CYBERBULLYING IN ONLINE CLASSES: THE CASE OF COVID-19

Abstract

The digital economy has evolved due to the Covid-19 pandemic. Like businesses, the educational sector is also affected by this change. Students are using online educational platforms to continue their studies during the pandemic. The digital world provides resilience but it has also caused trust and privacy issues for students. Cyberbullying has significantly increased in online classrooms during the pandemic and it is essential to understand the increased risks of cyberbullying in online classrooms. It is vital to understand its effect on students. This study explores the impacts of cyber violence and cyber oppression that students face in online classrooms. An online survey is conducted to gain knowledge of (i) cyberbullying in online classrooms, (ii) its negative impacts on students, and (iii) the lack of awareness, policies and management regarding cyber laws in educational institutions under the pandemic. Based on this study's finding, students' online safety is at risk. Proper anti-cyberbullying policies are almost non-existent, and there is a lack of awareness about existing anti-cyberbullying laws. This survey also highlights the lack of research regarding successful practices, strategies, anti-cyberbullying policies, and legal reactions for cyberbullying victims. Therefore, a cyberbullying prevention framework is proposed in which reactive and preventive measures and educational institutions' responsibilities are suggested. The proposed framework will help to formulate cyberbullying anticipation programs for online educational platforms and it will also help in minimising students' trust and privacy concerns due to digitalised educational systems.