Most of us are probably guilty of having used an insulting nickname to describe a teacher during our school days. But technology has allowed today’s school child a much freer rein to humiliate. Newspaper reports have told of students using mobiles to film teachers’ cleavages or up their skirts. Photos of teachers’ heads have been superimposed on naked bodies and widely emailed or, worse still, these images or videos have even found their way on to the internet on websites such as YouTube.

As if this is not enough, some websites such as RateMyTeachers encourage students to make comments about their teachers anonymously, which can be accessed by anyone. Although many of these remarks are complimentary, many have caused teachers such distress that they have considered leaving their jobs. And, unbelievably, some schools are actually looking at the reviews on this websites when they recruit – so a damning comment from a bitter pupil could actually affect a teacher’s chance of getting a new job.

The Association of Teachers and Lecturers (ATL) is now calling upon website operators to ban offensive material or face legal action for libel. And the Department for Education is proposing a raft of new measures to give teachers greater powers to fight back at the cyber-bullies. A Department for Education and Skills spokesman told the Daily Mail, “Teachers now have stronger legal powers to deal with cyber-pests as part of our continued fight against bullying. They can now confiscate mobile phones, which are being used in a malicious or disruptive way. We encourage them to make full use of this power if they suspect pupils are using technology against them.”

Teachers have also been granted tougher powers to use physical force to restrain violent pupils but many at the recent ATL conference in Bournemouth were anxious that they would end up being sued if they used these powers. And less than half of the delegates present had received any kind of self-defence training.

But the companies that run these websites are unrepentant. Michael Hussey, founder of the RateMyTeachers website, told the Guardian that the criticism was absurd. “We read everything before we post it on the website – no name calling, no bullying and certainly no threats. For them to link our site with cyber-bullying is ludicrous. They are trying to discredit what we are all about.”

Rachel O’Connell, who is safety officer with Bebo – another site popular with pupils – said bullying “predates the internet” and children “are using new tools to do what they have always done.”

A comment posted on the RateMyTeachers site seems to agree, “Sorry to say, but if a child (all children is a bit too general and stereotypical for my taste) has no respect and knowledge, the fault is of the child's parents and teachers. To blame this website is a trifle dramatic. I can tell you, as a teacher, that I have helped many kids and let a few down. It's not my intent, but it is reality. A website like this simply reminds me just how important it is I try to get through to a kid, otherwise I might as well be like the algebra teacher I had in High school who thought I was a trouble maker when I asked her what these equations meant in the real world. My guess now is she really didn't know either, she taught four social studies classes and one algebra class, either way, I would have left a very scathing and understandably immature comment had a site like this existed in the early 80s.

“As it is now, if a kid leaves a poor commentary about me, I try to see if there is anything I can learn from it, if it simply says that I "suck" then I let that kid down because they don't understand how to properly express themselves in the world. Again, either way, I go home at the end of the day comfortable with who I am and how I teach.”

So, is it simply a case of, “sticks and stones my break my bones” and teachers should rise above it? Or is this a step too far for teachers who are already overworked and struggling to hold on to discipline, while their powers to discipline are being slowly eroded? And if cyber-bullying is causing so much distress to professional adults, what must it be doing to the students themselves?

Last month, a Commons education select committee issued a report calling for greater research into the whole issue of bullying in schools. The committee believes that schools are disguising the real extent of the problem in order to protect their reputations. It also calls for Catholic schools to be forced to make public their commitment to stop gay pupils being bullied as the Catholic Church has thus far failed to follow government guidelines to set up policies against homophobic bullying.

Schools are currently required by law to have an anti-bullying policy, to be monitored by Ofsted but the committee believes that this should be extended so that schools are forced to report all instances of bullying including those related to faith, race, homophobia and disability. It is believed that the lack of accurate information on bullying is making it difficult to fight it.

Sadly instances of bullying appear to be increasing. Childline, the children’s charity reported a 12 per cent increase in bullying cases in 2005- 6 from the previous year. The select committee believes that 10-20 per cent of young people have experienced general bullying with this figure increasing to 50 per cent for gay youngsters. After body shape, homophobic insults are the second most common form of abuse.

And the trend for cyber bullying as described above is now the second most prevalent form of playground intimidation, with girls twice as likely to be affected as boys. Yet many schools are clearly not doing enough to fight it, according to the report. In some cases, it is the victims who find themselves excluded as a Health and Safety measure. The report urges the use of exclusion to be used with extreme caution both for the victim and for the bully.

But what can be done to stop this pernicious menace that can make some children so miserable they even take their own lives, or teachers so unhappy they leave their careers? The government is looking to introduce new parenting orders that will mean parents have to take action over their children’s behaviour or face fines. But although parents certainly do have a part to play in helping to stamp out bullying the focus cannot be taken away from schools, where the “pack mentality” of bullies is often most prevalent.

Education seems to be key and many schools are doing sterling work in introducing mentoring schemes where popular students talk to the bullies and bullied in confidence. As the report urges, the problem has got to be taken seriously and all incidents reported in order that the true scale of the issue can be appreciated, even if this makes for unpleasant reading. Only by throwing light on bullying, which is often conducted in a hidden and underhand manner, can it be appreciated for the cowardly practise that it really is. And victims may be better able to cope with the pressures if they appreciate just how widespread bullying is and how many of their peers are being affected. As Barry Sheerman, the Labour Chairman of the committee said in his report, any idea that bullying is “character-building and simply part of childhood” simply have to be challenged.

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