Project 4 FINAL

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Bullying
Jack Rose
Project 4 White Paper
WRA 135-002: Public Life America
Instructor: Professor L. Blackburn
20 April 2016
Introduction
In recent years, society has grown to stand up against bullying and work to prevent it
from its source. Which state a school is located in and what various resources the school
provides has a rather significant effect on the safety of the students. States such as New Jersey,
Oklahoma and West Virginia, along with others, have strict and specific laws against bullying.
Their laws consist of a zero tolerance policy which, contrary to popular belief, has a negative
effect on the school environment. A popular alternative to this well-intentioned policy is the
process of implementing a program with a cohesive plan to address bullying. Part of this process
includes developing a detailed definition of bullying, which the school abides by and also acts
upon. It is suggested by experts in the field that policies are research based, training is provided
to the school’s staff, interventions are held for bullies, and forums are held to discuss bullying.
Defining bullying and categorizing the different types of bullying
“Bullying is unwanted, aggressive behavior among school aged children that involves a
real or perceived power imbalance” (USDHHS). The U.S. Department of Health & Human
Services explained bullying as a disproportion of power in at least one aspect. This allows the
bully to cause harm to the victim, which can happen in many different forms. This act of harm
leaves both children, the victim, and the bully, with serious long-term effects. The different types

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of bullying are: verbal, social, physical and cyberbullying. Verbal bullying is the method of using
words in a negative way to insult or tease. Hurting someone’s reputation or telling others not to
be friends with someone is known as relational bullying or also called social bullying. The
stereotypical bully does physical bullying, which is hurting someone’s body or possessions.
Lastly, cyberbullying is harassing or embarrassing another person through the path of
technology.
Cyberbullying is becoming a more common method of bullying. It is the use of electronic
communication to bully a person. According to the 2011 School Crime Supplement of the
National Crime Victimization Survey, nine-percent of about 24 million students have been
cyberbullied. This statistic tells schools that cyberbullying is the next generation’s way to bully,
with the apparent rise in usage of social media. Especially the students between ages of twelve to
eighteen years old, the ratio for cyberbullying to bullying went from 1:3 to 1:2 (Student Reports
of Bullying and Cyber-Bullying). Cyberbullying went from being a nonexistent problem, to
becoming a third of all bullying situations. Students are unaware of the repercussions that follow
from harassing someone on social media. In most states, cyberbullying is illegal, and once
something is posted, it is impossible to delete. Blocking the bully on the social media website is
an effective way to combat cyberbullying. Officials encourage students to contact their school or
police to put an end to harassment if it has become more serious because of its negative, long-
term effects.
What are the effects of Bullying
There are long-term effects of bullying and they have a negative impact on the school
environment. The people who are affected by bullying are not just the victim and the bully but
also “administrators, parents and fellow students” (Faris 13). A victim of bullying will

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experience the side effects, which will in turn impact relationships. Researches have found the
long-term effect on victims is self-esteem, physiological well-being, and stress levels can differ
from their peers. However, even though victims experience these long-term effects, some of
them are bullies themselves.
Ways to combat bullying
While many unique strategies exist to stop bullying, it is difficult to find the most
effective ways. Sabrina Dosani emphasizes one example in her book “Bullying,” explaining that
“asking bullies to repeat what they’ve said is often enough to put them off. They’ll often be
fazed. Most haven’t got the nerve to say it again when you ask them to” (Dosani). Although it
may seem farfetched, this can be very effective. Most may think that just asking a bully to repeat
the insult will not stop them from their goal to harm, but in fact this may deter them because the
bully will not want the situation to get out of hand.
Plenty of times, a bully will put someone else down in an attempt to make themselves
feel better, never expecting the subject to respond. So, if the person being bullied puts their foot
down and stands up for themselves, more times than not, this will catch the bully by surprise and
eliminate any further encounters.
Everyone has heard the phrase, actions speak louder than words, but in certain
circumstances just the opposite may be true. Another tactic Dosani states is that, “Developing
calm, clear thinking and generating creative solutions is a good way to combat bullies’ brawn.”
Both Dosani and “Kid Power” assert that in order to solve a bullying problem, strategic action is
required.
Using creative solutions can fend off a bully because, just as a bully may attack a fault
physically, if someone uses their words to expose the faults of a bully, this may be a significant

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factor for everyone involved. Next time things may not have to get physical, only mental,
because it is definitely possible to tear someone down emotionally. On the other hand, using
verbal communication may not be enough to fend off a raging bully, so of course, in some
instances, this tactic may not be successful; but for the most part, it can at least slow the bully
down.
When it comes to bullying, friends can be the most helpful defense line of all.
Kuykendall notes that having “A close group of supportive friends can serve as a protective
shield against bullying. Bullies are less likely to target a child whose friends will potentially
defend the child. Thus, providing opportunities to develop close and supportive friendships is
one way that parents can protect against bullying”. Friends can provide the most protection
because no bully is going to pick on a kid who has the backup of multiple people surrounding
them. Especially when it comes to getting physical, the bully will stand no chance when it is one
against five in a fight. This is a good way to avoid unnecessary altercations because it is a
completely different scenario when it is one-on-one, as opposed to one on five or six.
Kuykendall states that one way parents can help with certain altercations is by controlling
what children are exposed to while growing up. “Media violence has both short- and long-terms
effects on the viewer,” (Kuykendall) so limiting what the child does on the computer at a young
age can have an enormous impact on not only the actions of the child, but also their personality.
This may be a simple change but it can stop problems from the source.
With the use of social media on the rise, it is risky to let younger kids roam freely
through any website that they please. There is a plethora of dangerous and distracting items on
the internet; therefore, if an elementary school kid accidentally visits a graphic website, it can
cause undetectable harm down the road. This is where parents can play a role in how the child

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acts and gets treated at school. Technology is a great thing, but, just like most other things, it
must be used in the right way. If bullying cannot be stopped, however, it is important to pay
close attention to the situations when they occur.
The victim’s feelings are most likely the last of the bully’s concerns; hence, combatting
bullying is a must. Based on “Kid Power,” eighty-three percent of bullying incidents receive no
intervention and continue to happen. This should be no surprise because if the bully can harm
someone else and not receive the repercussions, then nothing is going to stop them from
repeating their actions.
Bullying must be targeted in the correct ways and at the correct times; in fact, only half of
educators have received training on how to handle bullying situations (Kid Power). It is shocking
that only fifty percent of teachers actually have any knowledge of how to effectively handle a
bullying situation. If bullying is going to be combated in schools, the administration must be
trained to deal with common problems.
The article Kid Power states that to begin to solve these problems one must, “Increase
[their] own awareness, respond forcefully and respectfully, and become involved.” People must
be aware of bullying in order to act against it. Therefore, it is essential that to effectively avoid
further incidents, being completely aware of the situation is also a necessity, although, “A study
published by the National School Board Administration reports that only 33.1% of the middle
and high school students surveyed agree or strongly agrees that teachers can stop bullying” (Kid
Power). This means that to truly stop bullying and get to the source, the combating must start
from the children within the situation.
If the majority of children feel as if adults cannot help, then they must look to their peers
for help. This relates to “Anti Bullying Pro” because it talks about the lack of support that kids

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feel they have from adults. Only 1 out of 3 students believe that teachers will stop bullying, and
only about 1 of 3 students feel that their school takes bullying seriously. So how can this problem
be stopped if most students don’t trust the adults around them?
According to “Kid Power, ” Children are more likely to experience verbal assaults
targeting appearances and behaviors rather than race or religious affiliations. In many cases,
bullies felt that the victim was at fault for these behaviors or appearances. Children are getting
picked on because of something that they really cannot control, such as their appearance. They
did not choose their height, weight, or stature, so to pick on those things is a terrible thing to do.
Although many will blame the rapid technological advances as a stimulus for more
bullying to occur, Collier says that “these technologies may have dampened crime and bullying
by providing more ways of summoning help, more forms of social surveillance, and engrossing
activities that undermine forms of alienation that lead to crime.” From a different perspective,
notice that all the social media, including cell phones and websites, can put a limit on the amount
of bullying that can occur. The increased use of these devices have actually decreased the
number of physical bullying instances.
As Collier explains, it may be harder for someone to belittle someone else through the
use of a public media outlet. For example, say a bully was trying to make fun of another child by
posting on his Facebook wall, or tweeting at him. This post could be subject to the views and
judgments of hundreds, and maybe thousands of other peers that use the same social media. This
could lead to negative effects on the bully’s part because there many people that are judging that
person for being mean. It’s obvious that nowadays that kids know bullying is bad, so if they see
it occurring, especially on a social media platform, they will look down on the bully. Of course,
private messaging and texting is also available but it can be as easy as two or three clicks to

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completely block someone. Kids can utilize this online feature so they can completely cut off any
kind of cyber interaction with those who they want to avoid. Regardless, no child should have to
take measures like this in order to feel safe on the internet, or in the classroom.
Being accepting of others can be vital in preventing bullying from occurring, and it does
not help when the media portrays only the extremes of certain cultures. This can cause a
snowball effect which could potentially lead to a strong divide between differing groups. The
harassment and bullying of LGBT youth and special education students requires a great deal of
attention and effort (Collier) but to combat bullying there must be a clear understanding of how
the younger generation will be accepted for who they are.
No one chooses who they are going to be, they only have the option to make do with the
talents and gifts they have been provided with. This further emphasizes the need to fight
bullying. Everyone is trying to become the best they can be, and no one should be able to get in
the way of that. There must be stricter laws and policies nationwide that will ensure a safe
environment for students. Only then will there be a noticeable decline in the number of bullying
instances.
The key to addressing bullying and putting an end to this epidemic should first be to
“provide a definition of bullying, share the district’s policies, develop a map of hot spots for
bullying with the staff and students, list signs of victimization, provide support groups, advise
victims to respond appropriately, encourage bystanders to be friends with the victim, and post a
code of conduct in all classrooms” (Brunner). If a school plans on taking up these ideas, they
may conduct a survey before, and a year after, to see if these strategies reduced the number of
students being bullied. These steps were practiced in a grade school and it decreased the number
of students being bullied that year. This could made be a huge impact to a program if one used

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this method, since it has been proven to work. The ten ways to address bullying will inform
teachers and staff how to combat bullying and the statistics could prove a program’s
effectiveness.
How state laws fit into combating bullying
Do anti-bullying laws and policies in each state actually help? Making up a plan to
combat bullying is difficult because to actually have a structured way of stopping bullying is
basically impossible with every situation being different.
Sadly, sometimes bullying can get out of hand which can lead to extremely unfortunate
events. Usually situations can be dealt with inside the school, because bullying shouldn't be a law
enforcement issue, however, when it becomes a crime, law enforcement must be involved
(Governing). This contrasts Quinn’s statements because in some states bullying incidents are
treated completely different than others. In some cases, things can get out of hand because
certain unfortunate events can include suicide, murder, and severe depression, are things that no
child should go through.
Although cyberbullying has increased since 2007, from 3.7 percent to 9 percent, only 18
states include cyberbullying in their anti-bullying legislation (Governing). So as cyberbullying
rates are rising rapidly, states are not adapting as much as they should be. States should be
focusing a lot more on cyberbullying as that is where bullying is evolving. Regardless, no state
laws provide the resources to have effective bullying prevention programs (Governing).
This may be the biggest problem of all. If there aren’t programs to combat bullying
effectively then it will be tough to actually solve the problems. Yes, schools can make statements
about how bullying is bad and helps no one, but if there is no aid to actually implement a
program then what is the point in trying to fix the problem?

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In 2008, a 15-year-old boy named Lawrence King was shot in the head and killed in his
middle school computer lab by a classmate, Brandon McInerney. Aged 14, Larry attended a
weekly group for gay teens and enjoyed wearing makeup and high heels; Brandon was one of
many youth and adults at Larry’s school who responded to his gender-play with aggression
(Quinn). This exemplifies how the need for anti–bullying laws is necessary. Maybe this could
have been avoided if it was handled properly, before the problem got out of control because
Lawrence’s actions could have been stopped in advance.
Bullying laws vary from state-to-state, as the federal government does not heavily
regulate those laws. In some states such as North Carolina, “those who are 16 are treated as
adults under state law and therefore if convicted, a student could face 30 days in jail or a $1,000
fine” (Quinn). This shows the seriousness that is shown toward bullying but sometimes it is
taken too lightly. Bullying occurrences should be highly focused on so no tragic instances occur.
Students should not be going to school in fear of other students. Pine Lake Elementary
School (NJ) student C.O. routinely returned from school ‘bruised, crying, and depressed’ from
being verbally and physically harassed about his perceived sexual orientation (Quinn). The
school should have been treating this situation with full attention instead of brushing it off.
Instead, the school recommended that C.O. “attempt to make new friends”. That is unacceptable
because in some states the same situation would be handled in a completely different manner.
According to the self-proclaimed watch-dog organization, Bully Police USA defines school
bullies as small scale terrorists (Quinn). This maybe a bold accusation but in some cases it is
definitely true. When in-school problems get out of control, as in the case of C.O., the family
should at least feel as though they are protected by the school, if not the law.

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Policies in schools
After thorough research, it seems that staff in most schools are not completely educated
on the issue of bullying, and therefore often mistake bullying for “rough-play.” This usually
leads to a negative outcome considering the victim continues to get bullied. Many schools
located in states without required policies against bullying do not have a reputable policy or
program, and therefore students continue to suffer from the effects of bullying regularly.
A recent article written by two reputable professors from Clemson University, Susan
Limber and Mark Small, focuses on the “the recent flurry of legislation in states to address
bullying among school children,” (State laws and policies to address bullying in schools). In past
years, bullying use to be thought of as a right of passage for children; however, recently, bullying
has been getting to the point where approximately 30% of all school children are bullied within
their first semester. This is a high percentage, and it greatly affects the environment of the
school. Limber and Small made recommendations for local policy makers. Limber and Small
exclaim, “coordinate bullying prevention activities with existing violence prevention (or other
prevention) programs within schools,” (State laws and policies to address bullying in schools).
Other recommendations include developing bullying policies that are consistent with what state
legislators suggest and enforce, and promoting research-based bullying prevention programs.
Another article, written by Limber and fellow colleague Cornell, two respected
professors, offered recommendations to those who are interested in preventing bullying but are
looking to make a larger impact on society. The ninth recommendation on their list states,
“School policies should encourage the adoption of evidence-based strategies to guide prevention
and intervention efforts. School authorities should be leery of programs or strategies that are
based on emotional appeals with no supporting evidence of effectiveness” (Cornell). Thus to

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have any form of statistics on a specific bully prevention program is better and proven to be
more effective for being implemented in schools than a bully prevention program without
statistical analysis.
Schools in the United States, as well as internationally, have required policies that are put
in place to prevent bullying from its source, and also include guidelines on how to react to
various bullying situations. The school policymakers were investigated in a study that went
behind the scenes to examine the information they understand on the topic of bullying. These
results were interesting. Qualified researchers interviewed policymakers hoping to find out about
their definition of bullying and cyberbullying, the processes for developing policies, and what
policymakers believe should be included in a bully prevention and intervention program. The
beginning of the research started with an agreement by all the researchers and developers, that
schools should have a policy against bullying; yet, a policy alone will not prevent bullying. It
was proposed to these policymakers that all members of the school community should have input
regarding the school’s anti-bullying. As stated in the research, “ownership by those who
implement and those targeted by the policy can help increase compliance and, therefore, may
increase the effectiveness of anti-bullying policies,” (School policies on bullying and
cyberbullying). Eleven qualified policymakers, when interviewed, all had different responses
when asked to define bullying and cyberbullying.
Although some were familiar with a similar definition, others could merely reference
specific events of bullying but give no explanation to the meaning of the word. According to the
article School Policies on Bullying and Cyberbullying, “only one informant provided a complete
definition similar to that adopted in the literature.” Finally, when questioned about how a policy
should be conducted, all of the interviewees stated that a policy should be focused on the

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procedure and process of displaying information. This implies that policymakers are more
concerned with how the information is portrayed to students and staff as well as what the
consequences will be when bullying occurs in a school. In other studies, it is proven that this is
not an effective way to conduct a policy, considering a student may feel attacked and thus no
change is made to his or her behavior. After examining who makes the policies, it may be time to
further investigate and question who is in charge (School policies on bullying and
cyberbullying).
Bullying is very prevalent in other countries just like the United States. Countries in
Europe have similar bullying rates as the U.S.; however, European countries are handling these
bullying instances differently than schools in the United States. After realizing that many
programs in the U.S. do not offer a self-help portion, which is the most effective way of teaching
students how to prevent and cope with bullying, a few schools in Europe switched to a computer-
based, virtual learning program focused on informing students about bullying and relevant
coping strategies. The program is called FearNot! and it is a computer virtual-learning
experience designed for use as an anti-bullying intervention. This provides one-on-one support to
the masses that would otherwise be hard to receive through a one-man production. The program
entails four virtual people who assume the roles of the four major roles students play on a daily
basis in real life. The program is a three-week long process, consisting of a pretest and a post-test
alongside the three weeks of training in between. Throughout the entire process, data is being
collected to analyze what the system returns (Inter-Cultural differences).
The FearNot! program was implemented in Germany and the United Kingdom, two
countries with similar bullying rates to the United States, and the results were positive in both
areas. Students from the United Kingdom developed better coping skills than the German

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students; however, German students received gradually increasing scores opposed to students in
the United Kingdom area. The FearNot! program did not prove to enhance effective coping
strategies but instead is now regarded as a classroom activity to prepare and inform students with
cultural differences and make students aware of bullying around them (Inter-cultural
differences).
With the recent and numerous suicides of queer students in Canada, United States, and
the United Kingdom, it came to the attention of policymakers that something needs to be done
that specifically caters to these students. The United States reigns supreme in almost all
categories that examine homophobic expression and harassment towards these classified
students. Many queer students do not feel safe in their school. After long hours of examination
during a study, results stated, “American queer students avoided the following spaces at school
because they felt unsafe or uncomfortable: locker rooms (39.0%), bathrooms (38.8%), cafeteria
(20.5%), school grounds (11.0%), and hallways (14.8%),” ( A Legal Analysis of Homophobic
Bullying). Not only do the effects of bullying and harassment make these students feel unsafe but
they also highly affect their mental health. These students exposed to harassment and bullying
are put at risk due to maladaptive coping strategies. In other words, these students increase their
risk-taking behaviors such as having unprotected sex and experimenting with drugs to deal with
their depression, anxiety, and low-self-esteem. As declared in the research, “it is painfully clear
that suicidal ideation, self-harm, and the mean depressive symptoms scores (the average of five
indicators of depression on a scale of 1 = Never to 5 = Always) are significantly higher among
queer students,” (A Legal Analysis of Homophobic Bullying). These researchers examined the
problem and thus compared and contrasted various schools to see what can help these students.

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After finding what harms these queer students, researchers found that implementing
different association, within the school, complementing the policy the school may have against
bullying, can help and decrease the harassment these students face. Students in a queer friendly
school reported in a survey that they feel significantly safer. These schools support gay-straight
alliances. Schools encourage students who are part of the LGBT community, to interact with
each other within their own organization. In 2004, the Dane County Youth Survey, which
included 7,376 students ranging from seventh grade to eighth grade found that, “students from
schools with anti-homophobia policies or procedures reported hearing expressions like “that's so
gay” less often than participants from schools without such policies (65.4% versus 80.6%
reported hearing such comments every day),” (A Legal Analysis of Homophobic Bullying). This
proves that implementing a gay-straight alliance (GSA) within schools is a momentous first step
to mending the differences between both groups. When examining school policies, against
bullying it is vital to note whether or not a program as such exists. A GSA gets students involved
and also allows them to become more well rounded individuals by learning to accept others. If
one’s goal is to prevent bullying from its source, this is part of the way to success. ( A Legal
Analysis of Homophobic Bullying).
Educating policymakers
Our Constitution has a clause referring directly to the victims of bullying but sometimes
this is not enough. Based on the United States Constitution, “the Equal Protection Clause of the
Fourteenth Amendment of the United States Constitution, offers remedies for victims who are
bullied on the basis of federally protected criteria: race, nationality, sex, or disability,” (Victims
without Legal Remedies). After thorough research, provided by Julie Sacks and Robert Salem, a
recent graduate and a current professor who both have studied the effects of bullying on students,

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it seems that most victims of bullying are bullied based on reasons other than what is listed in the
14th Amendment. In a recent survey of schools in Ohio, 48% of students ages 14-18 years old
listed that physical appearance is the most common reason to be bullied. Physical appearance is
followed by sexual orientation which accounts for 18% of all bullying incidents in Ohio. Sacks
and Salem emphasize the importance of preventing bullying at the source and teaching
administration within schools how to recognize and react to bullying. It may seem that imposing
policies that cater specifically to administration in regards to bullying is the best way to prevent
bullying at its source. As stated in Victims without Legal Remedies, “policies offering students
the greatest protection are those that prevent bullying from happening in the first place, not those
merely imposing consequences after incidents arise” (Sacks). This is a perfect example of how
import it is to stop bullying from the source. It is important to stop bullying from the root and to
focus on the different ways that it occurs.
Bullying comes in various different forms such as physical, social, verbal, and
electronically. After distributing an in-depth questionnaire to measure physical, verbal, and
relational forms of bullying, the surveyors found that verbal bullying reigns supreme, accounting
for 53.6 percent of the survey results. 51.4 percent of students stated that they have been been
bullied socially before. The results state, “Boys were more involved in physical or verbal
bullying, whereas girls were more involved in relational bullying. Boys were more likely to be
cyber bullies, whereas girls were more likely to be cyber victims. African-American adolescents
were involved in more bullying but less victimization,” (Wang).
Treating these different groups of people who are victims, bullies, and bystanders,
separately, will ultimately result in the most influential difference noticed in schools. The survey
suggests that having more or fewer friends is associated directly with bullying along with the

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amount of parental support in the student’s household. Strengthening relationships at home
between parents and children, working with students one-on-one to personally help them
improve their social life and confidence, and of presenting in front of students at their school, is a
proven technique that is more effective in the attempt to teach students how to better cope with
bullying, and potentially prevent it overall. (Wang)
Research has found that those who are victims of bullying at a younger age are able to
cope and handle the bullying better at an older age. Research also suggests that when the victim
tells close peers, as opposed to adults, that they are being bullied, the situation is handled more
effectively. An article, written by multiple experts on the topic, proclaims, “…while most
children know of many different responses to bullying, older children often choose more
effective ways of coping than younger children, and that the most helpful strategies include
telling peers rather than adults,” (Watson). The experts mention that the next step of preventing
victimization, is to implement a self-help program to inform students how to make sure they are
not the victim of bullying. (Watson).
Having a mentor or a person they are comfortable talking to about their problems can
also prevent bullying. A mere 26 states have a law in place that requires a school counselor to be
on the premises during school hours. This leaves students in the remaining states without a
trustworthy professional to speak with. In a 2012 study, “only one third (33%) of cyberbullying
victims reported that they told an adult about being cyber bullied in the past 12 months”
(O'Donnell). This shows that students are afraid to talk about their problems with others,
highlighting the importance for these instances to be stopped.
When going into schools and teaching students how to respond and cope with bullying, it
may be important to provide assistance to the administration as well. Offering a program where

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students can go to a dependable adult to talk about their bullying situation has proven to
significantly decrease the amount of bullying that occurs within the school as well as the suicide
rate of victims. (O'Donnell)
Collecting and analyzing statistics
Perhaps the way statistics are collected is not the all that important but rather the way the
stats are interpreted. Charles McClure, a professor at the School of Information Studies at Florida
State University, believes that the evaluation process of collecting information is the most
important part of developing a conclusion. A simple survey may be sufficient enough if you
compare and contrast it to the visible environment of the school. McClure states, “evaluation
provides input for planning and decision-making, provides high-quality qualitative and
quantitative data describing [bullying] activities, and serves as a basis to… improve services.”
When evaluating gathered statistics, McClure finds it important to calculate how much of a
service a program provides. For example, after completing a presentation, it is vital to assess the
impact of the presentation on the audience. McClure also notes that the service quality is just as
important as anything else when collecting data. Noting “how well the service or activity is
provided” can highly influence the way the statistics are presented and interpreted. Therefore, it
is important to make sure that one’s performance is timely, efficient, and effective to be taken
seriously in front of policymakers and school officials (Strategies for collecting networked
statistics).
A lot of students play a bullying role and experience bullying in schools. Another study
with participants from 75 elementary schools, 20 middle schools, and 14 high schools in the
United States completed a survey asking if the participants were bullies, victims or both. The
results came out that 40% of the students were playing a bullying role. In other words, nearly

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half of the participants from all school levels play a bullying role. According to a survey given to
the rural area in North Carolina 35% of students are self-reported bullies, 32% are victims of
bullying and “12% of all are involved both as bullies and victims” (Faris 12). The statistic was
surprising because so many students could be both a victim and a bully. This is too high of a
percentage of students that play both a victim and bullying role. This suggests that bullying is an
epidemic.
Bullying is still a problem in college because it leads to students experiencing negative
side effects that could, in turn, lead to poor grades. A survey conducted by the Psychology
department of Missouri State University “investigated differences between perceptions of
bullying in high school and college along with how college students experiences with bullying
impacted several constructs related to academic success (i.e., basic psychological needs,
academic motivation, perceived social support, and perceived stress)” (Young-Jones 1). The
results showed that students being bullied or have been victims have lower academic motivation
and show higher levels of stress than students who have not experienced bullying. Low
academic motivation in college would be detrimental to students’ grade point average because
university expects more self-teaching. There was a 33% decrease in victimizations when the
students go off to a university but almost everyone that was bullied in college has experienced
bullying in the past, which tells us there is a correlation between past victimizations and future
victimizations (Young-Jones). Students who have been victims of bullying in the past tend to
have a lower self-esteem and poor social skills, making them easier targets for bullies. Bullying
in college could affect campus climate through indirect bullying.
The study by the US Department of Health and Human Services (2014) conducted a survey
asking the staff of middle schools’ perceptions on bullying behaviors. The data showed that the

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staffs perceived that bullying occurs at the participating schools, but they also thought that males
and females had different bullying behaviors. The researcher concluded that the staff of the
schools chose indirect bullying behavior for females more often than direct bullying. The
difference between perceived male and female indirect bullying is that male bullying consisted
of “name calling” and “making fun of others,” whereas female bullying behaviors were “gossip.”
All of these ways of bullying are hurtful because it can hurt students’ reputation and confidence.
Bullying impacts the environment so that it becomes one of fear rather than learning.
Another question was asked of the administrators, teachers, and counselors. They rated
from one to five (1 being not true and 5 being true) on whether bullies affect school climate.
The survey reported that the staff perceive “that bullies have a moderate effect on school
climate” because the mean of their answers was 3.45 (Sharp 49). Since bullying has a moderate
effect on the school environment, staff should be taught strategies to combat bullying. Also, they
need to be armed with knowledge from bullying workshops and other outside resources so they
can identify and prevent bullying.
The transition between primary and secondary school is when students use bullying as a
method to establish social status. Therefore, the peer bullying tends to increase during middle
school and decrease as students advance in their education. Students should learn about bullying
before the transition from primary and secondary school so they are aware of the seriousness of
bullying.
Bullies can come from totally different walks of life, so it is hard for school staff to
predict who will victimize students. One type of bully is someone who is depressed and doesn’t
like school or their parents, but on the other hand bullies can also be involved in a lot of
extracurricular activities and be very popular. Researchers are still not certain what specific

20
motives cause bullies to abuse others. A study conducted by Komo TV News reported that, when
viewing the recordings of a hidden camera on a playground, every eight minutes there was a
bullying situation (Faris). This study suggests that bullying is serious and has an impact on
school environment. The seriousness of bullying is emphasized when Robert Faris states that
chronic bullying is the cause of most of school shootings. These shootings have happened on
more than one occasion. Schools need to be more aware of students being chronically bullied
because if students open up about bullying others or being victimized, counselors, teachers staff
should be there to help first. This can help teachers and staff to anticipate who is going to bully
others so they can prevent bullying situations from happening.
Overview of Anti-bullying Organizations Strategies and Outside Opinions
Growing up was hard and I started to go into a depression where I would force myself to
eat when I was full. After talking to my parents when I got to high school about what was going
on with my depression, I then knew I would be okay, and the teasing was something I could
overcome. So I started to take action by fighting back. Not with my hands, but, with my mind.
This experience has inspired me to look for new ways to prevent bullying and to discuss what
actions are being done to combat it.
There is a probable chance a person might face bullying in life. I myself being an 18 year
old black women have experienced bullying. I remember like it was only yesterday; In sixth
grade I was walking down the hallway and someone made me a laughing stalk at the school
about my weight. Being 5’ 2” and skinny, wearing a size 16 in pants was not so appealing to my
peers. Generally, I wouldn’t respond because I am emotionally intelligent, but, eventually over
continuous name calling, I broke. “Alonja is too skinny”, “Alonja can’t fit her pants”, and
“Alonja is wearing her brother’s pants” was all I used to hear growing up.

21
Anti-bullying activist strive to minimize bullying in schools and communities through
leadership programs, theatre shows, and conflict mediation from educators. The purpose of this
section is to give an overview of anti-bullying organizations and their strategies. This section
will also examine perspectives from parents and reporters regarding the approaches of anti-
bullying initiatives.
Research shows that students in grades 5 to 12 who experienced bullying reported less
life satisfaction, school connectedness, and hope, compared with their peers who were not
bullied. This research was taken from surveys given to students nationwide. Most of the data
collected has been observed and reported to the school itself. Analyzing a school and its number
of reports on bullying, even though not all bullying incidents are reported, is a valid way to
collect data and analyze the effectiveness of a school’s program. (Cornell)
mOne organization in 300 schools and including more than over 20,000 students is
Project Footsteps. This organization reaches out to students to be the change in their environment
and pushes them to become leaders in the course of their lives and in the lives of others. Students
participate in an 8-week leadership development program that challenges students to get out of
their comfort zones in order to be “agents of change and leaders of action”. Here, they work on
becoming leaders and learning what leaders look like. Project Footsteps’ ultimate goal is not to
stop bullying, to teach students to be the example in the school for others and in the community.
As an active program working with students as their main source, the students are the
ones put to the test to change the environment of their school. Training to becoming students that
others look up to keep students on track and out of trouble, taking small footsteps toward
success.

22
Using a different approach by sampling live theatre, Brainstorm Productions has helped
over 350,000 students in Australia every year with anti-bullying, cyber-bullying and educational
programs. They use education in theatre to connect students with assistance in change. Students
tend to pay more attention when information is entertaining and also given with an emotional
appeal. Bullying scenarios are portrayed, to show clear solutions and skills students can use
when they see someone being bullied. This also gives bullies a sense of on how victims feel
when they are bullied.
But how does one define a bully? The mother of 13 year old, Belinda Luscombe once
thought her son, Jamal, was a bully. She noticed that he teased people because of the way they
looked, and he did this to his siblings and neighbors. Jamal also showed interest in buying a T-
shirt with words “I’m a Bully. I’m a Bully. I’m a Bully” written upon it. When she brought
suspicions to the school principal, she asked if her son has ever been cruel to other students. The
principal’s surprised reaction assured her that Jamal wasn’t a disruptive student and was in fact
great with other children in the school.
The word “bully” can be described in many ways. However, mother Belinda believes that
children know that taunting others is not okay to do, though they do it anyway “just like we
know it’s bad to eat donuts for breakfast. But under certain circumstances, we still do it”, says
Belinda. Having traits of a bully does not make someone a complete bully, Belinda believes
when anyone speaks about what a bully is, there should be careful wording when describing the
person.
The Director of the U.S Department of Education Jessica Swain-Bradway, does not
believe in the zero tolerance rule. Instead she focuses on Restorative Justice Practices and

23
Bullying Prevention to give the school staff responsive strategies when supporting positive
student behaviors.
Restorative Justice Practices (RJP) is a strategy used to build relationships to prevent
wrongdoings within conflict. With that, it includes restorative questions such as “What
happened? Who did it impact? How did you make it right?” These questions are meant to make a
student take into consideration what they could’ve done better and what they did wrong.
Bullying prevention informs students of what respect looks like and how to respond to others
when they are not being respectful. Both practice and prevention is part of a “research validated
framework of School-Wide Positive Behavior Supports and Interventions (SWPBIS)” and
making a change to the school environment with reactive and protective strategies.
Swain-Bradway has an audience of administrators within school districts and states that
will take these strategies and use them within their school. Her practice teaches students in the
moment when things are getting tense in the child’s mind. For example, using RJP will question
the students in the midst of everything happening will give them the time to think and actually
take what is said into consideration.
The RJP approach seems very useful and could be added to books for parents and
teachers. The practice will be very beneficial in the homes of children and in schools.
Not many children are taught problem solving skills in school or the home when there is
confrontation. They just go with instinct. However, being taught other solutions that will keep
them from getting into trouble will change the way they act. Changing the way they solve
confrontations will lead them to becoming a stronger people. It will also change the environment
in the school. If children stand up to bullies the right way, and others witness it, they will do the
same thing when they see someone else being bullied.

24
Although it may seem as if everyone should stand up to bullying, different people react to
bullying in different ways. Some do nothing, others stand up in the moment or later in life.
However, it’s never too late to stand up to bullying. For example, Japanese American, U.S
representative Mike Honda, experienced first hand bullying during World War II. His familiarity
with being bullied affected his self esteem and education. Now, as an educator and school
administrator, he believes that instructors have the responsibility to manage the amount of
bullying in their environment by being given the right tools to handle bullying.
Honda, the chair of the Congressional Anti-Bullying Caucus, reaches out to teachers,
parents, students, activist and community members to help change attitudes in the U.S public
school system. He believes it is important that all teachers are aware of how to deal with bullied
students and bullies because they are the first authority to witness it. Punishing a child for
bullying someone will not do much good. Sending a bully to the principal office with possible
suspension will not get them to stop. If they know this is the only punishment, they will continue
to bully students. However, when a teacher deals with the situation using practices like RJP, the
outcome will change.
Honda especially wants teachers and school administration to be educated on how to treat
acts of bullying and how to connect with the students that are being bullied. Teachers and
administrators are the authority figures that can make change in bullying moments. In addition,
counsellors may already know how to deal with bullied students, Honda found a way to connect
counselors and teachers in order for them to know how to deal with students in the moment.
Rather than sending them off to counselling later in the day or week, they get what they need to
hear instantly.

25
Related to Hondas experience in having being disturbed from bullying, others aren’t as
sensitive to the matter. For example, reporter Meredith Melnick encourages teachers, parents and
anti-bullying organizations to think outside the box when it comes to speaking about the
outcomes of bullying. Every person is different when they are going through a tough time. In
Melnick’s report, she explains the case where a young male named Jamie, 14 years of age,
commits suicide. His story is significant because as headlines speak of his death, they mention
his main cause of suicide bullying.
Melnick does not encourage blaming the bully in the cases of victims taking offense.
Instead, she sides with the studies that suggest bullying victims and the actual bullies are more
likely to have started out with depression and anxiety. So bullying isn’t the cause of mental
health but a warning sign. It is important for anti-bullying organizations to consider every factor
that corresponds with the way people react to being bullied.
With great research, every organization offers unique strategies to incorporate into
schools, homes and the community, all having different effects on different people. What is to be
taken from this research are the different approaches each organization bring to the table to their
target audience. Whether it is role play in theatre, leadership programs, or conflict mediation, all
will have a different effect on children in schools. To figure out what is the most effective, these
strategies are to be practiced in different schools collecting the data of bullying happening in the
school afterwards. From then, he could continue using the most effective strategy in future
presentations.
Conclusion
A recent study took a different approach to examining bullying. Instead of recognizing
bullying as something that occurs within a school, these researchers interpreted bullying as a

26
social norm and part of society’s culture. Researchers found, after examining over 85 secondary-
lower-school pupils, that bullying is a part of ‘their’ culture and that teachers, as well as
administration, could not fully recognize bullying situations. Many teachers cannot recognize
bullying because it is being portrayed in a wrong sense. Bullying, as found in the study, happens
in small collaborative events which are expanded over a period of time, usually one full school
year, that are usually linked together. Researchers Hamarus and Kaikkoen state, “bullying should
perhaps not be looked upon as a long-standing process, because it is often realized in small
interactive incidents which are joined in the experiences of the bullied into something as much as
a year-long continuous chain.” This information is vital to the way bullying is handled in schools
considering it can make a large impact on a victim’s life (School bullying as a creator of pupil
peer pressure).

27
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2016

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