Page 10 - 2018_Jour_85-1_Societal-Issues

10 The Delta Kappa Gamma Bulletin: International Journal for Professional Educators

Bullied students reported that bullying occurred in the following places: the hallway or
stairwell at school (42%), inside the classroom (34%), in the cafeteria (22%), outside on
school grounds (19%), on the school bus (10%), and in the bathroom or locker room (9%;
National Center for Educational Statistics, 2016).
Forty-three percent of bullied students reported notifying an adult at school about the
incident. Students who reported higher rates of bullying victimization were more likely to report
the bullying. More than half of bullying situations (57%) stopped when a peer intervened on
behalf of the student being bullied (National Center for Educational Statistics, 2016).
In 2015, the Center for Disease Control released the following information on the
effects of bullying. Students who experienced bullying were at increased risk for poor
school adjustment, sleep difficulties, anxiety, and depression. Students who were both
targets of bullying and who engaged in bullying behavior were at greater risk for both
mental health and behavior problems than students who only bullied or were only bullied
(National Center for Educational Statistics, 2016).

Potential Solutions
Preventing bullying requires action on the part of all stakeholders. The following are
several possible avenues to a solution.
Olweus program. One of the foremost anti-bullying programs for use in educational
settings was developed by Dr. Dan Olweus, a psychology professor from Norway. Designed
for student in Grades 3 through 10, the Olweus Bullying Prevention Program involves
four steps:
1. Increase awareness and knowledge of problems related to bullying as well as dispel
a number of myths about the causes of bullying.
2. Get teachers and parents actively involved.
3. Develop clear rules against bullying. The following rules have proven to be very
useful: We will not bully other students. We will try to help students who are bullied.
We will make it a point to include students who become easily left out. When we
know somebody is being bullied we will tell a teacher and an adult at home.
4. Provide support and effective protection to the victim. (2001)
Roles for Parents. SAMHSA (2004) provided the following common-sense roles for
parents that are still pertinent today:
1. Let your child feel he/she is important. Children have a great need to feel they are
important to their parents. Children grow on love and challenges.
2. Laugh with and not at your child. Children are proud and can be deeply hurt when
they feel you are making fun of them. Laugh with your child; humor is positive.
3. Do not give in to your child to avoid conflict. Children feel more secure when they
have limits set for them in their everyday life, but they often cannot refrain from
testing their limits.
4. Keep the agreements you make with your children. Children feel helpless if you
break agreements without good reason. If your child isn’t sure whether he or she
can rely on you, whom can he or she rely on? Remember that what you do today
contributes to forming the future.
5. Praise your child frequently. Encouragement and kind words motivate a child
to cooperate. Positive support strengthens the child’s self-image and creates an
enthusiastic spirit. When new challenges arise, you child will be able to meet them
confidently.
6. Do not frighten your child unnecessarily. Sometimes you may need to scare your