Bullying in the Classroom
By: Claudia Dichtel
What is Bullying?
Bullying is a negative action carried out by physical contact, mean words, making faces, gestures, spreading rumors, and/or intentional exclusion. (Dan Olweus, 1997) There are many different types of bullying. Physical aggression is a behavior that causes harm through physical damage. Another type of bullying is verbal aggression. Verbal aggression includes threats, teasing and name-calling. Both are very hurtful and can cause severe emotional damage to the child's overall emotional development.
Bullying is something that can stay with you for a lifetime. I still remember my bully. He would put gum in my hair, push me and call me names. I will never forget the way he would make me feel. The way my heart would drop when I would see him on the playground. I would think to myself, what is he going to do to me today? Bullying happens a lot in schools today. As teacher, we are advocates for our students and need to put a stop to this.
How Pervasive is Bullying? (According to the National Association of School Psychologist, 2000)
* One in seven children in school has either been a bully or a target of a bully.
* On average, children were targets of bullying about every 3 to 6 minutes from the start of kindergarten to the end of first grade.
* Bullying happens once every 7 minutes on the playground and once every twenty-five minutes in our classrooms.
* "Bullies indented by the age of eight are six times more likely to be convicted of a crime by the age of 24 and five times more likely than non-bullies to end up with a serious criminal record by the time they reach age 30." (Main Project Against Bullying, 2000) This piece of research is very true. My bully did not even graduate with our senior class. He was kicked out of school and later dropped out. I found out that he was in jail on drug possession charges.
Bullying has many repercussions. It can lead to:
* Depression
* Eating disorders, if made fun of your weight.
* Headaches
* Stomachaches
* Stress and anxiety
* School avoidance (absenteeism)
* Low self-esteem
* Delinquency
* Substance abuse
* Self mutilation
* Violence
Ways to help kids take responsibility for their behavior will be to interview the target of the bullying, the bystanders and the aggressor. Some questions you as the teacher might want to ask are:
1. What went wrong?
2. What role did you play in what went wrong?
3. What did you learn from that experience?
4. What would you do differently next time?
5. If you are sorry, how are you going to show me you are sorry?
The Internet serves as another medium for bullying. This type of bullying is known as Cyberbullying. This is where students use communication devices to deliberate and sometimes rapidly harm others. Some tools kids are using to Cyber bully are:
* Email
* IM (Instant Messaging)
* Cell phones/ digital cameras
* Chat rooms
* Personal website, "My Space"
* Blogs (interactive web diaries)
What to do? What is the solution if you encounter this, as a teacher?
1. Tell your students not to delete it. Save cyberbullying evidence.
2. Asses the degree of threat to help determine how to respond properly:
* For a minor incident: ignore cyberbullying and block the sender
* Other incidents may need to be reported to school officials/parents/teachers
* The police may need to be involved, if the problem continues.
Resources for Schools and Parents:
Center for Safe and Responsible Internet Use (CSRIU)
www.cyberbully.org <http://www.cyberbully.org> and click on Educator's Guide or Parent's Guide.
www.stopcyberbullying.org <http://www.stopcyberbullying.org>
Attached you will find many resources that can help you stop bullying in your classroom. Please do not ignore bullying in your classroom. Take action to help stop it. Role model appropriate behavior. Do not believe the stereotypes that "boys will be boys" or "that's just the way girls are" when it comes to bullying. A good way to do this is to have books on bullying in your classroom library. Read a book aloud to the class and discuss how the victim felt. Use the following websites as teacher resources to help guide you. I have been to many conferences on bullying and would be happy to help anyone. Please feel free to email me at any point if you have any questions or concerns. I have a lot more information and resources on bullying at all ages. Dichtcl@lc-ps.org <mailto:Dichtcl@lc-ps.org>
RECOMMENDED BULLYING WEBSITES
(Updated 8/10/05)
* Note: These listings include websites recommended by Dr. Wendy Craig, Department of Psychology, Queen's University in Ontario, Canada, and by Full Esteem Ahead and Ludwig Creative, Inc.
www.bullying.co.uk <http://www.bullying.co.uk> (Bullying Online)
This British website is a great resource offering help and advice to parents, students and schools.
www.bullying.org <http://www.bullying.org>
An informative website for adults and children. Includes anti-bullying commercials, drawing, stories, music, and films. This website allows for a sharing of experiences from 14those who have witnessed and have been involved in bullying.
www.bullybeware.com <http://www.bullybeware.com>
Single-page containing definitions of and strategies to prevent bullying.
www.bullyingnoway.com.au/ <http://www.bullyingnoway.com.au/>
A great website created by Australia's educational communities to help create safe learning environments for students and their community. Teaches, parents and children will find useful resources on this website.
www.bullystoppers.com <http://www.bullystoppers.com>
This web site offers students, parents, and educators valuable information and resources for combating online social cruelty.
www.cca-kids.ca/tvandme/english/parents/pdf/bullytools.pdf <http://www.cca-kids.ca/tvandme/english/parents/pdf/bullytools.pdf>
This web site includes good facts about bullying and victimization, as well as strategies
For interventions. It also includes a list of other resources related to bullying for children, parents and educators.
www.cyberbully.org <http://www.cyberbully.org>
This website offers students, parents, and educators valuable information and resources for combating online social cruelty.
www.cyberbully.ca/ <http://www.cyberbully.ca/>
This informative Canadian website on cyber bulling provides eye- opening statistics, as well as useful resources that will help adults better understand the role technology plays in bullying and what can be done about it.
KID-FRIENDLY BULLYING WEBSITES
www.bullying.org <http://www.bullying.org>
An informative website for adults and children. Includes anti-bullying commercials, drawing, stories, music, and films. This website allows for a sharing of experiences from those who have witnessed and have been involved in bullying.
www.bullies2buddies.com <http://www.bullies2buddies.com>
A fun, informative website that offers practical advice to older kids, parents and educators.
www.childline.org.uk/Bullying.asp <http://www.childline.org.uk/Bullying.asp>
Great website for kids. Simple definition and explanations of bullying. Suggests good intervention strategies and ways for children to get involved in every level of these interventions. Addresses different kids of bullying by teachers, adults and other children. Discusses bullying myths. European website so help numbers may be difficult to access.
www.kidscape.org.uk/ <http://www.kidscape.org.uk/>
Lists of interventions that encourage children to become involved in stopping bullying. No real definition, only list of behaviors that are considered bullying.
Elementary Fiction Books Recommended for Bullying
DePino, Catherine. Blue Cheese Breath and Stinky Feet. Washington D.C.: Magination Press 2004. Steve is picked on by a bull and is afraid thins will get worse if he tells asks for help. His parents come up with a plan to help their son.
Ludwig, Trudy. My Secret Bully. California: Tricycle press, 2005 Monica is emotionally bullied by her friend Katie and learns how to cope, survive with the help of her mother. The book also includes helpful tips, discussion questions and additional resources for parents, teachers and counseling professionals.
Madonna. The English Roses New York Callaway ,2003 An exclusive girls club, The English Roses, learn a lesson about judging their peers before really getting to know them
Polacco, Patricia. Mr. Lincoln's Way. New York: Philomel Books, 2001. When principal Lincoln discovers that Eugene, the school bully, knows a lot about birds, he uses this interest to help him overcome his intolerance.
Sachar, Louis. The Boy Who Lost His Face. New York: Knopf, 1997. David learns to regret his weakness in pandering to other for the sake of popularity. New friends help him to be a stronger, more assertive person.
Elementary Non-Fiction Books Recommended for Bullying
Kivel, Paul. I Can Make my World a Safer Place. California: Hunter House Publishers, 2001. This book addresses the many ways someone can hurt others (including bulling) and what we can do to stop it.
Madison, Lynda The Feelings Book: The Care & Keeping of your Emotions: Wisconsin: Pleasant Co., 2002. Discusses a variety of emotions girls might experience and suggests ways of dealing with them.
Romain, Trevor. Bullies are a Pain in the Brain. Minnesota: Free sprit Publishing, 1997. simple handbook written for children about bullies, the myths surrounding bully issues and interventions. Includes resources for students, Teachers and parents.
Polland, Barbara Ph.D. We Can Work It Out: Conflict Resolution For Children. California: Tricycle Press, 2000. Text and Photograph designed to cerate opportunities for children to talk about their experiences of conflict and the variety of ways to resolve them.
