Bullying Prevention in the PVUSD

Presented by Mary Schindler, Clinical Director Pjaro Valley Prevention and Student Assistance January 19, 2011

Definition of Bullying
Is aggressive behavior that intends to cause harm or distress. Usually is repeated over time. Occurs in a relationship where there is an imbalance of power or strength.

DIRECT
Face to Face Physical
Shoves, pushes, hitting, kicking, assault

Verbal
Insults, putdowns, teasing, harassment Racial slurs, taunting

Psychological
Rolling eyes, dirty looks, mad dogging, uttering threats, extortion

INDIRECT
Behind someones back

Exclusion
Leaving out Shunning

Relational Aggression
Telling people not to be friends with a victim

Gossip
Lowering peoples opinion About the victim

Starts the bullying and takes an active part

Student who is Bullying

Disengaged Onlooker

Takes an active part, but does not start the bullying behavior

Follower/Henchman

Dislikes the bullying and thinks he ought to help but doesnt

Possible Defender

Supports the bullying but does not take an active part

Supporter

Likes the bullying but does not display open support

Passive Supporter (Possible Bully)

Dislikes the bullying and helps or tries to help the student who was targeted

Defender of the Target

Myth #1: Students who bully are rejected by their peers and have no friends
Often enjoy high status and have lots of friends. During the middle school years, some students who bully are actually quite popular and perceived as especially cool. Enjoy a new kind of notoriety. Many classmates admire their toughness and may even try to imitate them.

Myth #2: Students who bully have low self-esteem.

Self-esteem movement of the 1980s when many people argued that raising self-esteem was the key to improving the outcomes of children with academic and social problems. Many studies report that students who bully perceive themselves in a positive light, perhaps sometimes displaying inflated self-views High self-esteem can sometimes encourage students who bully to rationalize their antisocial actions.

Myth #3: Being a victim builds character

Research quite clearly shows that bullying experiences increase the vulnerabilities of children. Children who are passive and socially withdrawn are at heightened risk of getting bullied and that these children become even more withdrawn after incidents of harassment

Myth #4: Many childhood victims of harassment become violent as teens.

Most children who are targets of bullying are more likely to suffer in silence than to retaliate. Many students who are targeted experience psychological adjustment problems like depression and low self-esteem, which may make them inclined to turn inward rather than outward.

Myth #5: There is a victim personality.

Certain personality characteristics (e.g., the tendency to be shy or withdrawn) place children at higher risk for being bullied, Also a host of situational and social factors (e.g., being a new student in school, not having a friend) These situational factors explain why there are more temporary than chronic targets of bullying.

Myth #6: Bullying involves only perpetrators and victims.

Bullying incidents are typically public (rather than private) events that have witnesses. Playground observations have found that in most incidents, at least four other peers were present. In more than 50% of the observed incidents of bullying, peers reinforced the bullying behavior by passively watching. In only about 25% of the incidents did witnesses support the target by directly intervening, distracting, or discouraging the student who bullied.

Out-dated Beliefs
Bullying is a normal part of growing up. Children who bully will grow out of it. Children are always best left to resolve their own conflicts. Childrens conflicts reflect play fighting and teasing will do no real harm. Sometimes victims provoke attacks. Adults should not encourage tattling. No way to stop it.

Children Who Bully are More Likely To:

Feel a need to regain power Come from homes where they are bullied or abused Have high self esteem Be popular Get into frequent fights Be injured in a fight Steal, vandalize property Drink alcohol, smoke Be truant, drop out of school Struggle academically Perceive a negative climate at school Carry a weapon

Children Who are Targets of Bullying Behavior

Often have lower self esteem Tend to feel more depressed, anxious, lonely and insecure Have more psychosomatic complaints (stomachaches, headaches) Have higher absenteeism rates Often blame themselves and see themselves as social failures Tend to view school as less supportive Academic problems include avoidance, truancy and greater risk of dropout Have more suicidal ideation Have more peer rejection often blamed by peers for being targets

Reports of Bullying to School Staff

Many do not report being bullied. Older children and boys are less likely to report victimization. Why dont children report? 66% of children who were targeted felt that staff responded poorly 6% believed that staff responded very well.
(Hoover et al., 1992)

What works in bullying prevention?

What is required to reduce bullying in schools is nothing less than a change in the school climate and change in norms for behavior. This requires a comprehensive, school-wide effort involving the entire school community

What Can You Do?

Students who bully need to learn strategies that help them control their anger and their tendency to blame other people for their problems. Students who are targets of harassment need interventions that help them develop more positive self-views and teach them not to blame themselves for their experiences with harassment. Peers need to learn that bullying is a whole school problem for which everyone is responsible. There is no such thing as an innocent bystander.

Bullying Problems Requires Systematic, Systemic Solution

Educate all concerned about seriousness of problem, across community not just in school district/schools. Within schools, parents, staff, and students learn about their respective roles.

Parents learn to talk to children about bullying.

Teachers are trained to identify and handle bullying. Students learn to empathize with students who are targets of bullying as well as ways of dealing with and responding to students who bully

What Works
Maintain adequate supervision of children. Make sure the entire school understands that bullying, teasing, and harassing will not be tolerated. All staff adopt zero tolerance stance and respond quickly to early signs of bullying (e.g. name-calling). Train and expect teachers, cafeteria workers, bus drivers to intervene immediately in both direct and indirect bullying situations. Communicate clear policies and consequences to staff and students for dealing with bullying. Establish a confidential reporting system that allows children to report victimization and that records details of bullying incidents

 Discipline students who bully in a no-nonsense style. Phone the parents of both the student who bullied and the student who was targeted. If possible, involve the parents in designing a plan of action. Do NOT blame the victim Students who are targeted may be offered counseling and skill building Continue to monitor the behavior of the student who bullied and the safety of the target. Consult administrators, teachers, and staff members to alert them to the problem and to get a better understanding of it. If the situation doesn't change, remove the student who bullied not the victim - from the classroom. Offer immediate rewards for inclusive behavior.

What Works

Supporting the Student Who was Targeted

Reduce fear by being empathetic and supportive. Reduce self-blame by identifying cruel behavior. Connect the student to helpful peers and provide education about social skills. Teach strategies to avoid revictimization.
Seek assistance from an adult, friend, or peer when a potentially threatening situation arises or when other strategies aren't working. Assert Yourself. Make assertive statements to the student who bullied, addressing your feelings about the his or her behavior. Avoid. Walk away or avoid certain places in order to avoid a bullying situation. Self-Talk. Use positive self-talk to maintain positive self-esteem.

Strategies for Classroom Teachers

Provide classroom lessons about bullying behavior Develop a classroom action plan to ensure that students know what to do when they observe bullying behavior Take immediate action when bullying behavior is observed Confront the student who bullied in private (challenging in public either gives or takes away power) Notify parents of all parties immediately Refer students who are targets and students who are aggressors to counseling when appropriate Create a buddy system for students who have been targeted

Setting up a bully-free classroom

Hang anti-bullying posters Talk to your students about bullying (set the tone on the first day of class) Make anti-bullying part of one of your lessons Have the students sign an anti-bullying class pledge on a banner and hang that banner in the classroom Train students on how to deal with bullying (ex: scenarios) Do activities that promote class unity Have an anonymous notes-to-the-teacher box Do not allow students to pick their own groups (for group work) Get students involved in an anti-bullying campaign Keep your eyes and ears open at all times! Take every students complaint seriously
(Source : http://www.bullyfree.com/resources/teachers.php)

Moving Silent Bystanders

85% of students are not directly involved These students generally have well developed social skills They are often confused about their roles and responsibilities in bullying situations May get drawn into bullying behavior because of negative peer pressure May experience feelings of guilt and helplessness They do not get involved because
They dont know what to do Fear retaliation (snitch rat tattle tale) Fear making the situation worse Worry about losing social status

to Caring Bystanders
Students need to learn they share the responsibility for keeping their school safe and caring. Students should be assured that their fears are normal and that there is strength in numbers. Students need to have specific methods for reporting bullying incidents anonymously or privately.

How to Intervene to Stop Bullying: Tips for Onthe-Spot Intervention

Immediately stop the bullying: Stand between the child or children who bullied and those who were bullied, preferably blocking eye contact between them. Don't send any students awayespecially bystanders. Don't immediately ask about or discuss the reason for the bullying or try to sort out the facts.

Refer to the bullying behavior and to the relevant school rules against bullying.
Use a matter-of-fact tone of voice to state what behaviors you saw/heard. Let students know that bullying is unacceptable and against school rules (e.g., Calling someone names is bullying and is against our school rules, or That was bullying. I won't allow students to push or hurt each other that way).

Support the child who was targeted in a way that allows him or her to regain self-control, to save face, and to feel supported and safe from retaliation.

Make a point to see the child later in private if he or she is upset.

Don't ask what happened at the time of the incident. It can be very uncomfortable to be questioned in front of other students. Let his or her teachers know what happened so that they may provide additional support and protection.

Increase supervision to assure that the bullying is not repeated and does not escalate.

Include bystanders in the conversation and give them guidance about how they might appropriately intervene or get help next time.

Don't put bystanders on the spot to explain publicly what they observed. Use a calm, matter-of-fact, supportive tone of voice to let them know that you noticed their inaction or that you are pleased with the way they tried to help even if they weren't successful. If they did not act, or if they responded in aggressive ways, encourage them to take a more active or prosocial role next time (e.g., Maybe you weren't sure what to do. Next time, please tell the person to stop or get an adult to help if you feel you can't work together to handle the situation).

If appropriate, impose immediate consequences for students who bully others.

Do not require students to apologize or make amends during the heat of the moment All consequences should be logical and connected to the offense. As a first step, you might take away social opportunities (recess, lunch in the cafeteria) Let students who bully know that you will be watching them and their friends closely to be sure that there is no retaliation.

Notify colleagues.

Do not require the students to meet and work things out.

Unlike conflicts, bullying involves a power imbalance, which means this strategy will not work. Trying to find a way to work things out can retraumatize the student who was bullied and does not generally improve relationships between the parties.

Instead, encourage the student who bullied to make amends in a way (after follow-up with an adult) that would be meaningful for the child who was bullied.

Strategies for Students

Seek adult help Do not participate in the bullying behavior Offer kind words to the student who was targeted Do not become involved in rumors or gossip If possible, tell the student who is bullying that what (s)he is doing is wrong Do not become involved in physical or verbal fights with a student who displays bullying behavior

Cyber Bullying
Being cruel to others by sending or posting harmful

material using technological means;

an individual or group that uses information and communication involving electronic technologies to facilitate deliberate and repeated harassment or threat to an individual or group. Also known as: Electronic Bullying & Online Social Cruelty

Cyber Bullies Technology

E-mail Cell phones Text messages Instant messaging Facebook, My Space Defamatory personal web sites Defamatory online personal polling web sites Chat rooms

How Cyberbullying is Different

ANONYMOUS

Occurs off school property

Good relationships with teachers Fear loss of technology privileges Further under the radar than bullying Emotional reactions cannot be determined
(McKenna & Bargh, 2004; Ybarra & Mitchell, 2004)

Cyberbully Categories
Inadvertent Power-Hungry
Role-play Responding May not realize its cyber bullying Want reaction Controlling with fear

Vengeful Angel
Righting wrongs Protecting themselves

Mean Girls
Bored; Entertainment Ego based; promote own social status Often do in a group Intimidate on and off line Need others to bully; if isolated, stop

Revenge of the Nerds

(Subset of Power-Hungry)

Often Victims of school-yard bullies Throw cyber-weight around Not school-yard bullies like Power-Hungry & Mean Girls

Cyber Bullying Terms

Flaming: Online fights using electronic messages with angry and vulgar language Harassment: Repeatedly sending offensive, rude, and insulting messages Cyber stalking: Repeatedly sending messages that include threats of harm or are highly intimidating. Engaging in other on-line activities that make a person afraid for his or her own safety

Denigration: Dissing someone online. Sending or posting cruel gossip or rumors about a person to damage his or her reputation or friendships

Cyber Bully Terms

Impersonation: Pretending to be someone else and sending or posting material online that makes that person look bad, gets that person in trouble or danger, or damages that persons reputation or friendships Outing and Trickery: Sharing someones secret or embarrassing information online. Tricking someone into revealing secrets or embarrassing information which is then shared online Exclusion: Intentionally excluding someone from an on-line group, like a buddy list
(Nancy Willard, M.S., J.D., Director of the Center for Safe and Responsible Internet Use)

Legal Issues
Educators Guide To Cyber bullying: Addressing the Harm of On-line Social Cruelty (Nancy Willard, 2005) Law Enforcement should be contacted if educator becomes aware of: Death threats or threats of other forms of violence to a person or property Excessive intimidation or extortion Threats or intimidation that involve any form of bias or discrimination Any evidence of sexual exploitation

What Students Needs to Know About Cyber bullying (Aftab)

All actions have consequences Cyber bullying hurts Cyber bully and accomplices often become the target of cyber bullying themselves Important to care about others and stand up for whats right

http://library.thinkquest.org/07aug/00117/

What You Can Do About Cyberbullying

If you are being cyberbullied, you should definitely tell an adult. To start with, tell your parents. If the bullying is just someone's idea of fun, perhaps your parents can put an end to it. For people who send you mean e-mail(s), just add them to your spam filter, and their messages will be deleted automatically. If the student who is bullying has more sinister motives, your parents might have to take up the matter with the school, the phone or Internet service provider, or even the police. They can track the student down, and they can stop calls and messages from the person from reaching you. If necessary, they can close his/her account to prevent him/her from troubling you further. If you are depressed by cyberbullying, get away from the computer or the phone, and just hang out with your friends. You will quickly see how much fun you can have in the physical world, without computers and mobile phones. Cyberbullying is easy to stop, as long as you are willing to take the help of your parents and teachers.

Cyber Bullying Resources

Teenangels.org: trains teens & preteens to be part of solution
WiredKids and WiredTeens programs for schools and communities Wiredsafety.org: one to one hotline and multiple resources: Videos, Lesson Plans and Activities

Bulllying Websites
http://www.eyesonbullying.org/toolkit.html
http://www.findyouthinfo.gov/topic_bullying_whatCan EducatorsDo.shtml http://www.jaspermiddleschool.org/documents/Bully_ proofing_your_middle_school.pdf http://www.stopbullyingnow.hrsa.gov/ http://www.olweus.org/public/bullying.page http://facs.pppst.com/bullying.html http://www.anonymoustips.com/index.php