DUBAI // Cyberbullying has become a “significant” issue for schoolchildren and far more prevalent than adults realise, experts warned on Monday.
Parents, schools and society in general need to do more to tackle the dangers with greater awareness and effective policies, Dr Nayla Daou, a clinical psychologist and founder of the ClearMinds Centre for Emotional Health in Dubai, said at an anti-bullying conference at Raffles World Academy.
“When children are online they are at a greater risk of becoming the victims of bullying due to its anonymous nature,” she said. “In my opinion, it is much more prevalent than the normal forms of bullying we are aware of.” Bullying can range from rude and insulting messages to threats to life, she said.
Studies into the issue in the UAE in 2013 and 2015 found that more than 60 per cent of pupils were aware of someone who was a victim. And 50 per cent said they had been victims of cyberbullying, Dr Daou said.
“Children are interacting with technology almost all the time and, as a result, the bullying can take place anywhere,” she said.
“Unlike, say, playground bullying, where children can go home to a safe place, victims of cyberbullying have no safe place because they can be attacked at any time. Children can feel helpless and, as a result, their behaviour changes so they become more withdrawn and isolated.”
However, many schools are neglecting the issue and do not have effective anti-bullying policies in place, she said.
Parents also need to be more aware so that they can look out for signs of bullying. “They should talk to their children and monitor what they do online because most cyberbullying happens after school,” Dr Daou said.
Schools can educating teachers, parents and pupils, build awareness, and put effective zero-tolerance policies in place. “The school should be a place where a child feels safe in telling a trusted adult they have been bullied,” said Dr Daou.
People are so poorly informed on the issue that most do not even know that cyberbullying is a criminal offence, she said.
A survey by the Knowledge and Human Development Authority in Dubai, which questioned 4,391 pupils aged 12 to 16 in 31 middle schools in the emirate, found 34 per cent felt “sad and hopeless” at school. A number of factors could be behind the findings – including bullying.
Zaeem Moti, 17, from South Africa, is president of the Anti-Bullying Committee at Raffles World Academy, which organised the conference.
The pupil-run committee organises an anti-bullying week each year and shares the expertise it has built up since it was set up in 2011 with other schools. “When someone is bullied we try to bring the victim and the person doing the bullying together so that they can talk about why it happened,” Zaeem said.
“The aim is to make people happier so that they don’t engage in bullying. Cyberbullying is a big problem and the best way to tackle it is to first raise awareness of it. Educating more people about the problem and provide an environment where victims feel safe about coming forward is crucial.”
Tamuris Ismayilzade, 16, from Azerbaijan, event coordinator on the anti-bullying committee, said: “Bullying is like a disease and the more information you have about its causes and effects on children, the more effectively you can deal with it.”
Poonam Bhojani, chief executive of Innoventures Education, which runs Raffles World Academy, said: “Bullying is an issue that affects us all – students, teachers and parents – and more needs to be done to combat it.
“We are happy to welcome a number of other schools to participate in the conference, and hope it equips students with the tools necessary to prevent bullying and protect themselves.”
For more details visit facebook.com/ABCRWA.
nhanif@thenational.ae
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India cancels school-leaving examinations
How to keep control of your emotions
If your investment decisions are being dictated by emotions such as fear, greed, hope, frustration and boredom, it is time for a rethink, Chris Beauchamp, chief market analyst at online trading platform IG, says.
Greed
Greedy investors trade beyond their means, open more positions than usual or hold on to positions too long to chase an even greater gain. “All too often, they incur a heavy loss and may even wipe out the profit already made.
Tip: Ignore the short-term hype, noise and froth and invest for the long-term plan, based on sound fundamentals.
Fear
The risk of making a loss can cloud decision-making. “This can cause you to close out a position too early, or miss out on a profit by being too afraid to open a trade,” he says.
Tip: Start with a plan, and stick to it. For added security, consider placing stops to reduce any losses and limits to lock in profits.
Hope
While all traders need hope to start trading, excessive optimism can backfire. Too many traders hold on to a losing trade because they believe that it will reverse its trend and become profitable.
Tip: Set realistic goals. Be happy with what you have earned, rather than frustrated by what you could have earned.
Frustration
Traders can get annoyed when the markets have behaved in unexpected ways and generates losses or fails to deliver anticipated gains.
Tip: Accept in advance that asset price movements are completely unpredictable and you will suffer losses at some point. These can be managed, say, by attaching stops and limits to your trades.
Boredom
Too many investors buy and sell because they want something to do. They are trading as entertainment, rather than in the hope of making money. As well as making bad decisions, the extra dealing charges eat into returns.
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Tree of Hell
Starring: Raed Zeno, Hadi Awada, Dr Mohammad Abdalla
Director: Raed Zeno
Rating: 4/5
HEADLINE HERE
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Thank You for Banking with Us
Director: Laila Abbas
Starring: Yasmine Al Massri, Clara Khoury, Kamel El Basha, Ashraf Barhoum
Rating: 4/5
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Singham Again
Director: Rohit Shetty
Stars: Ajay Devgn, Kareena Kapoor Khan, Ranveer Singh, Akshay Kumar, Tiger Shroff, Deepika Padukone
Rating: 3/5
In-demand jobs and monthly salaries
- Technology expert in robotics and automation: Dh20,000 to Dh40,000
- Energy engineer: Dh25,000 to Dh30,000
- Production engineer: Dh30,000 to Dh40,000
- Data-driven supply chain management professional: Dh30,000 to Dh50,000
- HR leader: Dh40,000 to Dh60,000
- Engineering leader: Dh30,000 to Dh55,000
- Project manager: Dh55,000 to Dh65,000
- Senior reservoir engineer: Dh40,000 to Dh55,000
- Senior drilling engineer: Dh38,000 to Dh46,000
- Senior process engineer: Dh28,000 to Dh38,000
- Senior maintenance engineer: Dh22,000 to Dh34,000
- Field engineer: Dh6,500 to Dh7,500
- Field supervisor: Dh9,000 to Dh12,000
- Field operator: Dh5,000 to Dh7,000
Temple numbers
Expected completion: 2022
Height: 24 meters
Ground floor banquet hall: 370 square metres to accommodate about 750 people
Ground floor multipurpose hall: 92 square metres for up to 200 people
First floor main Prayer Hall: 465 square metres to hold 1,500 people at a time
First floor terrace areas: 2,30 square metres
Temple will be spread over 6,900 square metres
Structure includes two basements, ground and first floor
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