Addressing Bullying Within the Classroom: Resources for Teachers

Robyn Sullivan, Ph.D., NCSPReading Public School District

The Blueprint for Educational Excellence National Institute

Overview of Presentation

• Status of mental health in schools• Bullying• Resources for elementary school• Resources for middle/high school

Mental Health in the Schools• Approximately 13% of public school students receive special education• Recommended ratios:

– 1:250 School Counselor– 1:400 School Social Worker– 1:700 School Psychologist

• Need to talk to someone other than a family member– 48% of high school students– 30 % of middle school students

• Sought counsel from a school psychologist or school counselor– 11% of high school students– 7% of middle school students

Source: Massachusetts Department of Elementary & Secondary Education & Massachusetts Department of Public Health, 2011; Skalski & Smith, 2006; Weir, 2012

The Role of Teachers

• Create a sense of belonging• Promote resilience• Develop competencies• Ensure a positive, safe school environment• Teach and reinforce positive behavior and

decision making• Encourage helping others• Encourage good physical healthSource: National Association of School Psychologists

Bullying• Bullying occurs when a student is, “…exposed, repeatedly

and over time to negative actions on the part of one or more students”.

• Between 15-30% of all students in the United States are bullied, making it the most common form of violence in the country.

• Long-term consequences of bullying:– Adjudication– School dropout– Poor psychosocial adjustment

Source: Olweus, 1993; Cohn & Canter, 2003

Massachusetts General LawM.G.L. Chapter 71, Section 37o: “Bullying”, the repeated use by one or more students of a written, verbal or electronic expression or a physical act or gesture or any combination thereof, directed at a victim that: (i) causes physical or emotional harm to the victim or damage to the victim’s property; (ii) places the victim in reasonable fear of harm to himself or of damage to his property; (iii) creates a hostile environment at school for the victim; (iv) infringes on the rights of the victim at school; or (v) materially and substantially disrupts the education process or the orderly operation of a school. For the purposes of this section, bullying shall include cyber-bullying.

• Each school district, charter school, approved private day or residential school and collaborative school shall provide age-appropriate instruction on bullying prevention in each grade that is incorporated into the curriculum of the school district or school. The curriculum shall be evidence-based. – Aggressors, Victims, and Bystanders– Al's Pals: Kids Making Healthy Choices– Bullying Prevention Program (Olweus)– Bully Proofing Series– Michigan Model for Comprehensive School Health Education– PATHS (Promoting Alternative Thinking Strategies)– Peacebuilders– Steps to Respect

What Teachers Can do About Bullying

Best Practices1. School-wide

interventions2. Value system based on

caring, respect, and personal responsibility

3. Address off-campus bullying

Source: Feinberg, 2003

Action Steps1. Classroom-based

interventions2. Clear and consistent

expectations and consequences and reinforcing alternate behaviors

3. Work with parents

Aggression in Early Childhood

• Boys: Rough and tumble play begins to emerge but does not completely replace physical aggression

• Girls: Begin to socially exclude peers

Sources: Underwood, 2003; Wood, Cowan, & Baker, 2002

Early Childhood Interventions

Center on the Social and Emotional Foundations for Early Learning• Scripted stories for social situations• Recommended book list• Tools to supplement recommended books• Tools to teach social emotional skills and support

behavior• Training modules

CSEFEL

Bullying and Aggression in Elementary School

• Development of social hierarchies and cliques – In-group/out-group bias

• Enemies– 28% of children in grades 3 and 4– 38% of children in grades 5 and 6

• Bullying appears in the greatest frequency among children ages 10 through 14, and during the transition from elementary to middle school

Sources: Eslea & Rees, 2001; Gifford-Smith & Brownell, 2003; Hoover et al., 1992; Pellegrini & Long, 2002; Pope, 2003

Elementary School TeachersStop Bullying Now!

• Government initiative to provide information about bullying– What bullying is– What cyberbullying is– Who is at risk– How to prevent bullying– How to respond to bullying

www.stopbullying.gov

Resources to use with students

Webisodes • 12 videos for use with students ages 9 to 13

• 2 “early childhood” videos

• Multiple choice questions following videos to enhance learning

Resources to use with students

Cool Comics • Three volumes of comic books, each containing 4 webisodes

• Supplemental games/activities following each comic

Bullying in Massachusetts

Middle School• 36% of students report

being a victim of bullying

• 15% of students report being the victim of cyber-bullying

Source: Massachusetts Department of Elementary & Secondary Education & Massachusetts Department of Public Health, 2011

High School• 18% of students report

being the victim of bullying

• 17% of students report being the victim of cyber-bullying

K-12 ResourcesNo Name-Calling Week/GLSEN• Differentiated lesson plans

– Elementary School• 5 lesson plans• P.E. lesson plan• Suggested Literature

– Middle School• 12 lesson plans

– High School• 4 lesson plans• Safe space kit*

• Art Lessons– 3 lesson plans– Grades K-9

• Teachers Guide

No Name-Calling Week

The Massachusetts Aggression Reduction Center

• Provides low-cost or no-cost trainings and evidence-based curricula to Massachusetts public school

• Provides information for administrators/districts to choose bullying prevention programs based on Massachusetts law

MARC

Cyberbullying

Anti-Defamation League• Three lesson plans• Internet Safety Strategies• Responding to Cyberbullying

Cyberbullying

Links to Resources• Anti-Defamation League

http://archive.adl.org/education/curriculum_connections/cyberbullying/• Center on the Social and Emotional Foundations for Early

Learninghttp://csefel.vanderbilt.edu/resources/strategies.html

• Massachusetts Aggression Reduction Centerhttp://webhost.bridgew.edu/marc/index.html

• No Name-Calling Weekhttp://www.nonamecallingweek.org/cgi-bin/iowa/all/resources/index.html

• Stop Bullying Now!http://www.stopbullying.gov/index.html

ReferencesCohn, A., & Canter, A. (2003). Bullying: Facts for schools and parents. National Association of School Psychologists.

Eslea, M., & Rees, J. (2001). At what age are children most likely to be bullied at school? Aggressive Behavior, 27, 419-429.

Feinberg, T. (2003). Bullying prevention and intervention. Principal Leadership.

Gifford-Smith, M. E., & Brownell, C. A. (2003). Childhood peer relationships: Social acceptance, friendships, and peer networks. Journal of School Psychology, 41, 235-284.

Hoover, J. H., Oliver, R., & Hazler, R. J. (1992). Bullying: Perceptions of adolescent victims in the Midwestern USA. School Psychology International, 13(5), 5-16.

Massachusetts Department of Elementary and Secondary Education and Massachusetts Department of Public Health. (2012). 2011 Health and Risk Behaviors of Massachusetts Youth.

National Association of School Psychologists. Supporting children’s mental health: Tips for parents and educators

Olweus, D. (1993). Bullying at School: What we Know and What we can Do. Cambridge, MA: Blackwell Publishers.

Pellegrini, A. D., & Long, J. D. (2002). A longitudinal study of bullying, dominance, and victimization during the transition from primary school through secondary school. British Journal of Developmental Psychology, 20, 259-280.

Pope, A. W. (2003). Developmental risk associated with mutual dislike in elementary school children. New Directions for Child and Adolescent Development, 102, 89-110.

Skalski, A. K. & Smith M. J. (2006). Responding to the mental health needs of students. Principal Leadership.

Underwood, M. K. (2003). Social aggression among girls. New York: Guilford Press.

Weir, K. (2012). School psychologists feel the squeeze. Monitor on Psychology, 43(8), 34.

Wood, J. J., Cowan, P. A., & Baker, B. L. (2002). Behavior problems and peer rejection in preschool boys and girls. Journal of Genetic Psychology, 163(1), 72-89.