BULLYING IN SCHOOL

Bullying In School

Aayah Guardado

University of the Rockies

Abstract

Bullying is a general term used to describe the tactics of aggression onto another person. Unfortunately, in the education system aggression rules; the popular students tend to be the jocks and the person the others want to cluster around. There is a group of children that are often overlooked. It may be possible they are not physically strong or just the vulnerable type. This research reports attempts to look at the problem of bullying in schools and the preventive measures that can be adopted to stop or avoid such acts.

Introduction

Bullying may seem an insignificant issue when compared to drug abuse or guns being brought into schools. However, what compels students to believe they need to bring a weapon to school? Bullying comes in many shapes and forms. Parents, teachers, and students hear it, see it, but how to intervene and prevent bullying is the big question. What do teachers and parents let slide or put a stop to? When peers see bullying, do they get involved? What if the bully turns their attention onto them as a new victim? Or if they report the incident to an adult, run the risk of being labeled as a tattle-tail? From an adult's perspective, how can they punish what they do not see? "Sticks and stones may break my bones, but words will never hurt me," is how the old motto goes, however, words hurt most of all. No bones may be broken, yet a child's broken spirit can be considerably worse.

Rationale of the study

A top researcher of bullying in school-age children, Dan Olweus, defines bullying as:"A student is being bullied or victimized when he or she is exposed, repeatedly and over time, to negative actions on the part of one or more other students." (Stephens et al., 1995, pp.12)Olweus has done extensive studies in Norway over the past 20 years and found that approximately 15 percent, or one in seven students, are involved in victim/bully problems. Within these same studies, about 9 percent are victims, and 7 percent bully others on a regular basis. A child who is tougher, more daring, and more confident than normal, tend to bully other children who are weaker, more shy, who might not fight back or act in an aggressive way. There is a power difference between a bully and a victim. Believing that bullies are insecure inside all their brazenness is false. Research shows that their self-esteem is often average or above average. It seems that bullies are likely to come from homes in which aggressive techniques are modeled for conflict resolution (Sudermann, Jaffe, Schieck, 1996).

Evidence greatly implies that bullying tends to be an intergenerational problem. Dr. Nathanial Floyd, a psychologist for the Board of Cooperative Educational Services of Southern Westchester, New York, says that a bully at school is a victim at home. Abusive parent's actions can teach children that aggression and violence are efficient and suitable way to achieve a goal (Stephens, Arnette, James, Grady, ...