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Preventing bullying in school

November 27, 2022 People's Tonight 312 views

IN order for children to reach their full potential and be successful in school, they need to feel safe in their learning environment and free to do what is best for them as they grow.

This includes a bully-free school environment, friendly community, supportive teachers and parents and the full support of the education department.

According to studies, kids and teens who are victims of bullying can suffer from physical symptoms and injuries, depression, anxiety, fear and low self-esteem matters that should not be present if we are to develop world class graduates and strong workforce in the coming years.

From physical altercations to rumors and gossip, bullying can have lasting effects on an educational environment and preventing school bullying is extremely important for educators, students and the whole community.

In order to create an ideal place to learn and grow, Here are some ways to create a safe and positive environment for all your students.

Teach Compassion

Compassion is the sympathetic desire to help someone in pain. The teenage years are well known as a time of strong emotional responses. Without guidance on how to deal healthily with these strong emotions, teens can come to believe that what they are feeling and their own emotional gratification can outweigh another student’s emotional needs.

Establish a System for Anonymous Reporting

One of the primary reasons students don’t report bullying when they witness it, is that they fear that the bully will learn of their involvement and lash out at them. They are more likely to report bullying when they are able to do so anonymously.

One way some schools have successfully decreased bullying is enabling students to text and report when they witness bullying. The vast majority of students have cell phones with them at all times. Schools can put in place a system like creating a platform or a simple mobile number so that students can quickly and anonymously report or notify school authorities when and where a bullying attack is taking place.

Intervene Immediately

Usually, bullies are careful not to be seen or heard by adults. However, some bullying attacks do happen in front of authority figures. When these do occur, it is essential to intervene immediately.

Let the bully know that their behavior will not be tolerated.

Bullying is not a conflict between two people, so it should not be treated as such. Bullying is the exertion of power over another person. While in situations of normal peer-to-peer conflict, it may be beneficial for students to learn to work out their differences, bullying attacks are one-sided. This is not something that should be allowed to just play out. There are no differences to be worked out. The bully needs to be dealt with immediately.

Help targets build friendships.

Social isolation is the most painful part of being bullied. We can encourage peers to reach out in friendship and help targets participate in that friendship. This is also one way of building camaraderie among students and creating unity where bullies are identified, controlled and taken care of.

Remember, the experiences that people have while they are children help mold them into the adults that they later become. So it is not surprising that the effects of bullying linger well into adulthood. This then helps to influence their future mindset, including how they view themselves and others. VALERIA Z. TELAN, Teacher III ,Abulug Central Elementary School in Cagayan)

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