Middle schoolers should be punished in some way by what they’ve done. The article goes in to detail on what some have done, and this is not good.
As stated, cyberbullying has lasting consequences and it doesn’t matter how its done.
According to The Times, the Great Valley Middle School students created at least 22 fake accounts impersonating about 20 teachers in offensive ways. The fake accounts portrayed long-time, dedicated teachers sharing “pedophilia innuendo, racist memes,” and homophobic posts, as well as posts fabricating “sexual hookups among teachers.”
The Pennsylvania middle school’s principal, Edward Souders, told parents in an email that the number of students creating the fake accounts was likely “small,” but that hundreds of students piled on, leaving comments and following the fake accounts. Other students responsibly rushed to report the misconduct, though, Souders said.
Some students claimed that the group attack was a joke that went too far. Certain accounts impersonating teachers made benign posts, The Times reported, but other accounts risked harming respected teachers’ reputations. When creating fake accounts, students sometimes used family photos that teachers had brought into their classrooms or scoured the Internet for photos shared online.
I want to comment on this last paragraph in the set of quoted material.
Some students claimed that the group attack was a joke that went too far. Certain accounts impersonating teachers made benign posts, The Times reported, but other accounts risked harming respected teachers’ reputations. When creating fake accounts, students sometimes used family photos that teachers had brought into their classrooms or scoured the Internet for photos shared online.
What joke? Taking photos, saying a bunch of crap that wasn’t true and causing harm is a joke now? Fuck you!
Following The Times’ reporting, the superintendent of the Great Valley School District (GVSD), Daniel Goffredo, posted a message to the community describing the impact on teachers as “profound.” One teacher told The Times that she felt “kicked in the stomach” by the students’ “savage” behavior, while another accused students of slander and character assassination. Both were portrayed in fake posts with pedophilia innuendo.
Goffredo confirmed that the school district had explored legal responses to the group attack. But ultimately the district found that they were “limited” because “courts generally protect students’ rights to off-campus free speech, including parodying or disparaging educators online—unless the students’ posts threaten others or disrupt school,” The Times reported.
While Goffredo said teachers had few options to fight back, he also told parents in an email that the district is “committed to working with law enforcement to support teachers who may pursue legal action.”
“I reiterate my disappointment and sadness that our students’ behavior has caused such duress for our staff,” Goffredo’s message to the community said. “Seeing GVSD in such a prominent place in the news for behavior like this is also disheartening.”
There’s plenty more, and I bet TikTok will say absolutely nothing about this crap as they usually do.
Its time for them to be shut down. You don’t see shit like this on other platforms.
First-known TikTok mob attack led by middle schoolers tormenting teachers is the article.