Rónán Mullen (Independent) | Oireachtas source

I welcome the Minister to the House and thank him for his characteristic courtesy in facilitating other contributions by cutting short his speech. We will obviously read it with great interest but I appreciate that gesture very much.

A lot of good work is being done and I compliment those who have tabled the motion before us. Resources such as websites and booklets are often insufficient to help parents and teachers to cope with cyberbullying. In some ways they require an active initiative on the part of parents who often do not bother to check a website or read an advice sheet until their own child gets into trouble. One of the big challenges facing us is the need to engage in preventative education for parents, children and teachers.

I acknowledge a person I knew in a previous life, Mr. Gerard Malone, who is present in the Visitors Gallery. He reminds me of the very important work being done by career guidance counsellors who, more than ever, have to shoulder this pastoral role. Among the issues they are coming across are children who are victims of cyberbullying. It is not just from this country either because, with the wide-ranging nature of Internet communication, the attacking comments and cruel treatment can often emanate from abroad.

There is a challenge to teach children to behave responsibly online just as they are taught to behave responsibly and ethically at offline social gatherings, such as birthday parties and schoolyard recreation. Schools have a vital role because it is there, among other places, that children learn to behave ethically and with respect, etiquette, good manners and generosity. The same values need to be inculcated in children when they use the Internet.

Children should be helped to avoid developing a twofold persona, one for when they socialise offline and another for engaging with others on the Internet. The primary schools curriculum could incorporate modules for teaching those principles. Teachers themselves can often be at a loss as to how to help children to develop habits that the teachers never had to learn when they were young.

I have a particular memory from starting in secondary school. The school principal, a nun as it happened, made it clear from the outset that the school would be a cold house for bullying. She had picked up on something about a child who had a particular physiognomy and she left us in no doubt that there would be serious consequences if there was any evidence of bullying as a result. That is the sort of clear understanding that must be established in any situation where two or more are gathered and where children's ideas and values are being formed. It begins in the home and we cannot ignore what happens there but it is vital the good work be done in schools as well. It is not enough to just emphasise the idea that a person has a right not to be bullied, which he or she does. Bullying is so insidious that a positive culture of respect must be spread out to promote behaviour that begins with respect.

The Minister mentioned homophobic bullying, which is very important. There is evidence it is frequently not given the same attention as other forms of bullying. There is no first class and no second class of bullying. All bullying is equally odious and all forms should be treated with zero tolerance. I am also concerned there are children who do not report bullying because they think their situation is unique to themselves if the bullying is related to physical appearance. It may be less likely that a child in that situation is able to report at the time or afterwards that he is being bullied.

We must remember bullying is not just confined to children, although that is our focus this evening. We must only look at the drinking culture in this country, and the way in which the non-drinker was frequently made to feel, although I hope that is not still the case so much. That should be addressed in a substantive way.

I note the good work being done by the National Parents Council offering talks in schools for parents because often these are not publicised. In particular, I emphasise the importance of what peers or slightly older adults can do in a school scenario. Volunteers might come in from college and they can often express ideas and values that will not be as well heard when they come from teachers. There is a great deal that can be done if we co-opt the input of those people who are few years further down the line but who are credible witnesses in the school situation. I noticed that on the occasions when I was brought into schools to talk about careers. There was a certain credibility because I was not so far ahead of the pupils in terms of age, although as I get older that window is closing.