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Introducing the Topic
I chose to describe bullying because of the importance of the topic and due to my personal interest in it. According to Goldman (2012), 100% of students between the ages of 12 and 18 suffer from bullying at least twice per year, which demonstrates that the phenomenon is indeed pervasive (p. 1). Also, bullying is obviously harmful, and therefore the phenomenon requires the attention of educators. Besides that, it should be noted that developing of a proper attitude toward bullying (that is, avoiding bullying at all costs) and knowledge of techniques toward protecting oneself are best developed at a younger age. This will ensure a lifetime of minimal bullying experiences and its effects. Therefore, implementation of the program with preschoolers is a logical approach.
Bullying: Research
According to Nansel et al. (2001), a student is being bullied when another student, or a group of students, say or do nasty and unpleasant things to him or her. It is also bullying when a student is teased repeatedly in a way he or she doesnt like. But it is not bullying when two students of about the same strength quarrel or fight (2094-2100).
Bullying has adverse effects on a childs well-being, hinders his or her academic progress, and can pose lasting, harmful effects in the form of psychological trauma (Craig, 1998; Goldman, 2012, pp. 1-3; Sharp & Smith, 1994). In other words, any educator, Christian or not, needs to do his or her part to combat this phenomenon.
As Ackerman (2008) suggests, it is important to identify the reasons behind bullying in order to better assess a bullys intent. Reasons include 1) problems at home that create bullies and create victims; 2) a lack of social and emotional knowledge, understandable in cases where no one is developing such traits in a child; and, 3) an irresponsible use of technology, which is again explained by the lack of education about responsibility related to technology use (Goldman, 2012; Salmivalli, Lagerspetz, Bjorkqvist, Osterman, & Kaukiainen,1998; Sharp & Smith, 1994).
These reasons, merged with the PRAISE guidelines, define elements of the anti-bullying program suggested here.
Evaluation
The first element of evaluation is concerned with an ongoing assessment of the bullying situation. This is mentioned by Ackerman (2008) as the A in PRAISE, for Assessment. Surveys may be employed during the first stage of the program to identify and define problems, where discussions with children, in groups, can also provide useful information about the situation and about students understanding of what bullying is.
Supervisors need to carry out an ongoing evaluation, and it may be possible to involve older students in this important process.
Finally, children who want to report a problem must receive the educators attention. In fact, it is vital to develop and install a reporting system that fits the particular environment and fits the needs of a specific student population.
Education
The evaluation provides information on existing problems as well as available resources. Having defined both, we can consider the next element: education, which can be carefully customized to respond to revealed problems. Education will eliminate most of the reasons for bullying and provide students with the E from PRAISE: empowerment to behave appropriately. However, education is significant for everyone involved, including staff members.
Educational tools will differ from group to group. For staff, meetings and training are suitable, but for children, an engaging and entertaining curriculum on preventing and reacting to bullying should be developed. Also, children who are engaging in bullying need targeted attention.
The scripture quote presented here, Hebrews 12:11, is meant for the lost sheep. Here, I assert that the typical punishment may prove less useful than educational discussions with children who try to bully others. In any case, though, an appropriate means for delivering discipline needs to be used.
Finally, I again bring up technology. Technology is an important tool in education today. Technology assists in the teaching process and helps in the ongoing search for information. On the other hand, though, technology can also facilitate bullying. We will focus on cyberbullying later, but for the education element, it is important to contain this aspect of bullying and include strategies for preventing and responding to it.
Education Elders
The education element is also concerned with teaching parents, guardians, and other older people who are considered by the children as family. Family, as was pointed out, can be the environment in which children learn to be aggressive, or the context in which they are victimized (Coloroso, 2010; Greenwald, Bank, Reid, & Knutson, 1997; Narayan et al., 2014), which is why working with certain family members may prove to be a challenge. It is, however, necessary to make them aware of the bullying problem, through meetings and other means of information dissemination. This action is worthwhile not only because the family could be at the root of the problem, but also because involved parents can provide additional resources and ideas for solutions. In fact, it could prove helpful to create a committee on a safe environment that would include select family members.
Environment
The environment boasts valuable tools that can help facilitate the processes of change and learning. In particular, it is important to be proactive (the P in PRAISE) and to create a safe environment with 1) the aid of rules, 2) rewards for proper behavior, and 3) discussions and/or reprimands for children engaging in inappropriate behavior. Rules must be carefully crafted to be engaging and interesting, so that children are willing to follow them. For example, creating a students Bill of Rights provides additional opportunities to educate and may also highlight the fact that children do indeed possess the right to a safe environment and respectful attitude.
Ultimately, the classroom climate needs to be inclusive, caring and respectful.
Environment Technology
Respect (the R in PRAISE) and sincere (S in PRAISE) atmospheres created by the educator are of supreme importance in nourishing the childrens attitude toward one another. By building an inclusive, respectful and caring classroom climate, an educator can expect a similar response from students (Ackerman, 2008).
An important part of the modern environment is technology. Unfortunately, it can bring both adverse and positive effects. Cyber-bullying is a form of bullying that is performed in cyberspace (Coloroso, 2010), and according to Goldman (2012), up to 25% of children report that they have experienced it. Bullying that happens outside of school walls is not subject to school rules and legally should not be addressed by teachers. However, as mentioned previously, punishment is not the only solution; in effect, education, encouragement and PRAISE are likely to be more effective. Also, the involvement of family and comprehensive education become more significant for this category of bullying, which can easily spiral out of a teachers reach.
Evolution
The fourth element is evolution. It is concerned with the ongoing implementation, monitoring and improvement of the program as the situation changes and new needs become apparent. Naturally, this aspect is related closely to evaluation, and it will affect all of the other related elements. The data from evaluation should be used to define the plan for implementation; it is important to take into account available resources, as well as special needs of the diverse groups that make up a classroom (Sharp & Smith, 1994). Monitoring requires tools and can be integrated with evaluation instruments and supervising. It is especially important at the beginning of the project (as a part of change management), but it is also needed for the ongoing smooth evolution of processes.
Finally, as mentioned, it is critical to listen to children and to all others involved. Discussions and others suggestions can be as useful for improvement as are supervision and monitoring.
References
Ackerman, B.E. (2008) PRAISE: Christians Educators and the Difficult Student. Christian Perspectives in Education, 1(2).
Coloroso, B. (2010). The bully, the bullied, and the bystander. New York: HarperResource.
Craig, W. (1998). The relationship among bullying, victimization, depression, anxiety, and aggression in elementary school children. Personality And Individual Differences, 24(1), 123-130. doi:10.1016/s0191-8869(97)00145-1
Goldman, C. (2012). Bullied. New York, NY: Harper One.
Greenwald, R., Bank, L., Reid, J., & Knutson, J. (1997). A discipline-mediated model of excessively punitive parenting. Aggressive Behavior, 23(4), 259-280.
Nansel, T., Overpeck, M., Pilla, R., Ruan, W., Simons-Morton, B., & Scheidt, P. (2001). Bullying Behaviors Among US Youth. JAMA, 285(16), 2094. doi:10.1001/jama.285.16.2094
Narayan, A., Chen, M., Martinez, P., Gold, P., & Klimes-Dougan, B. (2014). Interparental violence and maternal mood disorders as predictors of adolescent physical aggression within the family. Aggressive Behavior, 41(3), 253-266.
Salmivalli, C., Lagerspetz, K., Bjorkqvist, K., Osterman, K., & Kaukiainen, A. (1998). Bullying as a group process: Participant roles and their relations to social status within the group. Aggressive Behavior, 22(1), 1-15.
Sharp, S., & Smith, P. (1994). School bullying: Insights and perspectives. New York, NY: Routeledge.
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