Solutions to Bullying
Bullying has been around for a long time and is still affecting many people all over the world. Bullying is harmful behaviour that can affect both adults and children. Even though there are many different types of bullying, they all include hurting one’s well-being. Some forms of bullying are physical bullying, emotional or psychological bullying, and cyberbullying. Fortunately, there are ways to prevent bullying. Bullying can be prevented by encouraging victims to report it, helping students to connect with peers, and creating activities to raise awareness about bullying.
One solution to bullying is encouraging students and staff to report and address bullying. “When no one reports the bullying, children who bully feel they can carry on without consequences. Secrecy empowers children who bully” (Facts & Solutions). Reporting the incident can prevent further bullying for the victim. Teachers should report bullying as well. “If a teacher observes bullying in a classroom, he/she needs to immediately intervene to stop it, record the incident, and inform the appropriate school administrators so the incident can be investigated” (How Parents, Teachers and Kids). This shows that reporting and addressing bullying is one way to prevent bullying at school.
Apart from reporting, helping students to connect with peers also helps prevent bullying. When students feel more connected to their classmates, the impact becomes easier to manage. According to Divecha, “when targeted students feel connected to peers, they’re better able to cope with being bullied.” SEL, which stands for Social and Emotional Learning, is also recommended for classrooms. Research “show[s] that SEL improves emotional well-being, self-regulation, classroom relationships, and kind and helpful behaviour among students” (6 Ways). Connection is an important way to prevent or mitigate the effects of bullying.
Educators can create activities to teach students how to prevent bullying. They can do this by creating anti-bullying programs. Schools are “often [required] to adopt anti-bullying programs for students as well as teacher training” (Bullying). Activities can also help teach students about bullying. “Schools can incorporate the topic of bullying prevention in lessons and activities” (Prevention at School). There are different ways to do this. Some ways are “Internet or library research… Presentations… Discussions… Creative writing… Artistic works… [and] Classroom meetings to talk about peer relations” (Prevention at Schools). Activities are fun and creative ways for children to learn about bullying.
Reporting bullying, connecting with peers, and learning about bullying are all ways of preventing bullying. Bullying occurs in many ways and affects the well-being of students, making schools a less enjoyable place. However, using these methods, students—especially past victims—can again enjoy, and most importantly, feel safe in their school environments.