How Teachers Can Address Problems Of Bullying
Perhaps without exception, all educational institutions suffer from the malady of bullying. Since the victims of bullying can suffer from emotional and physical injury of a long term nature, it must be recognized as something serious and proper action taken. While it is true that bullying can be due to many reasons, and that no serious damage is usually done, there are occasions when permanent damage can be done.
Since bullying takes place in a situation where a number of children are present, teachers usually are the first ones to come to know about it. Counseling the victims of bullying itself is quite a task but, unless both the bully and the victim are handled properly, nothing worthwhile can be done. There are some guidelines for teachers and others involved which are listed below.
The victim of bullying must be made to feel that you care and are concerned with his development. Doing this in front of his classmates however, will not be advisable. It is best done when alone and most certainly not in the presence of other children. Lead the victim to tell you in his words as to exactly what is happening to get the load off his chest as well as to assure him that he can expect help from you. He should be made to feel that his feelings about bullying are quite normal and his talking about this to you and his parents or guardians will help resolve the problem. Enable the victim to handle the situation by providing him with the necessary emotional tools and information.
As a teacher, you cannot expect to handle this situation successfully on your own and you must get the parents of the child also to participate in the process. This is best done by talking to the parents of the victim, as well as the bully’s. By being non accusatory or judgmental, yet factual, you can get the parents of both the victim and the bully to understand what is going on and arrive at an appropriate strategy to tackle the problem. Many parents believe that bullying is a normal event in a child’s growth process and that is will pass. Unless they are also made aware of the seriousness of the issue, neither the victim nor the bully will benefit.
As a teacher you should take an active interest in the matter and counsel both sets of parents as well as the children concerned with proper tools and information. Solving the problem of the causes for the phenomenon of bullying and finding solutions to the problem then becomes quite simple.
Bullying is a widespread phenomenon and is quite common among children. This cannot however be ignored and is a problem that must be tackled. It is a very sensitive subject among children and needs to be addressed with a great deal of tact and understanding. Children are usually scared to talk about it and to get them to talk about it is the first step that will lead to eventual solutions to the problem. The victim needs to be reassured and the bully made to understand that such behavior would not be tolerated, as there could be serious repercussions. Get the parents also involved, so that timely action can be taken, and a stop put to bullying in your school.