Unions reveal "cyber-bullies" in schools

Bullying of school teachers via mobile phone, e-mail and the internet is a growing problem which must be tackled, according to the ATL teaching union.

A survey by the Teacher Support Network for the ATL found that 17% of teachers had experienced this type of bullying. Incidents ranged from upsetting e-mails and unwelcome text messages to silent phone calls and the malicious use of websites and internet chat rooms.

One secondary school teacher from the North East told the union how another teacher had refused to speak to him face to face and would only communicate by sending abrupt, aggressive e-mails or text messages.

Most schools did not have a policy for tackling cyber-bullying, the survey found.