a hopeful response to school bullying

Introduction: similar challenges in Belgium and Canada

A hopeful response to school bullying B y D eb o rah V. I ve rsen, 03 /2015

A C an ad ia n ’ s 4 yea r ex pe r ie nc e in th e B e l g i an F le mi sh sc h o ol f i e l d ( g r ad e 7 a n d 8 ) as a n a n t i -b u l ly i ng c o or d in a to r ( 2010 - 2014 )

Canada has the 9th highest rate of bullying in the 13-year-olds on a scale of 35 countries (Canadian Council on Learning—Bullying in Canada)

Inside:

Introduction 1

Problem vs solution 2

Prevention 3

Intervention and remedia-

tion 4

Conclusion 5

Lars’ parents: 'Not angry at bullies but disappointed in school’ De Standaard, 20/02/2015

VLAMERTINGE (BELGIUM) - After a long 3-day battle, 13 year old Lars Declercq from West Flanders died in the Ypers’ hospital. Sunday evening Lars tried to end his life after being bullied a long time at school. The police have started an investigation.

Roeselare City (Belgium) wants discussion about bullying and aggression at Vrije Agro- en Biotechnisch Instituut Het Nieuwsblad, 29/06/2012

ROESELARE - After a film clip appeared on the internet where a student is being physically bullied by another student at the train station, the city of Roeselare reacted. Mayor Luc Martens wants to have

a round table discussion with the school and police.

Catholic school board

faces bullying lawsuit Ancaster family suing for $900,000 Hamilton Spectator, 30/05/2013

A statement of claim filed by the couple last month alleges the board failed to provide their now 14-year-old son with "a safe and inclusive learning environment" while he was a student at Holy Name of Mary Catholic Elementary School in the fall of 2009.

It also says the board:

• Failed to properly investigate as many as three violent assaults against their son, who was 10 at the time;

• Failed to ensure the alleged bullies were properly disciplined; and

• Failed to ensure the school's principal and vice-principal met their duties to foster student safety and prevent violence among students.

Amanda Todd’s story not only heart-

wrenchingly reminds us of the consequences and desperation of students being bullied, but also makes us ask serious questions about the lack of school intervention

in the entire situation.

Problem: unstructured approaches to school bullying

Solution: an integrated approach to school bullying

The init ia l situation in this project School board: Belgian Flemish public school system

School: Middenschool Drie Hofsteden (junior high)

155 Hugo Verriestlaan, 8500 Kortrijk, Belgium

100 - 130 students in grades 7 & 8

Many students came from foreign, poor or/and underprivi-leged backgrounds. As a result social skills were often limited, leading to many conflicts and much bullying.

I already was a Protestant religious teacher in the school prior to 2010, when I was given 10 guidance counseling hours per week to coordinate and execute a bullying policy for the school. This demanded a whole school approach and commitment of administrators, counselors, teachers,

support staff and parents.

After 3 years the various integrated facets (prevention and intervention) were in place.

A clear integrated systemic interven-tion, prior to escalation, is critical for schools and students in the fight against bullying.

An integrated anti-bullying approach versus an unstructured approach is similar to the difference between teaching one week about nutrition and having it integrated into the daily running of the school. A nutrition policy helps kids to daily experience healthy eating and help them to make healthier choices about diet in the long run.

An integrated approach ensures first

of all students know (prevention)

how to identify elements that can

lead to bullying, which steps to take

when bullying occurs etc. and at the

same time the school promotes ac-

ceptable behavior in terms of class

sphere, respect etc. Secondly an

integrated approach must be com-

posed of an effective intervention

plan.

A hopeful response to school bullying

A structured approach to bullying in schools can save both the victim and the school.

Many Belgian Flemish schools suffice with a sporadic bullying prevention (they limit themselves to one time activities, for instance during the Flemish week against bullying in February). This results in students not know-ing what to do when bullying begins towards them personally or someone else. They are often times not con-

scious of which situations can escalate into bullying.

Many Flemish schools improvise mainly after there has been an escalation. They have no real plan and work ad hoc from incident to incident. They often unintentionally make the situation worse or even miss the purpose of intervention. Help often comes too late or is not effective. Students become desperate because they feel iso-lated and alone.

Many Flemish schools want to actively and effectively take on bullying but do not know how and realize they

have a lack of professional support and training.

Bullying unfortunately often leads to long term negative effects for the victim. Moreover, incidents can really put a negative label on the school. When an escalation occurs in a school and the media gets hold of it, it can have a damaging and lasting effect on the school. The first question asked is, “Why didn’t the school do any-thing?”

Integrated approach: prevention


Prevention is primarily the continual education of students about what bullying is, how it feels, what you can do if you are a victim or a witness to bullying.

This education must be interactive and engaging for students. It also involves discussion and dialogue. Student opinions about bullying have to be reflected upon and dealt with.

The school’s clear message of acceptable behaviour has to be effectively communicated and students have to not only understand but also learn to apply the principles.

This cannot be solely accomplished through one week of anti-bullying awareness or a poster hung on the wall. A lasting effect on students can only be achieved via an on-going, integrated theme throughout the school year.

1. Annual September anti-bullying presentation and discussion

The presentation in each class begins with a skit by students

dealing with a particular form of bullying

The interactive discussion is an informative moment where students learn how and where to report bullying, essential social skills which aid in prevention, how to create an inclusive classroom...

It is the first contact point for new students

3. Iedereen is slim (Everyone is smart) campaign

Focuses on publicly acknowledging the diverse kinds of intelligence of each student to build self-esteem

Aids in creating an inclusive classroom and affirms positive elements in each student

4. The anti-bullying poster competition

In the art lesson the graduating students (in groups of 5) thinks deeply about an anti-bullying message they want to leave as a legacy

Every student votes and the winning poster is professionally copied and hung throughout the school the coming year

Graduating students experience that they can positively influence fellow students

E x a mp le s o f e f f e c t iv e o n - g o in g a n t i - bu l l y i ng a c t iv i t ie s i n my 4 y e a rs a s a n t i -bu l l y i ng c oo rd ina t o r

2. De pest aan pesten (I hate cyberbullying) campaign

Each student votes “agree” or “disagree” on a ballot concerning a statement around cyberbullying and may add their reasoning

The statement, student’s votes and comments and answers are hung out and processed in the Dutch lesson.

Integrated approach: intervention

What happens when bullying is detected will speak loudly to victims, bullies and parents alike. With a team of well trained staff for intervention, a school will always be ready with appropriate action. The established protocol must also help in identifying when outside help is needed, what

to do in instances of cyber bullying, when are parents contacted etc.

1. De Pestbox (The Bullying Box)

This recycled mailbox served as a contact point to inform about bullying. Students wrote the name of the bully and the bullied and their own name. The parties were never told who informed about the bullying situation.

This gave the students a safe confidential way of reporting bullying and served as an early detection which facilitated in early intervention.

About 1/3 of all incidents were reported through this channel. Because of the clear whole school approach, many students also

reported in person.

2. The No Blame Approach

This form of intervention was used for one-on-one bullying situations.

This approach provides a safe place for discourse for both the bullied and bully by helping students experience a healthy way of expressing their feelings in a difficult situation.

This approach lowers the bully’s desire for retaliation, establishes a code of conduct, helps manage student interaction and assists in

follow-up.

Every bullying incident was thoroughly followed-up and noted in the student’s digital file.

3. The Proactive Circle

This is an effective means of intervening in classroom bullying.

This restorative method helps students corporatively identify the problem, focus on thier own contribution and articulate their steps in supporting the bullied.

It creates dialogue for the one being bullied and helps both the

bullied and the class to hear the other’s experience.

E le me nt s o f e f f e c t iv e o n - g o in g a n t i - b u l ly in g i n t e rv e nt i on i n my 4 y e a rs a s a n t i - b u l ly in g c o or d i na t or

Pestbox

hopeful response to school bullying

Conclusion


My school wanted students to feel safe and understand what acceptable behaviour is, thus it was pertinent that our school, through a concerted effort and long-term commitment from everyone, was prepared before bullying incidents arose and was proactive in educating and creating a positive sphere in the school. As a result our systemic and integrated method had very tangible

and long lasting effects.

From interaction with parents, discussions with students and a questionnaire students filled in at the end of each school year we could see the following effects of our integrated approach:

The amount of bullying incidents reported by students increased significantly.

Students changed their behaviour on social media in how they reacted to comments posted by other friends, they became more thoughtful about what pictures they put on their pages and knew which steps to follow to block someone.

Students felt significantly safer because they knew the school’s protocol concerning bullying intervention.

Students found it good to be able to think about the topics brought up by the anti-bullying activities, felt they

could express their thoughts and had learned life skills.

Students felt they learned something about themselves.

Students became more self aware of their role in a bullying situation.

Students understood and felt they could apply the tools for healthy conflict resolution.

Quite a few parents of bullyied students were thankful and appreciative that the school made a priority of its anti-bullying program.

The required governmental inspection of our school’s special programs including our anti-bullying program, placed us in the top 10% of Flemish schools.

A safer place for students to grow and learn

Integrated anti-bullying approach

Skilled intervention when bullying occurs with an effective

protocol

Prevention is a planned and systemic educating of students about bullying prior to bullying

incidents

+ =

Deborah V. Iversen tel. 289-698-0596 [email protected]

a hopeful response to school bullying

Education