New Jersey lawsuit highlights the difficulties in dealing with Internet-savvy kids and harassment
A New Jersey lawsuit highlights the growing difficulties that school districts face in dealing with Internet-savvy kids and harassment that may extend beyond the classroom, experts say. The issue in Montville started in April 2006, when the student, identified in court papers as B.B., was part of a video production class at Montville High School that created a skit about bullying, according to the lawsuit. The student, who has cognitive and social disabilities, was the target of harassment in the video, which showed other students slapping and pushing him, according to the court papers. A student or students later edited the video to “portray B.B. in an unfavorable way,” and posted the clip on YouTube, where it was viewed 3,773 times, according to the suit. “He was the laughingstock of the school,” said attorney Bruce Nagel, who is representing B.B. “The teacher should not have permitted them to cast him in this role and should not have allowed the students to abuse him.” The suit names the Montville Township Board of Education, superintendent Gary Bowen, teacher Fran Hersh, and former principal Marianne Laux. Internet and electronic harassment among students is a growing problem and one that schools often find difficult, said Nancy Willard, executive director of the Center for Safe and Responsible Internet Use. School administrators may be unsure of when they can respond to bullying that takes place off campus and what they can do. "The problem is because the standards for when a school administration can and can't respond are unclear, many administrators take the position there's noting they can do," said Willard, an attorney and former special education teacher. She questioned whether the student or students who posted the clip to YouTube and his or her parents, who were not named in the lawsuit, could be liable as well.
Newark Star-Ledger By Kristen Alloway