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What Can Parents and Other Concerned Adults Do To Diffuse the Powerful Negative Impact of Bullying? Don’t wait for bullying to present as a problem. Assume it is happening, assume that students are at risk, that teachers and other school personnel are either unaware or incapable of dealing with this problem alone, and that it’s just a matter of time before someone close to you is effected by bullying. Parents need to know that their comments and complaints about bullying (to children, other parents, and school personnel) are taken seriously and they should not hold back sharing information in fear of retribution or ostracism.
Punishing the bully is not the answer. Pointing a finger at the perpetrator doing the bullying may seem like a feel-good answer to the problem, but it is only the tip of the iceberg and will likely not change the person’s behavior. The underlying problem has much more to do with how each person, in school, at home, and in the community appreciates diversity. Whether a person has big ears or long legs, whether they have light skin or dark features, whether they are athletic of klutzy, outgoing or reserved, or whether they are accelerated learners or have special learning needs, the ways that we talk about these differences and the underlying value we place upon these individuals needs to be clear: everyone is deserving of respect. Period. No exceptions.
Provide support for everyone involved. No single approach to preventing or stopping bullying is recommended for all situations, but a number of options have been found to be effective. They include:
- Implementing school-wide anti-bullying awareness programs that include all members of the school community, setting clear expectations and acknowledging and rewarding positive behaviors and acceptance of diversity in ways that are visible and recognized
- Offering social skills training and other such interventions for students who are likely to be perpetrators or victims of bullying
- Creating safe and confidential ways for students to report bullying
- Conducting parent awareness and training programs that link to school policies and practices regarding reporting bullying and resolving conflicts in ways that minimize stigma to the children involved
- Improving vigilance by school faculty and student leaders (especially in often unsupervised areas) so that bullying behavior is recognized and stopped
What can parents do? The best advice is to follow your heart… and stop bullying from claiming your child as its next victim.
*The statistics cited come from a variety of sources:
- 55 Facts about Bullying
- References and Resources from StopBullying.gov
- Walk a Mile in their Shoes: Bullying and the Child with Special Needs
- Bullying Statistics.
NCLD Says "No" to Bullying!
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