Standing up to bullies
MANY FACTORS led to the tragic school shootings at Columbine and Virginia Tech. But part of the poisonous mix was bullying, which can be a risk factor for violence in young people. The nation is left to wonder what would have happened if someone had intervened. Short-circuiting bullying is a big job that demands more respect and restraint from children and adults. But it's also a vital job.
Tales of bullying are told time and again. There are youngsters who put up with it. Maybe they outgrow the abuse. Maybe they don't. Or there's the story about the bullied victim who throws an undreamed-of punch and hits the bully hard enough to make this point: I can be more violent than you are. And there are the kids who just watch, maintaining a corrosive code of silence.
Often missing in these stories is the community response. The schools, churches, parents, coaches, clubs, friends, and others who rise up and say bullying is unacceptable. Those voices are gaining volume, but not enough. Communities have to take a firm, loud stand against bullying.
Some have. Anti bullying efforts start early in the Newton public schools, for example, with a focus on respect for human differences. The city's curriculum addresses bullying across the grades. Staffers are trained to respond. Parents are invited to training sessions, including a session that will be held in May at the Day Middle School. And the district circulates a list of children's books that are about bullying and can be used by parents and teachers to discuss problems.
As part of a multifaceted approach, the Boston public schools provide anti bullying training for principals and headmasters during a summer institute that links this problem to the issue of closing the achievement gap. It's apt recognition that some children get picked on for being smart.
Boston teachers are trained in the Olweus approach to bullying, named for Dan Olweus, a psychology professor in Norway. His method is to minimize bullying by raising its profile. This includes setting school wide anti-bullying rules, training staff, involving parents, and intervening with bullies and victims. It was declared a model program by the federal Substance Abuse & Mental Health Services Administration, which considers bullying a risk factor in substance abuse.
The challenge is turning theories and workshops into action. As in campaigns against smoking and drunken driving, communities have to say consistently that the culture of bullying is repugnant and will be punished. These efforts have to promote common decency, and they have to ensure that fear is not a barrier to participating in everyday life. 