COMMUNITY DEVELOPMENT
Issue 5: Bullying
Currently, schools work with community partners such as the Singapore
Children’s Society and Touch Cyber Wellness to educate students about
bullying through workshops, seminars, and phone consultations. Teachers
and school counsellors are trained in classroom management strategies
targeted at addressing hurtful behaviour. Students can report bullying through
channels such as hotline numbers. Prompt investigations on reported cases
and corrective actions are in place to address bullying. Schools include formal
lessons and special programs to educate students on bullying and appropriate
actions to take in the event that they witness an incident.
Community partners such as Touch Cyber Wellness work with students
through educational programs to create a positive cyberspace experience in
the community. Cyber Wellness Centres have been set up to encourage
students to use cyberspace safely and counselling services have been made
available to victims. The Singapore Children’s Society conducts a wide range
of activities such as Bully-Free workshops, camps, and campaigns. These
activities encourage students to adopt a problem-based learning approach and
understand the act of bullying and how to tackle it.
Current measures focus on formally educating students about bullying and
teaching them strategies to tackle bullying. There is less emphasis on
experiential and explorative learning which enable students to understand
the consequences of bullying on a more personal level. This would allow
them to develop key skills such as social emotional awareness and empathy
to support each other and develop prevention strategies.
Maathi Yosi | 2019
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B) Current Practices