Instagram feature could protect students from cyberbullying

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Meta has launched a new School Partnership Program for Instagram to help teachers report cases of online bullying to the company directly.

In an unlikely scenario, you aren’t aware of what bullying is—it is when a person or a group of people repeatedly and intentionally use words or actions against someone or a group of people, which leads to distress or even puts their well-being at risk. 

It’s an ever-growing issue in educational institutions, and in the age of social media, bullying happens on apps most often rather than in the classroom or on the playground, which leaves educators with little to no recourse. 

Now, Meta has extended a helping hand through Instagram for the students in need and, in doing so, has provided teachers and parents with an outlet to register complaints.

Meta, in a stance against cyberbullying, partnering directly with schools and teachers 

Meta heard parents’ long-standing demand for additional support against cyberbullying and created the program.

Meta’s School Partnership Program for Instagram was developed in collaboration with the International Society for Technology in Education (ISTE) and the Association for Supervision and Curriculum Development (ASCD).

In its initial testing phase, the program was available across 60 schools, and after yielding early positive results, Meta decided to expand it.

Now, it’s open to all middle and high schools in the United States. The schools that want to sign up for this program can join the waitlist through Instagram, and they will receive,

• Expediting the process: Reports submitted by the teachers and school officials on profiles causing problems or violating Instagram’s Community Standards will be prioritized for review. Additionally, they will receive status updates and notifications regarding the filed reports as soon as Instagram takes action. 
• Educational resources: Instagram will provide resources to help educators, parents, guardians, and students safely navigate Instagram.
• A profile banner: Schools that sign up will also receive a banner indicating their association with Instagram on the profile page. Tapping on the profile banner will lead to more information on Instagram’s school partnership program. 

Hopefully, Meta’s new program will garner some positive results in helping teachers and parents defend their kids against online bullying. 

In recent times, Meta has been making positive changes to protect children against online atrocities and the adverse effects of social media. 

The Facebook company even launched Teen Accounts for Instagram last year. As the name suggests, it is for Insta users under the age of 16. These accounts are private by default, and the parents can only modify the settings. 

What do you think about this new Instagram feature? Do you see it actually working? Tell us what you think below in the comments, or via our Twitter or Facebook.