A new national campaign aims to help students work out what to do when faced with distressing footage of violence on social media platforms, including possibly video of incidents in and around their own schools.
Quit Fighting For Likes includes resources for teachers to encourage young people to discuss attitudes and behaviours around the filming and sharing of violent incidents.
Produced by the Scottish Violence Reduction Unit (SVRU), YouthLink Scotland and Medics Against Violence (MAV), the campaign is part of a plan agreed in the Scottish government’s Violence Prevention Framework, which was published in May 2023.
Violence in schools shared on social media
The launch of the campaign follows a number of incidents involving the sharing of distressing images and videos of violence, some filmed in Scottish schools.
It also comes after research into violence in schools, published in 2023, found a general worsening of pupil behaviour, with the abusive use of mobile phones and digital technology among the most frequently encountered serious disruptive behaviour.
Professor Christine Goodall, director and founder of Medics Against Violence, said the campaign is important because young people are being encouraged to get involved in violence, in order for it to be filmed, that could lead to not only physical injuries but also “long-term psychological” impact for those filmed without their consent or knowledge.
The resources will support young people “to take a stand against activity which is both damaging and pervasive”, she added. The resources include a short animation in which a video of a fight in a school is shared, showing possible alternative courses of action.
Siobhian Brown, minister for victims and community safety, said social media could be a positive in the lives of young people, helping them to keep in touch with family and friends, but it could also “be a platform where violent imagery is spread”.
Helping teachers to start conversations
Tim Frew, chief executive at YouthLink Scotland, the national agency for youth work, said the resources would help teachers and others working with young people to “start the conversation” so that students can make “informed, positive, and…safe, choices online”.
Jimmy Paul, head of the Scottish Violence Reduction Unit, said the resources toolkit had been designed to “help build positive social norms”.
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