School Bullying

School Bullying

Aareon Moore

Liberty University

School Bullying

According to Graham (2106), school bullying can be defined as the verbal, physical, or psychological abuse of a victim by a perpetrator who has the intention to cause harm. Bullying has been present within the school for several years, but has but has received more attention lately due to television, internet, and social media broadcast of incidents of bullying. While interviewing Jonisha King, she defined bullying as behavior towards someone that is aggressive or mean (J. King, personal communication, September 13, 2016). Although the both definitions of bullying mention behavior that is harmful to another person, only the definition provided by Graham (2016), would fit the criteria of bullying. King’s (2016), definition does not cover instances when a person is simply reacting to circumstance, such as a person was cut off on the road and they curse at the driver who cut them off, in this case they would not be considered a bully.

During the interview King was asked how bullying has impacted her own life, to which her response was being bullied has helped her to understand what it’s like to be a victim (Personal communication, September 13, 2016). A study by Stockdale, Hangaduambo, Duys, Larson, & Sarvela (2002), which found that teachers and parents reported higher confidence levels in the school’s safety measures than students. The report given by King, speaks highly of the wisdom that age brings forth. However, such wisdom does not provide a level safety for the student. Teachers and parents are able to have such levels of confidence in the school’s safety measure because they will often all reference their own personal experiences of bullying. Stockdale et. al , reported that being bullied was connected with aggressiveness, which includes holding attitudes that encourage violent behavior (2002). This understanding of behavior that is associated with bullying by parents and teachers causes their confidence levels in both physical and verbal signs of bullying to be addressed by school staff.

As a response to the findings of the damage to one’s development bullying can cause, many schools in America implemented a “Zero-Tolerance Policy”, which aims to take preventative measures against bullying. King’s responded that her school has a “Zero-Tolerance” Policy in place for bullying at her campus and that the campus administration takes immediate action at the first reports of bullying (Personal communication, 2016). Rigby (2012), proposes that even in the presence of inadequate resources to address the issues of bullying, a school that enforces their “zero-tolerance” policy well when tough consequences are imposed on those who in aggressive manners. King’s school could benefit from Rigby’s approach as she currently teaches in a Title I district, which is a district in which the majority of the students receive free-or reduced lunch. The campus administration’s ability to combat bullying by strongly enforcing disciplinary measures, allows the school to still provide a safe and quality education to all students without having to rely on a lack of funding to provide educational resources regarding bullying.

One question asked during the interview provided a startling answer. King was asked if she believed that the aggressor and the victim would both show a decline in their academic performance as a result of bullying yes, however when asked if there have been a noticeable trend in the academic performance of both aggressor and victim she reported that there has been a wide range of performance levels amongst those students. A study by Purdy & McGuckin (2015), reported one student struggled to deal with the bullying behavior presented by a student with spina bifida. This striking finding almost reflects closely to the variations in performance mentioned by King.

Like many Bullying Policies across America, King mentioned an area of improvement for her campuses current policy. The main area of improvement mentioned was the need for more education on bullying for students and the actions they can take to prevent, and combat bullying. Rigby (2014), presented restorative practice as a method of intervention for bullying. This method requires the offender to attend a meeting with the victim, where they have to listen to the victim reflect on their treatment and the effects of it. The offender is then required to reflect on their behavior and their thoughts or mind frame during the act of bullying. This practices aim is to raise the bully’s awareness of the harm caused by having a first-hand account of the effects of their actions. This method would not be best utilized within King’s population of students as they have yet to or recently entered the formal stage of cognitive development.

The most wise counsel regarding the handling of bullying is gleaned from the Bible. Romans 12:19-20 states “Never take your own revenge, beloved, but leave room for the wrath of God, for it is written, ‘Vengeance is mine, I will repay,’ says the Lord. ‘But if your enemy is hungry, feed him, and if he is thirsty give him a drink, for in so doing you will heap burning coals on his head.” (Romans 12:19-20, NASB). This verse provides the model for how we should handle any acts of evil towards us. While this task is hard for even the most saged Christian is can be a challenge for a child to display as well. This is a lesson that must be taught at an early age, as Proverbs 15:1 reminds us that “A gentle answer turns away wrath, but a harsh word stirs up anger” (Proverbs, 15:1, NASB). A child learning early on that most bully are only seeking love and attention, and the best way to provide that is by reacting in kindness and love, we could possible solve one of the many dilemma’s currently facing the education system.