By Susan M. Ebbers

    October is Bullying Prevention Awareness Month (www.stopbullying.gov). PBS offers varied useful resources at The Bully Project. This is certainly a fine start, but bully-proofing is no simple task. Collapsing a bullying culture cannot be accomplished in a month or with a single campaign. Constant vigilance is required.

    But sometimes teachers don’t see the bullying. Children report it, but when teachers then try to observe it, they see nothing. Shall we stop there? No. That will convey entirely the wrong message.

    Imagine this scenario: A young boy (let’s call him Joseph) reports that kids are ganging up on him in four-square. Observing, the teacher sees nothing, yet Joseph continues to complain. Again the teacher observes, and again sees nothing. She speaks to others, who say nothing. Again, Joseph comes back from recess in tears. Even his parents call. Finally the teacher speaks to Mitch, the most popular boy in four-square. She asks him to put a stop to the bullying, even if he isn’t the instigator, knowing that he can do so with only a word. She advises Mitch that if Joseph complains again of victimization, Mitch will need to explain why he couldn’t stop it.

    Joseph continues to play four-square. His parents report that he is happy again about school. The teacher sincerely applauds Mitch for lending his voice to the solution. There was a real or perceived threat. Apparently, it was terminated.

    In that scenario, the child was young. Linguistically, socially, and emotionally, he was not yet able to act for himself in assertive ways. The teacher played a strong role. Teachers must always take a leadership role in countering threats and actual acts of violence. Whether verbal, physical, or digital, bullying must be stopped.

    Dr. Randy Sprick has worked extensively to create Safe and Civil Schools. Based on research and observations, he states the following:

    "It is the responsibility of the adults in the school to do two major things. First, teach all students social-emotional skills: how to avoid being a bully, how to avoid being a target, and how to be a positive force when a bystander in bullying situations. Second, teach adults how to reduce the likelihood of bullying. Particularly, ensure active and positive supervision of all school settings. Children—even at the high school level—need adults present. Adults convey and communicate how civilized society works."

    A former teacher and principal, I have seen how children suffer from bullying. Thus, I included stories about bullies in my beginning reading books, Power Readers and Supercharged Readers. The stories include questions for reflection and discussion, because this topic must be addressed even in primary grades. In the series Power Readers, children read Tim’s Buddy, where several boys attack Tim on the playground. His “buddy” is a bystander who helps, running to bring an adult.

     In the series Supercharged Readers, children read Hero, Hero. An older girl and boy put a stop to the playground thug. Teaming up with their classmates, they create a plan. When any one student is bullied, someone will whistle for help, and all the others will form a circle, creating a safe zone around their classmate. The bully is confronted, learning to play nicely or not at all, and the “heroes” learn the power of teamwork and assertiveness.

Assertiveness is one of the means by which children can deal with bullies.

     Signe Whitson (2013, Psychology Today) writes: “Kids who bully often select targets that they believe will not stand up for themselves. The more an aggressor confirms that he can pick on his target unchecked, the more he will do it. That’s why an assertive response is so effective in countering bullying.”

    The Latinate word intimidation may be parsed as in- + timid + -ate + -ion. To make timid. To foster fear. This month, and every month, prevent bullying. Foster kindness and encouragement — the opposite of intimidation. Be alert for malign cliques and gangs. Teach students to be “everyday heroes” who inhibit bullying and depress peer pressure, described by psychologist Philip Zimbardo.

We can put the brakes on bullying. We must.

For further reference:

Check out other EdView360 blog posts on bullying.

Download white paper on 7 Myths of Bullying Prevention:

Susan M. Ebbers is a literacy expert and publisher of Vocabulogic, an award-winning, research-based education blog. Her research interests include morphological awareness, vocabulary growth, measurement design, and the relationships between interest and learning. In addition to serving as a K–8 principal and preschool director, Ebbers has taught primary and secondary grades and was awarded for her contributions to literacy. She has authored four supplemental programs published by Sopris: Vocabulary through Morphemes, Daily Oral Vocabulary Exercises (DOVE), Power Readers, and Supercharged Readers.