Bullying remains a significant issue in schools, impacting students’ emotional well-being and academic performance. With October being National Bullying Prevention Month, we want to focus our attention and some resources to help you work with students on a real issue in schools. Bullying prevention is a multifaceted challenge that requires intentional effort.
If you need ideas or content for your teachers, Stride PD has two FREE courses that focus on this topic. You can find them here: (1) A Holistic Approach to Prevent Bullying and (2) Cyberbullying. Later this month, we will launch a 3rd course that examines how bullying looks in an online classroom or school.
Let’s turn our attention to three essential considerations that can be adopted for bullying prevention.
1. Create a Positive Classroom Culture
The foundation for preventing bullying lies in cultivating a positive, classroom culture. This involves establishing clear expectations for behavior and promoting respect and empathy among students. It also entails directly confronting bullying behavior when it is discovered because, if you do not, then you become part of the problem. Here are some strategies to enhance classroom culture:
- Set Clear Norms: At the beginning of the school year, involve students in creating a set of classroom norms. Encourage them to discuss what respectful behavior looks like and why it’s important. When students have a hand in establishing rules, they’re more likely to take ownership of them.
- Model Positive Behavior: Teachers should consistently model the behavior they wish to see in their students because students will replicate what they see. Demonstrating empathy, respect, and inclusivity can set the tone for how students interact with one another. Sharing stories or examples of kindness can reinforce these values. One powerful tool for you to consider is having other teachers come observe – not for instructional improvement – but for tone, expression, and body language improvement. Sometimes, we talk about positive behavior with students but then our tone in redirection is more harsh than it must be.
- Encourage Collaboration: Design activities that require teamwork and collaboration. When students work together towards common goals, they build relationships that can reduce the likelihood of bullying. Group projects, peer tutoring, and cooperative learning strategies foster connections among students. Before you implement these activities, however, make sure you teach the students how to work together and how to deal with difficulty. This may sound like a waste of time – but it is not! You are setting those norms and expectations early while teaching them valuable life skills.
2. Empower Bystanders
Bystanders play a crucial role in the dynamics of bullying as it’s not just the victim and the bully involved. Bystanders – those who witness the act itself – are negatively affected as well. These individuals need to understand they have power in the situation and can either contribute to the problem or help resolve it. Empowering students to take an active role can significantly impact bullying prevention efforts. Let’s be honest, though, this step takes courage as students must overcome this thought – “If I step in, then I’ll become the next target of those bullies.” We need to spend time teaching students how to act in these moments because knowing is half the battle.
- Educate on the Role of Bystanders: Teach students about the impact their actions can have when they witness bullying. Discussing scenarios can help them understand how intervening or reporting can change the outcome. Role-playing exercises can provide them with tools to respond appropriately. This does not have to take away classroom time but small clubs – or a theater class – can work to create videos to share across the district or school. This project could be invaluable for the district as they could be tailored for high school, middle school, and elementary school situations by specifically showing how students could respond in age-appropriate ways.
- Create Safe Reporting Channels: As students move into middle and high schools, bullying becomes more complex and, in some instances, harder to detect (e.g., cyberbullying through social media or game play). While these events may take place away from school grounds, they impact the learning environment. Schools, therefore, must establish clear and anonymous reporting systems for students to communicate incidents of bullying without fear of retribution. This process could include suggestion boxes, online forms, or trusted adult contacts. Knowing there’s a safe way to report bullying can encourage more students to speak up.
- Recognize and Reward Positive Interventions: Celebrate students who demonstrate courage in standing up against bullying or supporting their peers. Acknowledging these actions not only reinforces positive behavior but also encourages others to follow suit.
3. Involve Parents and the Community
Preventing bullying extends beyond the classroom as students spent more time away from school than on campus. Engaging parents and the wider community is vital to creating a cohesive approach to bullying prevention. As schools provide resources to parents and guardians, they are creating a wider knowledge base for those who can look for and redirect bullying behavior. These steps do not simply improve actions on the school grounds but spread to the community at large.
- Communicate with Parents: Sometimes, parents feel powerless in how to address bullying that may be occurring, so schools have to take extra steps to provide them details. Keep parents informed about the school’s policies on bullying and what they can do to help. It can be as simple as hosting informational sessions or sending newsletters that discuss signs of bullying and how to address it at home. It can become more complex by giving parents a list of questions they can ask their students to help them process if their child reports being bullied. As parents will often accompany their children in reporting bullying to school administrators, go ahead and give them things they can bring to help you look into these situations and get to a resolution. Open lines of communication between teachers and parents can foster a supportive network.
- Promote Community Involvement: Collaborate with local organizations and community leaders to host workshops or events focused on bullying prevention. Community resources can provide additional support and education for students and families. With October having that focus, the schools or district can leverage multiple businesses in the community to get out the message – recorded announcement played in retail stores of the mall, flyers posted in local restaurants, bullying message on restaurant receipts during this month, 10% discount on a meal or purchase if they share 2 tips to prevent bullying, PSA spots on local radio stations, etc.
- Foster a Sense of Belonging: Encourage initiatives that promote school spirit and belonging, such as clubs, sports, and community service projects. When students and parents feel connected to their school and community, they are less likely to engage in or tolerate bullying. If a district adopts the approach mentioned above about creating videos for students to understand how they can act if they are a bystander, then share those with parents. It would also be a wonderful idea for material being made from the parent perspective so they can learn as well.
By creating a positive classroom culture, empowering bystanders, and involving parents and the community, teachers can significantly reduce bullying and foster an environment where all students feel safe and valued. Each step taken toward a supportive atmosphere contributes to a brighter future for students, where learning can thrive free from the fear of harassment. By working together, we can all make bullying prevention a reality.