Reflection on Presentation

The topic that I did my presentation on was Cyberbullying. Oddly, Cyberbullying, is the topic that I am least passionate about. That feeling came through strongly when I was proposing my solutions to the class. This was despite the fact that I was well versed with my content, having written the essay 3 times prior to the presentation.

During the actual presentation, I was overwhelmed with anxiety and that resulted in some use of fillers to fill up the ‘breaks’ in my speech. Moreover, partly due to the lack of experience, I began presenting in ‘Singlish’ in the latter part of the presentation.

Luckily, the large part of the presentation was smooth and clear.  Prior preparation was indeed useful in helping me communicate my ideas across in a coherent manner. I hoped that I managed to convince my classmates about the severity of the problem. Nonetheless, I have learnt that, for a presentation to be persuasive and engaging, one must first be fully convinced by the idea that he wishes to communicate across, but that sadly was not the case for my solution.

Reader Response Draft 4

In the article "Who is the true enemy of the internet? Russia, China or the US?” Morozov (2015) asserts that, contrary to popular belief, the US has infringed on the autonomy of the Internet. The widespread reliance on the Internet has given technological companies access to vast amounts of information. Reacting to this phenomenon, states have imposed various degrees of censorship. This infringement of human rights has been criticised, even by the US. Yet actions by the US, which claims rights to all data processed by American companies, undermine its integrity. In my view,as countries compete in staking their dominance in the cyber-world, the Internet will not be neutral.

(106 words)

Morozov (2015) is right in claiming that in is in the interest of all states to regulate the Internet. The neutrality of the Internet has never been and will never be possible. A neutral internet is one that is both unregulated and free from any form of surveillance. Such characteristics clash with the interest of governments, companies and even society. To ensure national and internal security, governments are often motivated to restrict and in other cases monitor their citizen’s usage of the Internet. Similarly for companies who invest a great amount of capital in building infrastructure, it is in their interest that the Internet be regulated so as to recoup costs and increase profits. Given such a relationship, it impossible that the Internet remain as a free agent.

 Internal stability is imperative to any governments. For countries with many ethnic groups this poses an even greater challenge. Ethnic conflict remains till today a major ‘headache’ for states. The author asserts that the raison d’être for Russian and Chinese’s censorship is primarily for preventing social unrest (Morozov, 2015). If kept unchecked, individuals with malicious intent will abuse the Internet. Anonymity over the net has created leeway for radical individuals to incite social and political discord. The net has changed the symbiotic relationship between law enforcers and citizens. Regulating the Internet allows governments to regain control over their citizen's actions and gives them the option to intervene before any tensions escalate. The “Great Firewall of China” is one of the more prominent examples, which showcases how the Chinese government, through the use of censorship, has maintained stability within a country that has 56 official ethnic groups.

Another major concern of nation-states is that of sovereign integrity. In today’s globalised world, most countries are complexly intertwined into the global system via international organisations and international trade. This has redefined how states view their security boundaries. Countries measure their level of defence relative to neighbouring states in the region. Morozov (2015) claims that actions by the US to extend control over data processed by the technological companies would exacerbate censorship practices by the Russians and Chinese. Spying has been an age-old practice between states, but the Internet has revolutionised the way and scale of this practice (The Guardian view on the freedom of the internet: It's under attack around the world, 2014). Countries, while trying to obtain strategic advantage over each other, practice hacking and spying over the net. No state will abolish spying activities, for the sake of “human rights”. To countries, national security takes precedence over the need to respect human rights. Edward Snowden’s shocking revelation of NSA’s global surveillance aptly illustrates the point. The US had monitored calls of 35 world leaders, to obtain strategic intelligence from both its allies and enemies (Ball, 2013).

 Through Snowden’s revelation, decades of cosy relations between technological companies and the US government has been revealed.. It  may seem contradicting that companies would cooperate with governments in regulating the Internet, since a neutral Internet would attract more users, and hence generate greater profits.  Chambers (2015) at the Davos World Economic Forum valued the Internet industry at US$19 trillion. He also accurately postulated at the same conference a year ago, in a speech titled “The Internet Of Everything”, the ubiquitous role of the Internet in daily life. Morozov reckoned his view by attributing the over reliance to the convenience brought by the Internet, as an inducement for government surveillance and censorship (Morozov, 2015). Currently the cost of Internet usage has been relatively affordable for the general public. This is incompatible with high set up cost that is incurred by Internet service providers (ISP), who spend billions on laying the infrastructure for the Internet connection (White House, 2011). For the accounts to balance, technological companies have turned to other companies as a source of income. Major multi-national companies globally are always interested with consumption habits. Many will gladly pay a premium for such information; Forbes (2012) has estimated the data mining industry to be worth $50 billion USD by 2017. ISPs have also turned to the regulation of Internet broadband speeds as a form of income generation (White House, n.d.). By charging a premium for both faster surfing speeds and consumer data, ISPs and technological companies are able to charges (other) companies for the usage of the internet rather than the users. In fact, ISPs and technological companies can earn more from charging companies for their data. This strategy diversified the source of income for the ISPs and technological companies by retaining their existing subscribers and adding companies onto their list of existing customers. Creating and maintaining the Internet has come at a costly price, and it is in these companies greatest interest to regulate it. As long as companies continue to be profit oriented, the future of Internet neutrality is bleak.

Problem-solution essay draft 4

Cyberbullying in  Singapore

Singapore ranked 2^nd in the world for cyber bullying (only behind the US). Widespread access to the Internet contributes to this alarming statistic (Scott, 2013). To address the issue, the government recently passed the Protection from Harassment bill of 2014 allowing for judiciary action against offenders. Yet this measure seems to be inadequate in addressing the issue.  Current measures that are primarily focused on adults do not target the correct audience. The biggest victims of cyber-bullying are teenagers between the ages of 8-17 (Family & Life, 2014). In recent times the rise of social media has made it a convenient medium to perpetuate cyberbullying. A viable solution is for the Singapore Ministry of Education to formulate a policy that groups students together to form blogging groups (on social media platforms). These groups will serve to help students practice ‘correct’ cyber-ethics. The friendships formed from these groups will also help boost self-confidence and buffer against potential cyber-bullying acts.

Addressing the issue

 Bullying is often a rite of passage that one goes through in life. Advancement in Internet technology only shifts its ‘playing-field’ from the playground onto the Internet. The traditional act of inflicting wilful and repeated harm on others has just taken on an electronic form (Family & Life, 2014). Yet its impact has been exacerbated. Particularly in Singapore, 33% out of 4000 students surveyed claim to have experienced some form of cyber-bullying in their lives (Baig, 2014). Social media have increased the frequency of exchange between individuals. It has overcome the physical boundaries of time and space.  Over the net, individuals comment and interact round the clock in the comfort of their homes.  This characteristic empowers individuals to commit the offence, as they are able to hide behind comfort of their computer screens.

Social media have also exacerbated the impact of cyber-bullying because on social media, the act of cyberbullying, is now magnified to a larger audience and the ‘act’ remains permanently visible. Unlike a physical bullying, the post online is now accessible by all friends of both the perpetrator and the victim.  The outreach of the post is also widened because the post can visited and revisited by anyone at anytime. Hence, as the proportion of the act is magnified, so does the shame inflicted on the victim.

Effects of cyber-bullying range from depression to societal deviant behaviour. The suicide by a 16-year old Burmese girl, after her ex-boyfriend hurled insults at her on Facebook, highlights the severity of the issue.  It also necessitates a deeper resolve to solve the problem.

 Current Solution

Currently, there are 2 measures implemented to reduce the level of cyberbullying in Singapore. The Harassment Bill of 2014, which allows for policing and civil actions to be taken against offenders (Neo, 2014), is a reactive measure that is ineffective. The target group for cyber-bullies are mainly teenagers. Being teenagers, undergoing puberty, they are irrational and are guided by feelings. The effect of the act, other than serving as deterrence, is largely ineffective.

The second measure is a cyber-ethic application that is created to educate the public about correct online practices. Based on the previous premise, teenagers commit cyber-bullying not because of the lack of awareness, but rather due to impulsive feelings and immaturity. Hence, current measures should be directed towards the area of ‘feelings’ rather than imparting knowledge.

Proposed Solution

            Changing the method for ‘cyber-ethics’ to be communicated across will increase its appeal and hence effectiveness. Since teenagers spend most of their time outside of home in schools, the Ministry of Education (MOE) should be involved in the next step of education. MOE can implement a policy that combines teaching social media ethics with ‘group-work’ into its current teaching pedagogy.

            Currently, every secondary student is required to have a Co-Curriculum activity (CCA). Upon graduation a grade is given based on their performance, which contributes towards their O level scores.  Schools can include a component in the CCA grading component that requires students to come together to create a social media portfolio that demarcates milestones that they undergo during their 4 years of CCA. There will be guidelines in place to ensure that the portfolios are maintained according to the standards of accurate cyber-ethics.  Moreover, this portfolio has to be done in groups and every group member has to comment on each other’s portfolio.

Research show that cyber-bullies are often people who have been bullied (No Bullying, 2015).  Bullying often occurs among acquaintances. Requiring students to write social media portfolios online, in groups, will help foster deeper friendships. Through increased online interactions, students will be able to gain a deeper understanding of their friend’s lives. They will also be able to foster deeper and stronger friendships. As such the probability of cyber-bullying will be directly reduced. Since cyber-bullying is often committed by cyber-bullies, this policy will hence act to stop the ‘domino-effect’ of cyber-bullying.

Cyber-bullying is a rite of passage but the impacts are still devastating.  Yet impacts vary drastically among victims. This variation is due to the differences in the level of self-confidence that individuals possess. A self-confident individual will give little heed to negative comments, should the act occur, and recovery quickly. The “group-work” policy suggested plays a role in building up the self-confidence in students. By having to actively comment on each friend’s online portfolio, the students will be guaranteed a check and balance on any cyber-bullying that can potentially happen. Moreover, since teenagers are guided largely by feelings, the act of having a friend as a constant lookout will boost their confidence. This will help them hedge against any potential occurrence of cyber-bullying

Conclusion

Education plays an important role in these processes but it must be executed in a manner that is specific to teenagers.  Teenagers are at the age where feelings govern over their actions. Thereby a more effective policy is one that promotes friendship and transfer correct behavioural standards in a subtle manner. Nonetheless, cyber-bullying must be recognised as a rite of passage, while efforts should be made to reduce its occurrence, measures should also be tailored to help students ride through the period.

References

Cyber bullying statistics 2014.(2015). Retrieved March 9, 2015, from http://nobullying.com/cyber-bullying-statistics-2014/

Nawira, B.(2014, August 15). 1 in 3 students in Singapore have been victims of cyberbullying. Retrieved on 9 March, 2015, from Vulcan Post :https://sg.news.yahoo.com/1-3-students-singapore-victims-070013753.html

Chai chin, N.(2014, March 14).  Anti-harassment laws to fight ‘social scourge’. Retrieved on 9March, 2015, from Today: http://www.todayonline.com/singapore/anti-harassment-laws-fight-social-scourge

New law takes on cyberbullying in Singapore. (2014). Retrieved Mar 9, 2015, from http://nobullying.com/new-law-takes-on-cyberbullying-in-singapore/

Chainani, MW.(n.d.).  The class bully. Retrieved on 9 March, 2015, from http://sg.theasianparent.com/bullying_in_singapore/

Singapore is the second highest nation of cyberbullies. (2014). Retrieved March 9, 2015, from http://familyandlife.sg/Nurture/2014/03/Singapore_Second_Highest_Nation_Cyberbullies

Robertson, S.(2013, Janunary 28). What you really need to know about cyber-bullying in singapore. Retrieved on March 9, 2015, from Singapore Business Review: http://sbr.com.sg/information-technology/commentary/what-you-really-need-know-about-cyber-bullying-in-singapore