What it Is, How to Stop It, & Other Stuff
Bullying is a Problem: But What is It?
According to Google search (see ‘what is the definition of bullying’) bullying is the “use superior strength or influence to intimidate (someone), typically to force him or her to do what one wants.” In short, it means that a bully is a person who has a form of power and is abusing it. A victim is the object of the bully. This is the person the bully or bullies pick on. The bystanders are people who are observers (or witnesses) of bullying. Remember, there is no such thing as an innocent bystander. There are many different kinds of bullying:
- Physical bullying: physical bullying is when a bully actually physically hurts you. Kicking, punching, slapping, hitting, and shoving are all forms of physical bullying.
- Verbal bullying: this kind of bullying is when the bully uses words to hurt you. Forms of this bullying are threats, insults, and blackmail.
- Covert bullying: with this kind of bullying, the bully also uses words to hurt the victim. The difference between verbal and covert bullying is the bully uses gossip instead of blackmail and insults to hurt the victim.
- Cyber bullying: this is a difficult form of bullying to deal with. The bully uses electronic devices (phones, computers, tablets, etc.) to bully. They may do this through blog posts, texts, emails, or other forms of communication. It is very hard to track down cyber bullies.
Remember that if you said something back, it isn’t bullying: it’s a conflict.
What are the Causes and Effects of Bullying?
There are many reasons kids bully. Perhaps the bully does not have a good at-home life; they may have been abused as a child. It may be hard to believe, but sometimes the bully doesn’t actually know they are bullies. A victim is usually a smaller, less-popular kid. He or she probably don’t have many friends. As for bystanders, if you didn’t take action, you’re guilty. Why wouldn’t someone take action? They may be scared of being bullied themselves, or worried about not being in the popular group. They might not actually know how to help.
What should you do if you you see someone being bullied? If you are too scared or don’t know how to stand up, talk to an adult - maybe your parents, guardians, or a teacher.
How does bullying affect kids like you? It makes kids have a low self-esteem, and it can lead to bad grades. For the bully, it can lead to an inflated self-esteem. The bystander may be left feeling guilty. Remember that if you didn’t stand up, you are guilty.
Our Program (and maybe yours)
There are many different kinds of bullying, and many different programs to put a stop to it. Here is one thought of by four 6th graders at Acton Middle School, Granbury TX.
The SIBIS Project:
This is a program specifically designed to be used in middle schools. “SIBIS” stands for “Stop-It-Before-It-Starts”. It should stop current, semi-future, and future bullying. Our logo, the star, represents the five parts of the SIBIS project:
- Part 1: Make help boxes in the cafeteria, outside the building, or in the bathrooms - try to make it a somewhat private place so kids using the help boxes can do so in privacy.
- Part 2: Talk to current students about bullying. Stress the difference between conflict and bullying and also what the different kinds of bullying looks like. It would help if the speakers were also students from that school rather than adults.
- Part 3: Put up posters to remind students to speak up when they see bullying. If your school has an art class, perhaps they could make these posters.
- Part 4: Talk to future students (especially fifth graders) about bullying. This will get Stop-It-Before-It-Starts’ information in their heads before they come to your school.
- Part 5...has already been done. Make a website with information about bullying, the SIBIS Project, with links/books we found helpful, and videos with interviews (such as we did) If your school has a technical applications class, they could perhaps make another website and update it.
Volunteering
There are many ways you can volunteer for SIBIS (if your school uses it or your are at Acton Middle School) If you don’t know how to volunteer, here are some ways you can:
- making posters
- updating the website (or making one)
- talking to students (current or future)
- making help boxes
- fundraiser
Here is an interview with AMS school counselor D. D. Loftin.
Our Interview with D.D. Loftin, M.ED., LPC:
Interviewer: What is your opinion towards bullying?
D. D. Loftin: It’s been going on a really long time.
I: If the school put you in charge of stopping AMS bullying right now, what would you do first?
D: Educate people. That is what we are trying to do now with Rachel’s challenge.
I: How have you dealt with bullying in the past?
D: Talk to the bully. Talk to the victim. Warn the bullying that punishment will only get worse. Put the victim in a place of power.
I: Anything else you would like us to know about bullying?
D: We have done a better job of dealing with bullying here at AMS now more than ever. Programs like Rachel’s Challenge are helpful.
Check out these links to find more information on bullying.
http://www.cdc.gov/violenceprevention/pdf/bullying_factsheet-a.pdf
No comments:
Post a Comment