Education Law

Bullying in schools: What, where, how, and why it is important to address it

Being bullied and bullying others is a sad thing. And it seems that every other day a new story is cropping up in the news.  It not only diminishes people’s confidence and takes away their joy, but it also can lead to poor academic and even health outcomes among children. The unfortunate truth is that face-to-face bullying is fairly common in schools, and with the advent of new technologies, cyberbullying has been increasing at an alarming rate among youth. Children spend countless hours “socializing” through mediums such as computers and cell phones, and cyberbullying has presented itself as a partly “masked” or anonymous form of harassing people.  

Bullying happens among students of all racial and ethnic groups and of diverse socio-economic backgrounds. Nevertheless, as shown in a new report by the Gay, Lesbian and Straight Education Network (GLSEN), bullies often use one’s race/ethnicity or sexual orientation to channel their harassment. The report, called “Shared Differences”, shows how lesbian, gay, bisexual, and transgender (LGBT) students of color face unique and diverse challenges regarding bullying victimization at school.   

The report’s findings show, for instance, that lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender (LGBT) students of color report feeling unsafe in school, and that about a quarter of African American/Black and Asian/Pacific Islanders had missed class or days of school in the past month because they felt unsafe.  In addition, students’ overall GPA dropped when they reported high severities of harassment based on sexual orientation and/or race/ethnicity.

These findings underscore the need to address bullying in schools. So what can schools do? First, it is essential for schools to have effective anti-bullying policies, programs, and practices in place which take into consideration the specific needs and concerns of certain groups, such as LGBT youth. Second, it is important for the entire school community — students, teachers, principals, parents, and school board members — to be involved in tackling the problem and for all parties to acknowledge that they have a big role in combating this ailment.

A teacher, for instance, may know a student is bullying or being bullied, but may not do anything about it. This kind of ”bystander” is a critical piece of the bullying puzzle. In fact, a recent Science Daily article features a groundbreaking program, called CAPSLE (Creating a Peaceful School Learning Environment) that focuses more on the bystander than on the bully or the victim.  NSBA’s Legal Clips recently highlighted other promising programs and resources, including some resources from NSBA that showcased a variety of approaches schools around the country are using.

BoardBuzz believes another important aspect in combating bullying in schools is training staff on how to deal with bullying offenders and victims and how to prevent bullying from happening in the first place.  The Associated School Boards of South Dakota is tackling such issues head-on and will be holding a full-day, comprehensive seminar next month for that state’s school districts called Taking A Stand: Preventing Bullying in Schools.

Furthermore, cyberbullying is relatively new and is something all of us still need to learn more about. A good place to start is the Cyberbullying Prevention Package developed by CyberSmart!, a free tool NSBA is helping to distribute to schools nationwide. The materials in the package help schools begin a dialogue with students and build a sustained cyberbullying prevention campaign, promoting behavior change and continually reminding the school community of the importance of safe and ethical online use.

In addition, NSBA’s Web site features a free legal webinar specifically for educators on “From Cyberbullying to Cell Phones,” while the Stop Bullying Now! Campaign is hosting a webcast on cyberbullying prevention and intervention, on April 22, from 3:00 to 4:30 pm EST.  For details and to register, please email Nicolle Grayson at Nicolle.Grayson@widmeyer.com.

How is your school or school district addressing bullying? Leave us a comment.

Full post as published by BoardBuzz: NSBA's Daily Weblog on April 02, 2009 (boomark / email).