Supporting the victims, helping the aggressive child and empowering the bytanders
If a friend of yours finds herself in an abusive relationship. What would you do? What would you say to your friend? Would you tell her to fight back? Would you tell her to ignore her partner?
Probably not. And yet, that is exactly what we expect the victims of bullying to do. We tell them to walk away or to fight back but these solutions are not effective because it tells the victim that they are the problem and they need to fix it.
We know enough about abusive relationships not to tell a victim that she has to find solutions for herself. Yet when a student becomes the victim of a bully, we expect that student to stand up for himself.
The task to put an end to bullying should not rest solely on the victims shoulders. It’s the schools responsibility to let the victims know they are not alone and that they do not need to feel ashamed. Responsibility should be shared between the school administration, the classroom teacher, the bully, the bystanders and the victim.
When teachers and administrators fail to intervene, some victims ultimately take things into their own hands, often with grievous results. In its recent analysis of 37 school shooting incidents, the U.S. Secret Service learned that a majority of the shooters had suffered "bullying and harassment that was longstanding and severe" (U.S. Secret Service National Threat Assessment Center 2000).
No child should ever be told to find another way to walk back home after school because they are being bullied, no child should have to stay indoors for recess and no child should ever stay home in order to avoid the bullying.
This is what this magazine is all about. You will find sections that will help you meet the needs of the aggressive child, the victim and the bystander. You will be presented with solution and engaging lesson plan ideas. This special issue of "Teach It" will allow us, educators, to support the victims of bullying.