WITH over 90% of kids and teenagers having social media, cyberbullying has become a huge problem in this day and age.
The heartbreaking and brutal practice involves sending, posting or sharing negative, harmful, false or mean content about someone else.
It's a key concept in the hit series , which followed the story of a 13-year-old boy accused of a female peer who had viciously him.
A recent report warned it is now a ‘'dominant form of peer violence’' among young people, and the vile hatred can leave deep, emotional scars and .
But how can you find out whether your child is the victim of ?
With now more secretive than ever over their , finding out what's really going on can oftentimes feel impossible.
But according to and child behaviour expert David Smith, there’s a subtle way can keep an eye out.
And much to your surprise, it doesn't involve invading your child's by scrolling through their social media and chats.
Mr Smith, CEO of Silicon Valley High School – an online institution offering AI-supported learning – is urging parents to pay attention to a feature many may overlook: their kid's keyboard suggestions.
By checking the predictive text suggestions or keyboard history on a child’s device, parents can get a glimpse into the tone of their recent conversations – without needing to open any messages.
Although it may not seem that way, this easy two-second trick is a surprisingly telling indicator, and one that doesn’t require or snooping.
Most and now come with predictive text and autocorrect tools that are powered by the words we use most.
Over time, your keyboard ‘'learns'’ your most common phrases and suggests them automatically as you type.
If a child frequently types or responds to emotionally loaded messages, those words, whether sweet or cruel, can start to show up in their autocomplete.
The expert advised parents to – when in possession of their child's phone – see what predictive text comes up when they start to type.
For example, one major cause for concern if the predictive word ”sorry” appears when the letter ”s” is typed, or if the brutal word ”loser” appears in the predictive panel when the letter ”l” is typed.
”Parents aren’t always sure how to start a conversation about online safety without seeming intrusive,'’ the expert told Mail Online.
‘'This technique allows them to passively observe emotional trends without reading private messages. It offers a way to notice red flags early without crossing personal boundaries.’'
A few other keywords that might indicate repeated exposure to hurtful online interactions include ‘'hate you’', ‘‘stop’', ‘'go away'’ or ”leave me alone’”.
While no single word is necessarily proof of bullying, recurring patterns can justify a gentle conversation with your child, Mr Smith said.
According to him, there are three ways parents can open up a dialogue without putting their child on the defensive.
This includes leading with curiosity, not accusation – for example asking: ‘'Hey, I noticed a few words popping up in your predictive text – are you doing okay?’'
He also suggested asking open-ended questions such as ‘'Has anything online been bothering you lately?” and to reassure kids that they won’t be in trouble for being honest.
Data from the Cyberbullying Research Centre reveals that about 30 per cent of teens have experienced cyberbullying in their lifetime, with 13 per cent saying it occurred in just the last 30 days.
Perhaps more alarmingly, around 15 per cent admit they’ve bullied someone else online.
