Bullying is a major problem in schools today and it is one that cannot be easily
solved. It is a serious problem because it puts the victim in a state of emotional,
psychological and sometimes physical discomfort. Rigby & Bagshaw (2001) estimate
that one in six Australian children are victims of bullying on a weekly basis. Studies
have shown that many victims of bullying suffer psychological problems such as
depression, low self-esteem and loneliness (Boulton et al.). This means that bullying
is an issue which requires immediate attention from all schools and those involved in
working with children. However the solution to this problem is not an easy one to
find.
There are many obstacles for schools which attempt to implement an anti-bullying
program. One of these is the concept of “dobbing” (Strategies to use 1999). Many
victims are reluctant to speak out about their suffering because they don’t want to be
known as a dobber. Dobbing is when a person informs authority figures that someone
has done something against the rules. I observed this at a school where a student
approached a teacher about another student hitting them, but was unwilling to name
the other student. A person who constantly informs on the activities of others will be
seen as untrustworthy and perhaps is trying to gain the teacher’s favour. Among boys
in particular there is the connotation that a dobber is weak and unable to cope on their
own. Understandably children do not want to be known as untrustworthy, however,
there are several strategies which could be used to overcome this obstacle.
One possibility is to teach the children that there is a correct situation in which to dob.
The Kids Help Line provides a good summary of this when it says that dobbing
normally results in someone being punished, while the correct form of dobbing is
telling when something has been done to someone contrary to what they want. It
normally helps the person to get out of trouble. Another strategy would be to
encourage friends and siblings to take action on behalf of the bullied person. This
action could be informing teachers, or helping the victim to avoid the bully by always
having lots of people around.
Another problem for anti-bullying programs to overcome is the subtle nature of much
bullying. While physical bullying is indeed a problem, it is usually obvious and action
can be taken easily. However, other forms of bullying such as exclusion and verbal
bullying are much more subtle and hidden and are harder to expose. Rigby &
Bagshaw (2001) call this type of bullying “relational aggression” as it is meant to hurt
the victim’s social relationships. This type of bullying is often hard to detect as it is
usually verbal and can’t be seen. I observed this behaviour at a school where a student
was the victim of teasing and exclusion. They had been seen picking their nose in
public and were being ridiculed for it. Another reason it can be hard to detect is that
the victims can feel embarrassed about the reason for the ridicule and may not want
teachers to find out.
One strategy that can be used to overcome this problem is for teachers to provide a
sympathetic listener. If students know that there is someone they can talk to who will
listen without judging and who will respect their privacy then they would likely be
more willing to tell someone about what they are experiencing.
Teachers can also make sure they do not model bad behaviour in their classroom such
as putting students down, and by not showing favouritism and in doing so make some
children feel excluded (Rigby 1995).
Another strategy which could be used is encouraging students to become involved in
preventing bullying and in helping victims. Students who are victims of bullying are
more likely to look to their friends and peers for help rather than a teacher (Rigby
1995). Training in helping students with relational problems can be given to some
students who are interested in helping others and wish to stop bullying from
occurring.
Another problem facing schools is the widespread nature of bullying. It can be seen as
something that occurs as a natural part of school and is simply a rite of passage which
must be endured. This view is usually given by parents and adults who model the
same bullying behaviour (Helping Bullies 1999). Schools face the difficulty of
contradicting behaviour which a child sees and is taught is correct at home. This
behaviour is mostly seen in racial bullying which is often modelled by adults as well
(Ethnicity and Bullying- Racism amongst young People 1998).
The ethnic origin of a student is often a basis for bullying, and the bully usually learns
this behaviour from parents or adults who possess an inaccurate negative stereotype
about a particular culture. This was seen in recent years after the terrorist attacks on
America. Many Muslims and people of Arabic descent were subjected to a period of
intense bullying and harassment because of the negative stereotype of Arabic people
formed from those tragic events.
Kids Help Line (Bullying- Infosheet 7 2003) reported that calls from indigenous and
non-English speaking people was over 30% greater than for others.
One way schools could overcome this problem is to teach students about other
cultures. Much of the cultural bullying is because of ignorance about other cultures
and negative stereotypes which are based on a small minority or even imaginary facts.
Teachers could teach acceptance of other cultures by teaching about other cultures in
the classroom. This could involve the Pikas method which consists of talking with the
bullies and then the victims, and then getting all the people involved to come together
to the resolve the situation (Rigby 1995). Schools could also get parents involved in
the program and attempt to help them change their own views about cultural
stereotypes by providing activities which promote community regardless of culture.
For example, I observed this in a school which had a Community Day which offered a
chance for different cultures to come together and show off their culture as well as
celebrate others.
There are many challenges facing schools which attempt to implement an AntiBullying program. These include victims who are reluctant to come forward, often for
fear of being called a “dobber”, the subtle nature of much bullying, particularly
relational bullying, negative cultural stereotypes, parents modelling the bullying
behaviour and the view that bullying is an unchangeable part of schooling and is a rite
of passage. All these problems can be difficult to overcome, and without a committed
staff a school will find it very difficult to implement an anti-bullying program
effectively.
There are also many strategies which can be used to help deal with bullying. These
include educating students about the correct situation to inform of bad behaviour,
encouraging other students particularly friends and siblings to help the victim, being a
sympathetic listener, modelling correct behaviour, and having a Community Day to
inform and educate about other cultures. While these problems and strategies to
overcome the problems are not the only ones, they provide a good picture of the
difficulties schools face and the range of possibilities they have to solve the problem
of bullying.
BIBLIOGRAPHY
Bullying- Infosheet 7, 2003, last edited April 2003, Kids Help Line, viewed 12 May
2003, <http://www.kidshelp.com.au/research/infosheets/07Bullying.pdf>
Strategies to use, 1999, last edited April 2003, Kids Help Line, viewed 12 May 2003,
< http://www.kidshelp.com.au/INFO7/strategies.htm>
Helping Bullies, 1999, last edited April 2003, Kids Help Line, viewed 12 May 2003,
< http://www.kidshelp.com.au/INFO7/strategies2.htm>
Ethnicity and Bullying- Racism amongst young People, 1998, last edited 2003, Kids
Help Line Newsletter November 1998, viewed 12 May 2003,
<http://www.kidshelp.com.au/research/media/PRESSRELEASES/bullyingnews.htm>
Rigby, K 1995, Kids in School- reducing bullying in schools, last edited 2003, Kids
Help Line Newsletter November 1995, viewed 12 May 2003,
< http://www.kidshelp.com.au/research/Newsletters/NOV95/lead.html>
Rigby, K & Bagshaw, D 2001, ‘What hurts?’, Children Australia, vol. 26, no. 4,
viewed 12 May 2003,
< http://www.csu.edu.au/division/library/ereserve/pdf/rigby.pdf>
Boulton, M. J, Trueman, M, Chau, C, Whitehand, C & Amatya, K 1999, ‘Concurrent
and longitudinal links between friendship and peer victimization: implications for
befriending interventions’, Journal of Adolescence, vol. 22, pg 461-466, viewed 12
May 2003,
< http://www.sciencedirect.com/science?_ob=MImg&_imagekey=B6WH045GMGC5-1S1&_cdi=6836&_orig=browse&_coverDate=08/31/1999&_sk=999779995&view=c&
wchp=dGLbVtblSztA&_acct=C000053903&_version=1&_userid=1588505&md5=9e79075ab76b23d
84ff78fc88d260359&ie=f.pdf>
EED111 CHILD
DEVELOPMENT
ASSIGNMENT: 2003
Title: Current Challenges
for School Anti-Bullying
Programs
By Cameron Jelliffe
11242463
Due: 13/5/03