Research Process

I had two weeks to research about cyberbullying. I chose the topic because of a news story I heard on NPR called “Online ‘Shaming’ A New Level of Cyberbullying for Girls.” It was the story that piqued my interest into this problem, so I began by doing a simple Google search of cyberbullying. I found many websites, but was intrigued by the ones that explained what to do when you are cyberbullied because I think that is something I should know and tell my students so that they can protect themselves.  

I also used EBSCO, the school’s library subscription service, and I found two very different articles--one was about a boy who was using Twitter to praise people instead of put them down and the other was about Amanda Todd, a Canadian girl who was cyberbullied so badly that she took her own life. I think the Amanda Todd story is important because it’s a sort of cautionary tale for people. Likewise, the Twitter story is equally important because it shows another way to combat cyberbullying. 

Throughout my research my focus remained the same; however, I began to focus more on what people can do about cyberbullying because I began to realize that that information is more important, especially after reading about Amanda Todd. She didn’t know what to do or where to go, so I knew I needed to research about that and share my findings.