or
threatening nature. Cyberbullying is when someone is tormented, harassed, embarrassed or otherwise
targeted by another person using the Internet, interactive and digital technologies or smartphones. It
is an aggressive and repeated act that can bring harm to the target.

When it comes to cyber bullying, they are often motivated by anger, revenge or frustration.
Sometimes they do it for entertainment or because they are bored and have too much time on their
hands. Many do it for laughs or to gain attention. Some do it by accident and either send a message
to the wrong recipient or did not think before they act. According to Hinduja and Patchin, 2015, as
well as Kowalski, Giumetti, Schroeder and Lattanner, 2014, cyberbullying can result in serious
emotional problems for targets, including anxiety, low self-esteem, depression, stress and suicide. I
have seen people being cyber bullied right in front of my eyes. It breaks my heart to see how they
have changed from a cheerful and confident person into a depressed poor fellow. All the negative
and harsh comments can tear us down because we are all human. Why must we spread such
negativity? Justin Prentice once quoted, with cyberbullying, one press of a finger on an electronic
device can shatter someone's reputation and what they think is their entire life. It's scary.

Please do remember that, what goes around, comes around. I am very sure that none of us would
want this to happen to ourselves or any of our family members.
Ladies and gentlemen, members of the floor,

Hinduja and Patchin, 2014, mentioned that the effective approaches to address cyberbullying
requires effort from children, parents, schools, law enforcement, social media companies, and the
community.

Social networking sites like Facebook and Tiktok give people the chance to constantly and
publicly advertise their thoughts. There are no filters on this sites and kids can make them private so
that adults do not see what they are doing. Once a child sees another person cyber-bullying, it makes
them think that it is alright to bully others. Kids too can comment on posts and make things worst.

In order to prevent this, we should educate the children about the consequences of their own
actions. Teaching them to respect others, openly discuss about cyberbullying and to take a stand
against bullying will also help. Parents should also be more aware of what their children are doing
online. This is crucial and can significantly reduce cyberbullying.

School plays another major role in educating children about the harm of cyberbullying. Schools
can build a community that rewards kindness and compassion, not only academics or athletic
achievements. Teachers could use social networks or other digital tools in the classroom and teach
pupils to use the Internet and its technology respectfully and productively.

Last but not least, we as the community who are aware of the issue must walk the talk. Children
especially, learn the most from adults and peers. By modelling empathy, tolerance and respect in our
actions and communications, we impart these values and influence the attitudes and behaviours of
the children. Thus, this can overcome cyberbullying. Only together we can truly put a stop to this
issue. A shout out to all the brave people out there that has been a victim of cyberbullying. Strong
people stand up from themselves, but the strongest people stand up for others. We need to fully
support any anti cyberbully community matters in order to ensure that the problem is cured up to the
root. Theodore Roosevelt once said, knowing what's right doesn't mean much unless you do what's
right, while St. Augustine quoted, “Wrong is wrong even if everyone is doing it. Right is right even
if no one is doing it.”
That’s all from me. Thank you very much for your attention and I hope you get my message. Thank
you.