Technology in the Classroom: A Professional Blogfolio

Once you’ve been mocked and tormented on the internet, you cannot get away from it. Moving to a new town and changing schools would not be helpful in the least. In our ECMP 355 class on June 2 we watched the “star wars kid” video and discussed what happened as a result of this cyberbullying case. Students in school found this video, put it on YouTube, and used the original footage to create new videos in various themes. This form of cyberbullying was incredibly painful for this student.

As we watched the video and discussed it in class I wondered how other students might react to this type of bullying. Some students may have been flattered to see the other video clips created with footage of themselves. Others, like this student, will be emotionally and psychologically scarred for life. As I thought about the different possible reactions that people might have, I related it to a video I watched of Rick Lavoie. His lecture was primarily about teaching students who have learning disabilities, but his analogy can be applied to everyone.

He explains that everyone is in possession of a certain amount of poker chips. Chips are given and taken away by the people we encounter each day including parents, teachers, peers, and even strangers. We are given chips through positive comments and encouraging words. Chips are taken away with harsh words and hurtful comments.

For example:

Waking up to your favourite meal being cooked in the kitchen = +10,000 chips

Your favourite pair of jeans has just come out of the dryer = +5,000

Hug and a kiss before you walk to the bus = +10,000 chips

Bus driver scowls as your the last person to board the bus = -5,000 chips

Your best friend greets you as you get to school = +2,000 chips

You realize you forgot your homework = -10,000 chips

You get the point… People that have more chips are more confident and take more risks as they know they can always gain more chips. People that have less chips are afraid to lose them and, therefore, attempt to keep the small amount of chips they have by remaining quiet and reserved.

Imagine how many chips the “star wars kid” lost by being a victim of cyberbullying. Millions of people around the world were stealing his chips by laughing and replaying the video footage of him and sending e-mails to their friends and family members. Each time this video is played this student has thousands of chips stolen from him. Can they ever be replaced?

People often fail to think critically about the things they view on the internet. This might be a way to begin to give him some chips back. How often to do we ask ourselves, “Where did this video come from?” “Who is in this video?” “Who created this video and for what purpose?” It’s often easier to watch and laugh than it is to question, but is it too much to ask?

To conclude, Rick Lavoie says our main goal as teachers should be to ensure that our students have more chips at the end of the day than they started with. Imagine how this video has changed this student’s life. Is there any way his teachers could have made a difference?