Schools vow to delete the cyber bullies

HEADTEACHERS are being told to draw up new rules on mobile phone use in city schools amid a growing number of cyber- bullying cases.

The crackdown comes as one secondary head today revealed that 99 per cent of bullying cases in his school are through text messages or internet chat rooms.

The rules aim to protect children from abusive texts, stop phones going off in class and prevent mobiles being taken into exam halls.

Guidelines produced by the city council also ask schools to consult pupils, teachers and parents when devising their policies and to include rules on mobile phone use in the school handbook.

While most schools do not allow pupils to use their mobiles in the school building, an outright ban was deemed unworkable.

It was also agreed by a working group that guidelines were needed because advances in technology are throwing up new problems for teachers to deal with, for example children using their phones to listen to music, tell the time or as a calculator.

Liberton High head Donald MacDonald was part of the working group set up by the city council to produce the new guidelines on "responsible use" of mobiles.

He said the group faced a difficult job in trying to create guidelines to encompass future technological advances.

They even considered making exam halls in schools "text proof" – so that children could use their calculators on their mobiles without the risk of cheating – but it would prove too expensive.

Mr MacDonald said: "In 99 per cent of bullying cases we now deal with, the use of texts and (instant messenger) MSN are the main factor. But the bigger challenge is that they have become more compact and versatile in that they're now multi-functional devices. We are looking at policies that will be useable for the next three to five years and that's a real challenge."

Mr MacDonald has also taken the step of organising a training evening for parents next month to help them understand the latest technologies as their children's knowledge of mobiles and computers "far outstrips" their own.

The rules have also been welcomed by pupils. Mhairi Young, 17, a pupil at Balerno High School, was also part of the group which devised the guidelines, and believes there is widespread support in her school for the move.

She said: "The rules are quite fair and have taken everyone's opinions into account."

Councillor Marilyne MacLaren, the city's education leader, said: "The rapid development of new technology has brought disadvantages as well as advantages. Bullying using mobile phones or digital technology can be extremely distressing for children and young people. Anything which helps decrease this misuse is to be warmly welcomed."