Mockery, rumors and attacks against students and teachers lie behind some of the so-called “curis” accounts, a trend that has spread across TikTok and has already reached numerous schools in Aragón. These are anonymous profiles created by students to publish memes and cartoons about what happens in the classroom.
While some of the content is limited to jokes about exams or everyday situations, other posts directly target classmates and teachers, making fun of their appearance or personality and spreading rumors, turning an apparent joke into a situation of bullying and cyberbullying.
Psychologist Diego del Castillo told ARAGÓN DIGITAL that this form of bullying is “nothing new”: “There has always been caricature of both students and teachers.” The difference now lies in the megaphone provided by social media and the possibility of hiding behind anonymity.
According to the psychologist, these behaviors also involve a sense of belonging to the group that is particularly important during adolescence. Ridiculing or targeting a third person can become a way of strengthening the bonds between those taking part in the mockery. “A very typical way of feeling that I belong more to a group is to single out the person who is different,” Del Castillo explains. This dynamic carries even greater weight at a stage when young people are seeking to build their identity and find their place among their peers.
BULLYING NO LONGER ENDS WHEN STUDENTS LEAVE SCHOOL
Social media has also erased one of the boundaries traditionally associated with school bullying: the school gate. “The problem is visibility,” the psychologist warns. Mockery that once might have been limited to a comment between classmates or a piece of paper passed around the classroom can now be posted on TikTok and reach hundreds or thousands of people. The victim continues to see that content when they get home, a place that until now could have offered an escape from what happened at school.
This exposure can have consequences in different areas of a child’s life. Del Castillo points to self-esteem problems, difficulties forming relationships, social isolation and even poorer academic performance. Emotional strain can affect concentration and cause teenagers to lose confidence when interacting with others. “You have been exposed to the world and people have directed so much hatred at you,” he says, summarizing the feeling a victim may experience.
In a situation like this, the psychologist considers joint action by the school and families essential, both with the child experiencing the bullying and with the person perpetrating it. The aim is not only to stop the posts, but also to help whoever creates them understand “the repercussions it has” and analyze why they are acting that way in order to offer them other ways to interact with their classmates.
He also highlights minors’ access to mobile phones and the internet. Del Castillo warns of the risks of giving children these tools at too early an age and recommends delaying their use and, when the time comes, introducing them gradually and with guidance. In his view, “ensuring controlled access” and educating children about the dangers of the internet are two of the keys. The anonymity of accounts such as the “curis” adds another difficulty, as it allows people to act with a sense of impunity: “It gives you a lot of leeway without consequences.”
