#George's Room: A theatre play for young people on cyberbullying and online safety

CYTA, an organisation part of the Cypriot Safer Internet Centre (SIC) has produced a theatre play on cyberbullying for high school students, called #George's Room. It has been performed in 350 schools in the country, for two consecutive academic years (2018/19 and 2019/20).

Date 2020-06-09 Author Cypriot Safer Internet Centre
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The play aims to raise awareness among students of the proper and responsible use of the internet, sending clear messages about the need to protect our privacy, the importance of showing courtesy and respect to other internet users, and our overall responsibility in the digital world.

The two professional actors, who play multiple roles, narrate a case of cyberbullying between two teenagers. In a moment of anger, George, a boy who spends most of his day in front of a computer, decides to "punish" his classmate Maria by slandering her anonymously through her social networks (Facebook, Instagram). He cannot predict, however, how quickly slander can be spread through the internet and how it will affect the victim's emotional and social world.

At the end of the performance, the children discuss the play with the actors, so that they can think about how to best use the internet. On the one hand, Maria, due to the overexposure of her personal information through pictures or videos on social media, has lost control of who has access to the demeaning content about her, and how this information and content can be viewed. On the other hand, George recklessly and irresponsibly believes that behind the anonymity that the internet allows him to have, he can adopt any identity and behaviour, using it to have revenge and humiliate another person.

For further information about #George's Room, visit Facebook.

Find out more information about the work of the Cypriot Safer Internet Centre (SIC) generally, including its awareness raising, helpline, hotline and youth participation services, or find similar information for Safer Internet Centres throughout Europe.

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