QUICK FACTS
- Bullying occurs in school playgrounds every 7 minutes and once every 25 minutes in class. (Pepler et al., 1997)
- Over 3.2 million students are victims of bullying each year
- Bullying and harassment have been related to 75% of school-shootings
- Victims often keep their problems a secret: They feel they should handle bullying themselves; they worry about the bully’s revenge or other children’s disapproval: and/or they think that adults can do little to help them. (Garafalo et al., 1987), (Olwens, 1991)
- 90 % of 4th through 8th graders report being victims of bullying
- Over two-thirds of students believe that schools respond poorly to bullying, with a high percentage of students believing that adult help is infrequent and ineffective.
- 1 of 10 students drop out of school because of recurring bullying
- 1 in 4 teachers see nothing wrong with bullying and will only intervene 4 percent of the time-
- A survey in 2009 found that 9 of 10 LGBT youth reported verbal harassment at school because of their sexual orientation
Teachers Need to Recognize their Own Bullying
If schools are to reduce school bullying, current programs being adopted by school districts which include bullies, the bullied and the bystanders must also include specific procedures for helping teachers to become more aware of their own modeling potential for bullying with its symptoms, causes, and solutions.
The potential for bullying by teachers is manifest in some of the same characteristics of student bullies, an imbalance of power, a desire to control, and approval of bystanders. In other words, because teachers have a natural potential to bully students, they must be aware of that capability and be on guard against it.
Teachers become role models for bullying. Their behavior and attitude toward non-conforming students and failing schoolwork can be a precedent for behavior for other students in the class toward the low or non-performing students. This is especially true for the more successful kids who cater to and identify with the teacher.
This behavior and attitude are complex and elaborate. They also can be deliberate and subconscious. From the tensing of the muscles, dilation of the pupils and nostrils, intonation, voice inflection and posture to the word choice, gestures, movement and facial expressions, the message is unmistakable. The criticisms and concerns of school bullying can be applied to the treatment of the at-risk or failing students in a classroom. The students at the bottom of the class are well known to everyone in class, as are the top students. Most adults remember from their schooling students who were "picked on" by teachers.
Describing teachers as bullies doesn't mean that teachers deliberately hurt children. Most teachers, described as bullies, are not mean-spirited, malicious or even uncaring. They are highly educated, sensitive, professionals, who love their students, love teaching and want what is best for children. But schooling, as it is structured with age grouping, lock-step one-size-fits-all, mandatory curriculum, pre-ordained learning procedures, grade levels, schedules, failure, and retention make many students particularly susceptible to bullying techniques for discipline and control.
Many students suffer anxiety, fear, and embarrassment by the actions of teachers described herein as bullying. Some former students, to this day, still suffer shame, low self-esteem and psychological problems as the result of their schooling experiences, possibly initiated and condoned by teachers themselves.
Be careful not to become a bully and ask to receive proper training on the topic.