This document provides an overview of bullying prevention and intervention for parents. It defines bullying as repetitive behavior involving an imbalance of power that deliberately causes harm. The presentation discusses the differences between bullying, teasing, rough play, and harassment. It outlines the major types of bullying including physical, verbal, social, and cyberbullying. Warning signs of bullying for both victims and bullies are presented. The impact of bullying on those bullied, observers, bullies and the overall school climate is covered. The document concludes by discussing tools available in New York City to address bullying, including the Dignity for All Students Act and the designation of Dignity Act Coordinators in each school.

1. “Bullying”
Prevention & Intervention:
A Parent’s Guide
Presenter: Luz Minaya, BRAVE Facilitator
UFT – Bronx Borough Office Parent Summit
Saturday, November 1st , 2014
United Federation of Teachers – Michael Mulgrew, President

2. Presenter
Luz Minaya
NYC Public School Teacher, BRAVE Facilitator
Middle School Teacher

3. What is Bullying?

4. Bullying: Definition
Repetitive, persistent patterns of conduct by
one or more children that deliberately inflict
physical, verbal, or emotional abuse on another
child and where a power differential is in place.
by OJJDP National Training and Technical Assistance Center (NTTAC)

5. The definition includes three
important components:
• Bullying is aggressive behavior that involves
unwanted, negative actions.
• Bullying involves a pattern of behavior
repeated over time.
• Bullying involves an imbalance of power or
strength.

6. Bullying is Not Teasing
• It might be hard to tell the difference
between playful teasing and bullying.
• Teasing usually involves two or more
friends who act together in a way that
seems fun to all the people involved.
• Often they tease each other equally, but it
never involves physical or emotional abuse.

7. Bullying is Not Teasing
Rough Play: Fighting: Bullying:
Usually friends; often will
do the same things again
Usually not friends;
Typically not repeated
Not friends but will be
repeated
Power not an immediate
issue Power close to equal Power is not equal
Not about hurting Trying to hurt each other Bully is trying to hurt,
humiliate
Affect is friendly, mutual Affect is negative, angry Affect varies between the
victim and bully

8. Differences between
Bullying and Harassment
• Briefly, harassment tends to have a strong physical component and is usually
linked to gender, race, disability or physical violence; bullying tends to be a
large number of incidents (individually trivial) over a long period comprising
constant unjustified and unsubstantiated criticism.
• Bullying differs from harassment in that the latter can result from a small
number of fairly serious incidents - which everybody recognizes as
harassment - whereas bullying tends to be an accumulation of many small
incidents over a long period of time. Each incident tends to be trivial, and on
its own and out of context does not constitute an offence or grounds for
disciplinary or grievance action.
• Be clear, bullying is harassment.

9. Differences between
Bullying and Harassment
• Although no federal law directly a ddresses bullying, in some cases, bullying
overlaps with discriminatory harassment when it is based on race, national
origin, color, sex, age, disability, or religion.
• Bullying occurs when a student or group of students targets an individual
repeatedly over time, using physical or psychological aggression to dominate
the victim (Hoover & Oliver, 1996; Rigby, 1995; USDOE, 1998). The
repeated incidents function to create and enforce an imbalance of power
between bully and victim. Harassment involves any action that can be severe
enough that it keeps a child from being successful in school. However,
unlike bullying, which involves repeated incidents, harassment can
be a one-time occurrence.
• Discrimination can, and often does, lead to harassment and bullying.

10. Types of Bullying
Bullying can take on many forms:
• Verbal bullying including derogatory comments and bad names
• Bullying through social exclusion or isolation
• Physical bullying such as hitting, kicking, shoving, and spitting
• Bullying through lies and false rumors
• Having money or other things taken or damaged by students who bully
• Being threatened or being forced to do things by students who bully
• Racial bullying
• Sexual bullying

12. 4 Major Types of Bullying
• Physical Bullying
• Verbal Bullying
• Social Bullying
• Cyber Bullying

13. Physical Bullying
• Hitting
• Kicking
• Restraining
• Pinching
• Pushing
• Damaging property

14. Verbal Bullying
• Name calling
• Insults
• Teasing
• Intimidation
• Homophobic remarks
• Racist remarks
• Whispering behind someone's back

15. Social Bullying
• Lying and spreading rumors
• Negative facial or physical gestures, menacing or
contemptuous looks
• Playing nasty jokes to embarrass and humiliate
• Mimicking unkindly
• Encouraging others to socially exclude someone
• Damaging someone's social reputation or social
acceptance

16. Cyber Bullying

17. What is Cyber Bullying?
Cyber bullying is bullying through electronic
media: e-mail, texting, social networks,
blogs, websites, or digital messages or
images sent by a cellular phone.

18. Cyber Bullying
Cyber bullying has some rather unique characteristics
that are different from traditional bullying:
Anonymity
• As bad as the "bully" on the playground may be, he or she can be readily identified and
potentially avoided. On the other hand, the child who cyber bullies is often anonymous.
The victim is left wondering who the cyber "bully" is, which can cause a great deal of
stress.
Accessibility
• Most children who use traditional ways of bullying terrorize their victim at school, on the
bus, or walking to or from school. Although bullying can happen elsewhere in the
community, there is usually a standard period of time during which these children have
access to their victims. Children who cyber bully can wreak havoc any time of the day or
night.

19. Common Forms of
Cyber Bullying
Cyber bullying can take many forms. However, there are six forms that are the most
common:
• Harassment: Repeatedly sending offensive, rude, and insulting messages
• Denigration: Distributing information about another that is derogatory and untrue
through posting it on a Web page, sending it to others through email or instant
messaging, or posting or sending digitally altered photos of someone
• Flaming: Online "fighting" using electronic messages with angry, vulgar language
• Impersonation: Breaking into an email or social networking account and using that
person's online identity to send or post vicious or embarrassing material to/about others.
• Outing and Trickery: Sharing someone's secrets or embarrassing information, or tricking
someone into revealing secrets or embarrassing information and forwarding it to others
• Cyber Stalking: Repeatedly sending messages that include threats of harm or are highly
intimidating, or engaging in other online activities that make a person afraid for his or her
safety (depending on the content of the message, it may be illegal)

20. Warning Signs
of Bullying

21. Students Who are Bullied
• Students who are being bullied often exhibit
some warning signs.
• Also, it's important to recognize the
characteristics of students who bully, which
may help prevent bullying and allow for early
intervention.

22. Students Who are Bullied
Students who are being bullied often exhibit some warning
signs these students may:
• Have torn, damaged, or missing pieces of clothing, books, or other belongings
• Have unexplained cuts, bruises, and scratches from fighting
• Have few, if any, friends with whom he or she spends time
• Seem afraid of going to school, walking to and from school, riding the school bus,
or taking part in organized activities (such as clubs or sports) with peers
• Take a long "illogical" route when walking to or from school

23. Students Who are Bullied
• Lose interest in doing school work, or suddenly begin to do poorly in
school
• Appear sad, moody, teary, or depressed when he or she comes home
• Complain frequently of headaches, stomachaches, or other physical
problems
• Have frequent bad dreams, or trouble sleeping
• Experience a loss of appetite
• Appear anxious and suffer from low self-esteem

25. Why Students Bully
Information about bullying suggests that there are
three interrelated reasons why students bully.
• Students who bully have strong needs for power and (negative)
dominance.
• Students who bully find satisfaction in causing injury and suffering to
other students.
• Students who bully are often rewarded in some way for their behavior
with material or psychological rewards.

26. Students Who Bully Others
It's important to recognize the characteristics of students
who bully, which may help prevent bullying and allow for
early intervention. These students may:
• Have a positive attitude toward violence and the use of violent means
• Have a strong need to dominate and subdue other students and get their own
way
• Be impulsive, aggressive, or easily angered
• Lack empathy toward students who are bullied
• Have defiance and aggression toward adults, including teachers and parents

27. Students Who Bully Others
• May be involved in other anti-social or rule-breaking
activities such as vandalism, delinquency, and substance
abuse
• Have greater physical strength than that of others in
general and the students they bully in particular (especially
in boys)
• Be more likely to report owning a gun for risky reasons,
such as to gain respect or to frighten others

28. What are the Warning Signs
of Cyber Bullying?
The warning signs of cyber bullying are similar to those
for traditional bullying in terms of emotional effects;
however, there are some differences.

29. What are the Warning Signs of
Cyber Bullying?
A child may be experiencing cyber bullying if he or she:
• appears sad, moody, or anxious
• avoids school
• withdraws from or shows a lack of interest in social activities
• experiences a drop in grades or decline in academic performance
• appears upset after using the computer or being online
• appears upset after viewing a text message on a cell phone
• If a child shows any of these warning signs, it is important to talk with the child and
investigate his or her online presence to determine whether cyber bullying is occurring
and to offer help when needed.

30. The Impact
of
Bullying

31. The Impact of Bullying
A single student who bullies can have wide-ranging
impact on the students they bully,
students who observe bullying, and the
overall climate of the school and
community.

32. The Impact of Bullying
Students Who are Bullied
Students deserve to feel safe at school. But when they
experience bullying, these types of effects can last long into
their future:
• Depression
• Low self-esteem
• Health problems
• Poor grades
• Suicidal thoughts

33. The Impact of Bullying
Observers of Bullying
Students who see bullying happen also may feel that they
are in an unsafe environment. Effects may include feeling:
• Fearful
• Powerless to act
• Guilty for not acting
• Tempted to participate

34. The Impact of Bullying
Students Who Bully Others
Students who intentionally bully others should be held
accountable for their actions. Those who bully their peers are
also more likely than those students who do not bully others
to:
• Get into frequent fights
• Steal and vandalize property
• Drink alcohol and smoke
• Report poor grades
• Perceive a negative climate at school
• Carry a weapon

35. The Impact of Bullying
Schools with Bullying Issues
When bullying continues and a school does not take action, the
entire school climate can be affected in the following ways:
• The school develops an environment of fear and disrespect
• Students have difficulty learning
• Students feel insecure
• Students dislike school
• Students perceive that teachers and staff have little control
and don't care about them

37. Students at Higher Risk
of Being Bullied
• Have learning disabilities
• Have Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder (ADHD)
• Have Autism Spectrum Disorder (ASD)
• Have special health care needs or chronic diseases
• Are overweight or underweight
• Speak another language at home
• Are questioning their sexual orientation or who are
lesbian, gay, bisexual, or transgender

38. Parents are
Allies and Advocates

39. Parents as
Allies and Advocates
Parents play a key role in preventing
and responding to bullying. If you know
or suspect that your child is involved in
bullying, there are several resources
that may help.

40. Parents as
Allies and Advocates
• Recognize the warning signs that your child is involved in
bullying.
• They could be being bullied, bullying others, or witnessing
bullying.
• Although these signs could signal other issues, you should
talk to your child if they display any sort of behavioral or
emotional changes.
• Many times kids won’t ask for help, so it is important to know
what to look for.
• If your child is at immediate risk of harming himself or others,
get help right away.

41. Parents as
Allies and Advocates
• Learn what bullying is and what it is not.
• Understanding what bullying is is the first step in forming a plan to
prevent or respond to bullying with your child.
• Many behaviors that look like bullying may be just as serious, but may
require different response strategies.
• You can also learn about:
• The frequency of bullying;
• Who is at risk for being bullied and bullying others; and
• The effects of bullying

42. Parents as
Allies and Advocates
• Cyber-bullying often requires different strategies than in-person bullying.
Learn how to work with your kids to prevent cyber-bullying and how to
respond when it occurs.
• Utilize tips and tools to talk to your child about bullying. Opening lines of
communication before your child is involved in bullying makes it easier for
them to tell you when something happens. It is also important to work with
a school to help prevent bullying before it starts.

43. Parents as
Allies and Advocates
• If you know or suspect bullying has occurred, learn how to find out what
has happened with your child. Understanding what has happened can
also help in communicating with school or community officials about the
situation.
• If you have determined bullying has occurred, learn how you and school
or community officials can work together to support your child, whether
they were bullied, bullied others, or witnessed bullying. Learn also about
considerations for specific groups.

44. Parents as
Allies and Advocates
• If bullying is occurring at school, learn about what your state requires
schools to do in your state’s anti-bullying law. Learn also about federal
laws that require schools to address harassment based on race, color,
national origin, sex, and disabilities and ways to report situations that
have not been adequately addressed to the U.S. Departments of
Education and Justice.

45. Tools available in
NEW YORK CITY

46. Dignity for All Students Act
• The Dignity Act took effecton July 1, 2012.
• The Dignity for All Students Act aims to halt the bias-based harassment and
bullying present in public schools throughout New York. The bill passed the State
Assembly on May 17, 2010, and the Senate on June 22, 2010. Governor David
Paterson signed it into law on September 13, 2010.
• The Dignity Act includes, but is not limited to, acts of discrimination and
harassment based on a student’s race, color, weight, national origin, ethnic
group, religion, religious practice, disability, sexual orientation, gender (defined to
include gender identity or expression), or sex.
• The Dignity Act makes it the official policy of New York State that all students in
public schools have the right to an education free of discrimination and
harassment.
• The Dignity Act empowers school staff to consider all the forms of harassment
of students by other students or staff that occur on school property or at a
school function.

47. Implementation of the
Dignity Act
In New York City
Public Schools

48. • Respect For All
• The Discipline Code
• Chancellor’s Regulations

49. • New York City Policy
It is the policy of the New York City Department of Education (NYC DOE) to
maintain a safe and supportive learning and educational environment that is free
from harassment, intimidation, and/or bullying committed by students against
other students, and free from discrimination committed by students against other
students on account of actual or perceived race, color, creed, ethnicity, national
origin, citizenship/immigration status, religion, gender, gender identity, gender
expression, sexual orientation, disability, or weight.
• Discrimination, harassment, intimidation and/or bullying is
prohibited in school, during school hours, before or after school, while traveling
in vehicles funded by the DOE and on other than school property when such
behavior disrupts or would foreseeably disrupt the educational process or
endangers or would foreseeably endanger the health, safety, morality, or welfare
of the school community.

50. RFA Liaisons serve as
Dignity Act Coordinators
Each principal must designate at least one staff member (RFA
liaison) to whom reports by students or staff members of
student-on-student discrimination, harassment, intimidation
and/or bullying can be made and who serves as a resource for
students and staff on this issue.

51. The following NYC DOE policies further define and prohibit bullying behavior in our
school communities, and establish protocols for responding to incidents:
• Chancellor’s Regulation A-832 outlines conduct that constitutes student-to-student
discrimination, harassment, intimidation and/or bullying, and describes the procedure
for reporting, investigating, and resolving complaints of discrimination, harassment,
intimidation, and/or bullying.
• Chancellor’s Regulation A-831 outlines conduct and communication that constitutes
student-to-student sexual harassment, and describes the procedure for reporting,
investigating, and resolving complaints of peer sexual harassment at the school level.
• The Citywide Standards of Intervention and Discipline Measures includes the
Discipline Code as well as the Student Bill of Rights and Responsibilities, which
promotes responsible student behavior and an atmosphere of dignity and respect by
establishing guidelines to help students as they strive to become productive citizens in
a diverse society.

52. Resources in your folders . . .
• How To Be An Ally
• DASA – Fact Sheet
• Bullying Prevention and Intervention
• Know Bullying – App (iPhone and
Android
• What to do if your child Exhibits Bullying
Behavior
• Legal definition of Bullying and Cyber-
Bullying

53. Resources in your folders . . .
• Understanding Bullying
• Statistics on Bullying
• Raise Media Smart Kids

54. Be BRAVE Against Bullying
• The UFTs BRAVE campaign aims to combat
bullying in our schools. Short for Building
Respect, Acceptance and Voice through
Education, the BRAVE campaign provides
educators with the tools, knowledge and
support to be pro-active in confronting and
stopping bullying.
• www.uft.org/BRAVE

55. BRAVE Line
• The BRAVE line is a confidential anti-bullying
hotline for NYC students provided by the UFT
and MHA-NYC. This hotline provides
counseling and bullying prevention strategies
and information.
• Phone 212-709-3222
• Text BRAVE to 43961
• Online chat www.uft.org/BRAVE
• Mon–Fri., 2:30pm – 9:30pm

56. For more information…
• NYSED Dignity Act Resources
www.p12.nysed.gov/dignityact/
dasa@mail.nysed.gov
• New York Center for School Center
www.nyscenterforschoolsafety.org
scss@ulsterboces.org
• NYC Department of Education – Respect for All
schools.nyc.gov/RulesPolicies/RespectforAll

57. For more information…
• National School Climate Center
www.schoolclimate.org/climate
• New York Civil Liberties Union
http://www.nyclu.org
• Stopbullying.gov
www.stopbullying.gov