Learn how to fight bullying in schools

By Gracie Bonds Staples

The Atlanta Journal-Constitution

In a normal year, Theresa Hyde and her 12-year-old daughter would be looking forward to the start of school on Monday.

But this year, the Alpharetta mom says, back to school promises to be more like back to cruel as her family braces for yet another cold reality – the school bully.

“Right now we are literally in dread mode,” said Hyde.

Studies show that about 30 percent of school children in grades 6-10 have been bullied, been the target of bullying or both.

The issue has taken on national urgency in the last few years, spawning campaigns, including Stop Bullying Now!, launched in 2004 by the Health Resources and Services Administration to help educate children ages 9 to 13.

More recently, Atlanta Falcons defensive end Chauncey Davis addressed the topic at summer youth programs and the American Academy of Pediatrics issued a policy statement encouraging doctors to take a more active role in preventing school bullying.

Georgia’s Coalition Against Bullying will host a town hall meeting Aug. 15 to give kids a chance to talk about bullying and learn how schools and communities can effectively address the issue.

“We have to create a safe environment in which children can express themselves without fear,” said Tyleis Speight, southeast regional director of National Action Network, the civil rights group led by the Rev. Al Sharpton.

The gathering, scheduled to begin at noon at the Hyatt Regency Atlanta, is open to the public.

In a study published this summer in the Journal of Adolescent Health, researchers found that while nearly 10 percent of children are bullied by electronic means such as text messages, bullying remains much more common in person, with large numbers of kids harassing one another by spreading rumors, turning fellow students into outcasts and intimidating others through words and violence. Thirteen percent of students said they were hit, kicked, pushed or locked indoors.

Hyde said that her daughter, a rising seventh grader, endured taunts from her female classmates who called often called her names such as “liar” and “slut.”

When she passed them in the hallway, they regularly rolled their eyes and turned away from her.

School officials, she said, offered to give her permission to transfer but advised her to stay because her daughter, “needed to learn to deal with it.”

The death of Jaheem Herrera struck a chord with Hyde, who plans to attend the town hall meeting.

Jaheem hanged himself April 16, his mother said, because he was being bullied. His death drew national attention. A judge, however, ruled that Jaheem was not repeatedly bullied.

In an updated policy published in the July issue of its journal, Pediatrics, the AAP suggested doctors tell parents to talk to their children about bullying. It also said a European program that emphasizes the role of bystanders in preventing bullying in schools is a good model for U.S. prevention efforts.

The Olweus Bullying Prevention Program teaches children that bullies are kids with problems and bystanders can protect victims, said Dr. Robert Sege of Boston Medical Center, who helped write the policy update.

“For the last 15 to 20 years, we’ve known that the long term outcome for children are complicated and not just related to their physical well being but also to their social and emotional well-being,” Sege said. “We have a real opportunity to help kids and families in this area.”

Patti Agatston, a counselor and prevention specialist with Cobb County schools, has been providing Olweus training to schools since 2003.

To date, she said, 21 schools have used the training on how to intervene when bullying occurs and how to get parents and the community involved.

“The first thing we do is ask schools to gather data to find out what students are saying, if students have been bullied, what type of bullying, when and where,” said Agatston. “That helps you know where the hot spots are.”

Whether schools adopt the Olweus program or another, it’s important for administrators to address bullying at the start of the school year, she said.

“For kids who have been bullied in the past, a new school year can be full of anxiety,” said Agatston. “It can be comforting to hear that it isn’t tolerated.”

MYTHS AND FACTS ABOUT BULLYING

Myth: The most common type of bullying is physical.

FACT: Psychological bullying is the most common and usually involves name calling, gossip and rumors, and exclusion.

Myth: If you ignore bullying, it will go away.

FACT: Bullying increases through elementary school and decreases as students matriculate high school with one exception: cyber-bullying.

Myth: Bullying behavior is obvious to adults in authority.

FACT: More than 90 percent of bullying is neither observed nor recognized by teachers who consequently do not intervene.Myth: Bullying occurs primarily when adults are not present.

FACT: The hot spots for bullying in schools: elementary playground, cafeteria, and bus; and middle/high halls, cafeteria and classroom.

Myth: Older students are more apt to report bullying at school.

FACT: Elementary students report bullying more frequently than middle/high school students. Both groups usually tell parents and peers before they tell adults in school.

Myth: Bullying involves only the student bullying and the student being bullied.

FACT: The active involvement of bystanders frequently determines the nature, extent and outcome.

Source: Dr. Michael Carpenter, Certified Olweus Bullying Prevention Trainer based in Peachtree City.