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Bullying & Bystander Intervention

Bullying & Bystander Intervention



March 22, 2015

Bullying is a serious issue in the classroom, in some situations to the point of life or death. Generally, bullying by social mediastudents who are bullied will be distracted in the classroom, ranging from inability to focus to being filled with fear and anxiety about how they will be treated by their peers. Some may fake illness or come up with reasons to leave the classroom or be chronically late to avoid being near a bully.

bystanderBully: one who persecutes others, aggressor

“The Bullied” or Victim: the target of the persecutor(s)

Bystander: someone who is observing bullying but doesn’t intervene

Bullies come in every variety and share common traits of poorly managing stress: they have an intent to harm, they make or imply threats of further aggression, and they create terror to maintain dominance over others. Once terror is created, the bully can act without fear of retaliation. Bullies rely on bystanders to passively support or actively participate in the cycle of physical and, even more commonly, emotional violence.

Who does bullying affect?

Bullying affects the bully, who fails to develop the stress management and emotional coping skills to deal with their feelings. When a student is not held accountable for exercising self-control, their aggressive behavior is encouraged by default.

Bullying also affects the victim, for obvious reasons. The effects of this violence, if unchecked, can lead to eating disorders, self-harming like cutting, anxiety, acting out, and suicidal thoughts. Anyone can be a victim, at any age and stage of life, so long as the bully is able to instill fear unchecked. Victims do not develop a “tougher skin” by being forced to engage with bullies. Victims may suffer from a prolonged sense of shame, inhibiting them from valuable classroom participation.

Bystanders are equally impacted. The act of non-action aids and abets bullies. Students who observe the anti-social behavior of a bully are more likely to adopt the aggressive behaviors themselves as they view the behavior to be strong or popular. They may not consciously decide to try to elevate their social standing by experimenting with bullying, but the decreased sense of social responsibility has broad social repercussions. Injustice ignored becomes contagious.

Bystander Intervention board

What should you do when you are aware of bullying in your classroom?

  1. Intervene immediately- establish zero tolerance.
  2. Create opportunities for bystanders and bullies to make better choices.
  3. Nurture empathy (model, praise).
  4. Teach friendship skills.
  5. Closely monitor class relationships.
  6. Role play or present scenarios at the start of the semester and ask students to generate healthy alternatives to undesirable behaviors.

Anti-Bullying slogan

 

March 22, 2015
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2 comments

  1. Rachel Scott says:

    Thanks Lark! I think also that many times someone who is bullying sees themselves as a victim of bullying and feels somehow justified in their actions.

  2. Lark S. Escobar Lark S. Escobar says:

    Rachel- I wouldn't be surprised as it can be a learned behavior or perhaps a "kick-the-dog" phenomenon. I had a situation last semester with two cousins in the same section and one was bullying the other in very subtle ways like gossip and avoidance/ cold shoulder. I'm sure that some bullying is unintentional, but a lot can be avoided by teaching by-stander intervention and communicating expectations of having fair/respectful behavior. It's a human right!