What Can We Do To Reduce Bullying?

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 by: News Canada

(NC)-According to Family Services Canada, approximately
12% of children are bullies. Additional research confirms that bullying
occurs frequently: once every seven minutes on the playground and once
every twenty-five minutes in class (Craig and Pepler, 1997).

To reduce and prevent bullying, it is important to
consider not only the bully and victim, but also peers, school staff,
parents, and the broader community. The best approach at school is to
develop a clearly stated code of behaviour with consistent
follow-through.

All school staff should participate in educational
sessions, together with parent and student representatives. Once adults
learn to recognize problem behaviour and how to stop it, they can
supervise and intervene more successfully.

Parent meetings and newsletters should address the
problems of bullying. Parents need to talk to their children about
bullying and look for signs of potential victimization. Communication
between parents and school is essential, as parents are often the first
to find out that their children are being bullied. Peers also play a
critical role in the reduction of bullying. If students are taught how
to intervene appropriately, or get adult assistance, and to empathise
with victims and condemn aggression, bullying can be reduced.

Bullies and victims require individual attention.
Bullies should be told that their behaviour is not acceptable and that
they will suffer consequences established in the code of behaviour. If
a group of children are being bullied, bullies and bystanders should be
brought to task. Victims need to be encouraged to speak up and ensured
that their school will protect them from further harassment. Parents of
bullies should be informed of their children's behaviour and enlisted
to discipline the behaviour and mentor their child to help prevent
further occurrences of bullying or victimization.

For more information on bullying and how early childhood
intervention programs are helping to reduce bullying in communities
across Canada, visit the National Crime Prevention Centre Web site at www.crime-prevention.org or call toll-free 1-877-302-NCPC.

About the Author

News Canada provides a wide selection of current, ready-to-use copyright free news stories and ideas for Television, Print, Radio, and the Web.

News Canada is a niche service in public relations, offering access to print, radio, television, and now the Internet media, with ready-to-use, editorial "fill" items. Monitoring and analysis are two more of our primary services. The service supplies access to the national media for marketers in the private, the public, and the not-for-profit sectors. Your corporate and product news, consumer tips and information are packaged in a variety of ready-to-use formats and are made available to every Canadian media organization including weekly and daily newspapers, cable and commercial television stations, radio stations, as well as the Web sites Canadians visit most often. Visit News Canada and learn more about the NC services.

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