Although the numbers vary from site to site, when it comes to bullying, on average…
* 280,000 students are physically attacked in secondary schools each month.
* 160,000 students miss school each day for fear of being bullied.
* 77% of students are bullied mentally, verbally, and physically. Cyber bullying statistics are rapidly approaching similar numbers.
* 43% fear harassment in the bathroom at school.
* 1 out of 4 students will be abused by another youth.
* 1 out of 5 admit to being a bully, or doing some bullying.
* 64% of bullying is not reported.
* 500,000 yearly suicide attempts.
* 5,300 youth suicides annually.
* 2nd leading cause of death.
Every seven minutes, a child is bullied. The effects of bullying are significant, leading to anxiety, fear, withdrawal, low self-esteem, poor concentration, and more. There are a lot of programs and trainings in place, but the numbers continue to increase. So, I have to ask why? As the teacher, admin, secretary, cafeteria worker, yard duty person, etc., could it be that you are part of the problem? Here is why I ask.
Scenario 1
A teacher asked her third grade students what they were going to be for Halloween. One girl answered with superman. Students in the class laughed at her… and so did the teacher. What followed was teasing and verbal rebukes from the students in the classroom. And the teacher… she did nothing to stop it.
Scenario 2
A sixth-grade boy had been teased and harassed at school for weeks. What made him leave, was when he went to the restroom and another boy took a picture of him exposed while urinating… than posted it on social media. In the end, the teacher stated that she knew “something was going on” but failed to act on it.
Scenario 3
My daughter was being harassed by a girl in her classroom. I had two meetings with the vice-principal, and one with the principal. Nothing happened because the one doing the bullying had a learning disability. It came to a head when the girl pulled my daughter off of the jungle gym equipment during recess… and still nothing was done by admin.
There are three reasons why bullying continues today. In scenario 1, bullying was encouraged by the teacher. The minute the teacher laughed along with the students was the minute the students were given permission to bully! I’m sure the teacher felt that what happened was just a harmless incident… no big deal. But it was a big deal for the girl who was laughed at and teased. The second reason was in scenario 2, where bullying was ignored by the teacher. Bullying should never be ignored because you feel the students should solve their own problems, or because you hope it will go away. The third reason was in scenario 3, where bullying was excused by admin. And, therein lies the problems. Bullying should NEVER EVER be encouraged, ignored, or excused. Unfortunately, a lot of that still goes on in schools and classrooms today and that is the reason why bullying continues!
Now, I can hear the mumblings and grumblings of home environments and lack of parent involvement and support from the teachers. I get that, I truly do!!! And as frustrating as it is, control what you can control… the school environment and your classroom. If we want to change the numbers mentioned above, then we have to change the school and personnel culture! It is not enough for schools to have trainings and programs in place for bullying, if it was, the numbers above would reflect that. Schools have to have strong repercussions for bullying; there should be zero tolerance for bullying behaviors. As teachers, admin, etc., our attitudes towards bullying has to change! Never should we encourage, ignore, or excuse it. And NEVER EVER should disabilities be an excuse!!! Bullying will continue until we all recognize bullying for what it is and change our own perspectives and our own behaviors and responses to it! Are you part of the problem?