The above newsfeed prompted this post on bullying. Undoubtedly, bullying is out of control! As the story below broke across the news this week, my heart sank as my mind tried to sympathize with the family of a 10 year old girl who committed suicide from allegedly being bullied. It also makes me ponder over what more schools can do to deter bullying.
One thing I emphasize in my class is that I will not tolerate the belittling of another student as I’m sure a number of educators do. While I try my hardest to ensure bullying does not take place in my classroom or to my knowledge, what is an educator to do when it goes beyond the classroom or when students keep silent? Like 10 year old Jasmine, many bullying cases extend beyond the classroom on social networking sites. Sadly, victims become reserved and feel like they are a snitch if they tell rather than release the hurt by telling someone. Kids can be so cruel and somehow it has to be a way to discourage such gruesome behavior before another life is taken.
http://www.wral.com/news/local/video/10390496/#/vid10390496
This is a topic on my mind constantly. We have an anti-bullying program in place at school, but I wonder how successful it is as actually solving the problem. The biggest problem with bulling is that it is so much easier to be a bully now. It is much harder to be mean to a person's face than it is to be mean via text message, e-mail, or message on a social networking site. I think that it can't just be the schools that are responsible for addressing the bullying issue and taking steps to solve it. In my opinion school professionals, students, parents, and community members need to be involved if we expect the bullying epidemic to be resolved.
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