Bullying is unwanted, aggressive behavior among school aged children that involves a real or perceived power imbalance. The behavior is repeated, or has the potential to be repeated, over time. Both kids who are bullied and who bully others may have serious, lasting problems. Bullying includes actions such as making threats, spreading rumors, attacking someone physically or verbally, and excluding someone from a group on purpose.

Bullying, in all forms, are becoming a major concern of the school administrators, the educators, and the parents. According to the National Center for Education Statistics, 2015: One out of every four students (22%) report being bullied during the school year, while 64 percent of children who were bullied did not report it; only 36 percent reported the bullying.

With the statistics consistently getting higher, it will definitely prompt the involved persons to act on it at once. This is to be able to prevent the damage both on personal and psychosocial aspect of the students who bullies and being bullied. Educators play a vital role in the proper intervention of bullying inside the campus.

The State Government of Victoria recently identified the impacts of bullying to the following:

1. Victims of Bullying

• feel disconnected from school and not like school
• have lower academic outcomes, including lower attendance and completion rates
• lack quality friendships at school
• display high levels of emotion that indicate vulnerability and low levels of resilience
• be less well accepted by peers, avoid conflict and be socially withdrawn
• have low self-esteem
• have depression, anxiety, feelings of loneliness and isolation
• have nightmares
• feel wary or suspicious of others
• have an increased risk of depression and substance abuse
• in extreme cases, have a higher risk of suicide, however, the reasons why a person may be at risk of suicide are extremely complicated.

 

1. Impact on Bullies:

• feel disconnected from school and dislike school
• get into fights, vandalise property and leave school early

1. Impact on Schools:

• the school developing an environment of fear and disrespect
• students experiencing difficulty learning
• students feeling insecure
• students disliking school
• students perceiving that teachers and staff have little control and don’t care about them

With the above-mentioned effects of bullying to the different sectors and individuals, The best way to address bullying is to stop it before it starts. There are a number of things school staff can do to make schools safer and prevent bullying.

Assess Bullying in Your School. Conduct assessments in your school to determine how often bullying occurs, where it happens, how students and adults intervene, and whether your prevention efforts are working.

Engage Parents and Youth. It is important for everyone in the community to work together to send a unified message against bullying. Launch an awareness campaign to make the objectives known to the school, parents, and community members. Establish a school safety committee or task force to plan, implement, and evaluate your school’s bullying prevention program.

Create Policies and Rules . Create a mission statement, code of conduct, school-wide rules, and a bullying reporting system. These establish a climate in which bullying is not acceptable. Disseminate and communicate widely.

Build a Safe Environment. Establish a school culture of acceptance, tolerance and respect. Use staff meetings, assemblies, class and parent meetings, newsletters to families, the school website, and the student handbook to establish a positive climate at school. Reinforce positive social interactions and inclusiveness.

Educate Students and School Staff . Build bullying prevention material into the curriculum and school activities. Train teachers and staff on the school’s rules and policies. Give them the skills to intervene consistently and appropriately.

As educators, we are, and must be part of the solution rather than the problem. By being diplomatic and being very objective in dealing with the persons involved. Knowing the detrimental effect not just on the social aspects of the students, but more so with the personal difficulties it can contribute. Bullying is an everyday thing for the victims unless resolved accordingly. By giving them an environment of support and care, educators will be able to nurture the victims and correct the offenders.

 

By: CRISTINA C. SAMANIEGO | TEACHER III | LIMAY NATIONAL HIGH SCHOOL | LIMAY, BATAAN