The ABCs of Bullying
Addressing, Blocking, and Curbing School Aggression

Module 6: Prevention and Intervention - Page 2 of 16

Prevention Is Everybody's Business

All students need to feel safe and secure to learn, and learning entails much more than academics.

One of the most damaging aspects of bullying in schools is that it poisons the atmosphere of learning for everyone. All students need to feel safe and secure in order to learn, and learning entails much more than the academics. Middle school students, in particular, are focused at that age on peer acceptance and vulnerable to messages about what is acceptable behavior for "fitting in." Prevention efforts must recognize the role of the peer group, as well as the relationship between the person who bullies and the person who is bullied.

Promoting this environment of health and safety is a community-wide responsibility. Lack of adult supervision, acceptance of bullying behavior, and inconsistent enforcement of rules provide fertile conditions for the propagation of bullying activities. Many children who are bullied can't always handle the problem on their own. Adults must play a significant role.

Studies have shown that the most effective programs aren't those that rely on negative, punitive measures. Effective prevention programs promote positive and just practices, while also setting firm limits to unacceptable behavior. Some schools and communities have created exemplary programs to reduce bullying and its detrimental effects on children. Replicating these programs and creating new responses can reduce the "fear factor" in the nation's schools.

"It is not malicious acts that will do us in, but the appalling silence and indifference of good people." -Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr.
<< Previous Page Next Page >>