We have all heard the expression “sticks and stones may break my bones, but words can never hurt me” in the playground or on the way home by school bus. The phrase was normally thrown at bullies during a schoolyard fight, shoving in the hallway, food thrown in the cafeteria or during endless teasing and taunting on bus rides to/from school. school. According to a national survey conducted by the National Center for Education Services, United States Department of Education, in 2002, 32 percent of students in grades 6 through 12 reported being victims of bullying. Only 9% reported being injured or needing medical attention. Fast forward to 2011, when these same victims of traditional bullying are now of college age. After suffering the harmful effects of their traditional bullying experiences, these same people are now facing a new form of bullying thanks to technology: cyberbullying. Using high-tech communication methods, bullies target their victims in non-traditional ways; not with a push or a punch, but with words. Words, after all, have meaning. “If they didn't, there would be no understandable communication. If words didn't matter, why would anyone write a poem, a book, an article or the lyrics to a song? Why would we try to talk to each other, if words didn't matter? Why do advertisers go to such lengths to develop the right expressions to sell their products, or why do songwriters and authors spend time rewriting and rewriting until their ideas are expressed correctly? the right way? It is what we use to convey deeply held feelings, beliefs and ideas. (Whittemore, 2009) Words can pierce our souls like a knife and leave lifelong scars. Who hasn't been hurt by a loved one springing up in the middle of a paper......curity-Technology/News/2009/10/31/Campus-Police-Scrutinized-for-Role in-Hazing .aspx>.15. “Bullying Statistics / Cyberbullying Statistics / School Bullying Statistics.” How to Stop Bullying: Stop harassment before it causes permanent damage. 2009. Internet. November 4, 2010. http://www.how-to-stop-bullying.com/bullyingstatistics.html16. National Institute of Child Health and Human Development (April 24, 2001)/ Survey Finds Bullying Widespread in U.S. Schools.17. National Association of Attorneys General. (2000). bruised inside: what our children say about youth violence, what causes it, and what we should do about it.18. Whittemore, Becky. Sticks and stones can break my bones (but can do even more damage. Associated content. March 17, 2009. February 15, 2011. http://www.associatedcontent.com/article/1571788/sticks_and_stones_may_break_my_bones.html?cat=41