Bullying: Is your child a victim?

Bullying: Is your child a victim? BY Kalie Griffin

What is Bullying • Bullying is aggressive behavior that involves unwanted, negative actions. • Bullying involves a pattern of behavior repeated over time. • Bullying involves an imbalance of power or strength.

Bullying: FYI • 1 in 7 Students in Grades K-12 is either a bully or a victim of bullying • 56% of students have personally witnessed some type of bullying at school • 71% of students report incidents of bullying as a problem at their school. • 1 out of 20 students has seen a student with a gun at school • revenge is the strongest motivation for school shootings • Harassment and bullying have been linked to 75% of school-shooting incidents

Three Main Types of bullying • Verbal Bullying • Physical Bullying • Cyber bullying

Verbal Bullying • Name-calling • Making offensive remarks • Joking about a person's : • Religion • Gender • Ethnicity • Socioeconomic status • Boys and Girls are subject to verbal abuse, but girls more than boys tend to carry out verbal abuse.

Physical Bullying • Physical Bullying can take many forms: • Hitting • Pushing • Tripping • Slapping • Spitting • Destroying possessions • Fact: Physical bullying is more likely to occur among males, though females may also be the perpetuators or victims of physical bullying.

Cyber Bullying • Cyber bullying is the use of technology to harass, threaten, embarrass, or target another person. • Cyber bullying is a problem that affects almost half of all American teens.

Forms of cyber bullying • Email • Chat rooms • Text message • On a website • Some youth who cyber bully: • Pretend they are other people online to trick others • Spread lies and rumors about victims • Send or forward mean text messages

Why Students Bully • Students who bully have strong needs for power and (negative) dominance • Students who bully find satisfaction in causing injury and suffering to other students • Students who bully are often rewarded in some way for their behavior with material or psychological rewards

The Bullying Cycle • Bullies-Students who want to bully • Followers-students positive towards bullying • Supporters- Support through laughing and drawing attention • Onlookers-do not get involved or take a stand • Defenders-dislike bullying and take a stand

Impact of Bullying Students who bully Students who are Bullied • Depression • Low self-esteem • Health problems • Poor grades • Suicidal thoughts • Get into frequent fights • Steal and vandalize property • Drink alcohol and smoke • Report poor grades • Perceive a negative climate at school • Carry a weapon

Effects of bullying • Have higher risk of depression and anxiety, including the following symptoms: • Increased feelings of sadness and loneliness • Changes in sleep and eating patterns • Loss of interest in activities • Have increased thoughts about suicide • Are more likely to miss, skip, or drop out of school

How to prevent Bullying • Talk with and listen to your kids - every day • Be a good example of kindness and leadership • Learn the signs • Create healthy anti-bullying habits early • Help your child’s school address bullying effectively • Teach your child how to be a good witness

Help? • Contact local school administrator when your child’s teacher is not keeping your child safe from being bullied • Contact the State School Department your school is not keeping your child safe from being bullied • Contact counselor or local health professional your child is sick, stressed, not sleeping, or is having other problems because of bullying

References • http://library.thinkquest.org/07aug/00117/typesbullying.html • http://olweus.org/public/bullying.page • http://www.bullyingstatistics.org/content/physical-bullying.html • http://kidshealth.org/parent/positive/talk/cyberbullying.html • http://www.ncpc.org/cyberbullying • http://www.education.com/reference/article/help-prevent-bullying-at-school/ • http://www.stopbullying.gov/topics/get_help/index.html

Bullying: Is your child a victim?