Safe Schools

By incorporating a school program that addresses the issue of bullying, students are learning that bullying occurs through various behaviors and to extreme degrees. Across our nation, students in public schools are learning how to identify and avoid bullies through classroom activities and seminars.  These students are signing pledges and working with professional educators to rid their school of bullying problems.  Everyone has observed or experienced bullying at one time or another.  The goal in our schools today is to eliminate bullying completely and to create a safe environment for our students. Bullying can be physical, verbal, or emotional.  The offender may use intimidation tactics.  The severity of each offense ranges from subtle to very blatant.  For example, an intimidating glare may be used as a bullying tactic. I have identified six basic tenets to be in place to incorporate an effective bully prevention program and taking time to develop each of these tenets is an important step in the school wide implementation process.

These six tenets include:

• Policy Development
• Assessment of Current Bulling Problems
• Parent Involvement
• Professional Development
• Student Awareness through Curriculum
• Developing Ongoing Strategies to Improve School Climate 

Tenet One: Policy Development

To initiate effective bully prevention program the school site should develop a policy that prohibits harassment, intimidation or bullying of a student. The goals of the policy should include a statement on school-based intervention that focuses on a unified effort to help support the exclusion of bullying and developing a school climate that upholds positive interaction between peers. In tenet one I will out line the essential elements in developing a district wide bulling policy and how individual school sites can communicate behavioral expectations that support an anti bullying program.  

Tenet Two: Assessment of Current Bulling Problems

Assessment is the first step in understanding the current level of bullying problems that is occurring among students. In tenet two the reader will be given the essential tools to develop a bullying survey and use the information gained in to target specific bulling problems. Assessment results through the conducting of a survey provide the school staff and its community excellent information on student perceptions of current bullying problems. The information gained through a preliminary survey can also be useful when obtaining post data to insure the effectiveness of the bully prevention program.  

Tenet Three: Parent Involvement

Support from the school’s parent community is an important factor in the success of any bully prevention program. Parents appreciate being officially informed of new school programs and being given the opportunity to participate in the development and implementation of these programs. Including them in the beginning, stages of the plan to implement the Bully-Proofing program can help to assure the success of the school wide effort and is an important factor in developing the cooperation and support of the community at large.

Tenet Four: Professional Development

For any program, to be successful implemented, depends on each and every instructional staff member in the school taking personal accountability for managing bullying behaviors on a daily basis. To do this effectively, instructional staff members will need to understand the dynamics of bullying as well as techniques to prevent it. The ideal staff training would include the entire school staff representing all employees in the school participating in a one-day bully-proofing workshop. A suggested outline for professional development is included in tenet four and can be easily facilitated by trained counselors, building principals and teachers. 

Tenet Five: Student Awareness through Curriculum

Planning how to deliver the curriculum to every classroom in the school is an important task of the Bully-Proofing Committee. Deciding who the facilitators will be and how to schedule them into the classrooms throughout the year can be challenging and depends on a realistic assessment of the resources available in the school. Tenet five of this web blog contains the complete classroom curriculum a bullyprofing prevention program. In this tenet the reader will be given information on how to schedule and coordinate the bully prevention program along with sample lessons. The classroom lessons are designed as forums for students to discuss with peers their concerns about school safety issues. It is the intention of the program that these classroom sessions inspire open discussions and provide opportunities for students to examine their own beliefs and behaviors that affect their relationships with others. Because of this, it is important that the facilitators understand how to create a trusting, learning environment in which students feel safe in expressing their opinions and concerns.

Tenet Six: Developing Ongoing Strategies to Improve School Climate

A successful Bully prevention program is about building a supportive positive climate where every individual interacts to build individual self-esteem. The foundation of the program will be centered around how well the elements of a positive climate is constructed and the developing of the ideas of working together. In tenet six on developing strategies I will  provide strategies around ways to create a caring school climate that makes all its members feel respected and safe. The elements of positive school climate go, beyond  teaching the classroom curriculum and specific interventions with bullies and victims, is the careful and creative planning of ongoing activities, projects, programs, and publicity that encourage and motivate the members of the school community in their continuous efforts to improve the school. Designing ways to promote the concepts of the program so that they become integral parts of the school culture is a challenging task, but one that is required if the program is to sustain itself over time.

implementing-a-bully-proofing-program.mp3 Listen and Read PodCast