 |
 |
“To teach in a manner that respects and cares for the souls of students is essential if we are to provide the necessary conditions where learning can most deeply and intimately begin.”
-Bell Hooks |
| |
|
|
|
| |
| research agenda |
In a local emergency room of a Dallas hospital, 10-15 % of the children who presented to the ER from August 2009 through December 2009 for evaluation of minor physical symptoms (leg weakness, inability to walk, headaches) reported themes of intimidation or bullying either at home or at school. Ages varied from 12 -16, which concurs with the research that reports that bullying begins in elementary school, peaks in middle school and declines in high school. In January 2010, media reported the death of 15 year old Phoebe N. Prince in South Hadley, MA. People magazine's headline "Bullied to Death" on the front cover brought the issue of bullying to the forefront. It also suggests that programs to address this issue in the forms of workshops and trainings are not working or are limited to a select audience. Teen violence, social group influence, or hate crime?
The research literature seems to vacillate from one description to the other as various disciplines strive to get a grasp on the problem and reach out to the children affected. Studies show that 15-25% of student s in the United States have experienced bullying and 15-20% report bullying behavior (Batsche, 1997). Initial research defined bullying as ongoing, unsolicited, and stated it did not cause physical harm (Olweus, 1993). Crothers & Levinson (2004) expand on the description saying that bullying is an ongoing process of establishing and maintaining social dominance including the use of overt aggression. Now with the deaths of several children in the last six years, criminal justice experts state that bullying is a social problem needing a social answer (Barry, 2010). Any cultural difference can put a child at risk of being a target. Therefore, Stassisnos advocates for educator training, teaching diversity and tolerance to students, and including all staff on the campus in an organized widespread initiative.
Given the widespread media coverage, the lawsuits being filed by parents for schools inability to keep their children safe, and the administration's attempts to find appropriate disciplinary action (Mehta, 2008), I propose a research agenda that advocates for early education and training on bullying effects and respect for difference. Research needs to examine how to gain access to the secret places where bullying occurs including bathrooms, walks to and from school, and on buses. School-based interventions would examine peer interactions/influences as well as distinguish between behaviors of intimidation versus violence.
SAMHSA has grants implementing evidence-based practices in schools as well as a community resilience and recovery initiative grant to address the community focused solution that will be necessary . Similar to the domestic violence awareness campaigns, teachers and social workers would have to rally students to become their own advocates to dismantle the bullying network and provide safe havens for victims. Important questions to be considered are developmental differences in bullying tactics, if female bullying is caused by a different spectrum of behaviors than male bullying, what interventions are effective in gaining access to information regarding bullying, and follow up studies of those that bully.
|
Bibliography
Barry, S. (2010). http://www. masslive.com/new/index.ssf/2010.
Batschke, G.M. (1997). Bullying. In Children's needs, Part II: Development, problems, and
alternatives (pp.171-170). Bethesda, MD: National Association of School Psychologists.
Crothers, L.M. & Levinson, E. M. (2004). Assessment of bullying: A review of methods
and instruments. Journal of Counseling and Development, 82, 496-502.
Mehta, S. (2008). Meaner bullying is stirring new tactics.
http://articles.latimes.com/2008/mar/07/local/me-bullying7/2.
Olweus, D. (1993). Bullying at school: What we know and what we can do. Cambridge,
MA: Blackwell Publishers. |
| |
|
|
|
