Bullying in School

If you saw bullying, what would you do to stop it? Would you stand by and let it happen, take
part in it or try to stop it? Not many students think about this, and that’s part of the problem.

‘Treat others the way you want to be treated.’ That’s the Golden Rule and it should be followed
in every aspect of your life. If someone was in a position to stop you from being bullied and did
nothing, how would you feel? If you find that unacceptable, you must do everything you can to
stop others from hurting people.

Are you even remotely aware of how much pain these victims feel every day? They go to school
knowing they’re going to be hurt and they see no way out. This is because people like you and
many others stand by and let it happen without contemplating how much pain this is causing
people. Ask yourself this: How would you feel if you were in the victim’s position and could see
no end to your pain?

When the victims see no way out, they may choose to tragically end their life, leaving more hurt
behind for those who were unable to stop it. Canada has the third-highest teen suicide rate of all
the industrialized nations, with 15 deaths per 100,000 people. Suicide is the second leading cause
of death for people ages 10-24, behind motor vehicle accidents. The death of a young person is
always a waste of life, so how many more lives must be wasted before something is done?

If you condone bullying in any way, shape or form, you are taking part in it. Bullying is
everyone’s responsibility and the option of doing nothing is unacceptable in civilized society.
Some people may consider mocking someone funny, even though it is anything but funny to the
victim. Small jabs taken every day can add up to a lot of pain and suffering. While it may seem
innocent to the person taking the shots, the cumulative effect of these daily jabs could be
devastating. In addition to that, as the pain increases, each jab cuts a little deeper.

Bullying can happen in school, so it is the responsibility of students to protect their classmates
and to show everyone the dignity and respect they would like to be treated with. The first line of
defense in bullying is in student’s own behavior. But when that fails, it must be brought to the
attention of someone in authority, like a teacher. The concept of someone in authority failing to
address the problem is simply not acceptable. This is why you must speak to a teacher you trust
and know will do something to stop the bullying.

Bullying is happening everywhere, even at your own school. You may not see it, you may not
know it is there, but it is happening and it causes unimaginable pain to the victims. The only way
to end bullying is to talk about it openly rather than making it a taboo issue. If someone is
hurting another person, they will not stop unless someone (either a fellow classmate or someone
in authority) stands up for the victim and tells their tormentor to stop. Bullying is everyone’s
problem; therefore everyone has to be part of the solution.

http://www.teenink.com/opinion/school_college/article/331645/Bullying-in-School/
Cause & Effect Essay: Bullying
Most people know that bullying is wrong. Calling someone names has absolutely no beneficial
purpose. Moreover, hitting someone makes a bully feel good in the moment while doing
permanent damage to the person being victimized. With the Internet, people now have even more
opportunities to bully through cyberbullying. This includes sending crude pictures, posting fake
web pages, or tweeting slanderous messages. Cyberbullying has subsequently led to a rise in a
completely new kind of bullying.

One of the effects of bullying is that it can change the victim’s personality. It can cause people
who are normally confident and happy to become self-conscious, shy, and unsure. Additionally,
victims of bullying may also become sad or depressed. Their confidence might completely
disappear, keeping them from trying new things or trusting people. Once a person has been
bullied, they may hesitate to participate in situations where he or she might be ridiculed, such as
in public speaking or in sports. A bullying victim might even begin to possess previously absent
anxious
behavior.

Despite all the negative effects of bullying, there are even far more serious consequences. People
who have been bullied sometimes become so upset, scared, or depressed that they see no worth
in themselves and no way out of their torment. There have been countless reports over the past
few years of students committing suicide because they were bullied. Meanwhile, there are times
when victims see no recourse but to seek revenge by serious acts of violence against the bully
and instigators. As a result of bullying, people can lose their ability to love and trust, denying
them the chance to experience a quality relationship later in their life. They might find
themselves as a submissive partner or they may want to be completely alone. Compounding all
of these problems, victims often develop eating disorders, begin to self-injure, or require
extensive counseling. Social bullying can also leave people without a supportive group of friends
that they can lean on and spend time with.

Another unfortunate consequence of this is that bullying is often cyclical. People who have been
bullied can, in an attempt to gain their power and self-esteem back, become bullies themselves.
In relation to this, bullies who are not confronted or stopped may find themselves in future
positions where they can bully as adults. This is where manipulative bosses and child abusers
come from.

Aside from its long-term effects, some consequences of bullying can be seen and felt
immediately. When one child calls another child names, the victim might cry and a bruise might
appear after a punch to the arm. However, some effects of bullying are not always obvious to the
naked eye. The results of bullying might grow and appear over time, damaging a person in
profound ways for the long term. There are so many effects of bullying that they are impossible
to count or predict. This is why it is so important to stop bullying.

http://www.scholaradvisor.com/essay-examples/cause-and-effect/
‘All Kids Deserve to Be Safe from Bullying’:
Jake’s Story
By Tim Walker

On a sunny spring day last April on the steps of the state capitol, Minnesota Governor Mark
Dayton signed the Safe and Supportive Minnesota Schools Act into law. Of the many speakers at
the ceremony, the crowd cheered the loudest for 11-year-old Jake Ross. Bullied mercilessly
while in second grade, Jake turned his hurt into action and became a tireless advocate for
toughening up his state’s anti-bullying law, one of the weakest in the nation.
The Safe and Supportive Minnesota Schools Act is a comprehensive anti-bullying bill that will
require all schools in the state to have an anti-bullying policy that clearly defines bullying,
harassment, and intimidation, provides training and resources for students, staff, and volunteers
and lays out specific procedures school staff must follow when bullying is reported.

To mark National Bullying Prevention Awareness Month, Jake recently told his story to NEA
Today, detailing his personal struggle as a bullying victim and why he believes the new law in
his state will help reduce the problem.

When I was 7 years old and in 2nd grade I was the victim of on-going and repeated bullying at the
elementary school I attended.   The bullying included physical harm, verbal threats, intimidation,
and stealing.

One of the worst incidents was during lunch and recess on February 2, 2010. While I was eating
lunch at our assigned classroom table in the cafeteria, one of the bullying students stood up at the
lunch table and said very loudly, ‘Who’s going to help me beat up Jake today ?!’

Following lunch, outside at recess I was cornered and attacked.  I was pushed to the ground
repeatedly.  I tried to get away, but I could not.  When the recess whistle finally blew and
everyone went inside the school, the student who attacked me yelled, “I’m going to kill you if
you tell anyone!  I’m going to kill you tomorrow!”   This made me feel scared because I was
afraid that he might try to seriously injure me the next day.  I was scared for many more days
following this attack, and I was scared about what was going to happen to me next at school…

My mom was really worried about me at school, too. She ate lunch with me and came to recess.
I told her about the harm that was happening to me at school, and she reported these things to the
school officials.  The only consequence for the two students who hurt me repeatedly was that
they had to apologize – even though the bullying continued through the end of the school year.
My mom asked the school official to have the students moved to a different assigned table area
in the cafeteria – the bullying usually happening at lunch and recess – but the answer was no.
They told us they couldn’t because they had to think about the kids the bullies would then be
sitting by.  Because of this, I had to sit by the students who bullied me every day.

Anti-Bullying

October is National Bullying Prevention Awareness Month. Find out more at NEA’s Bully-Free: It Starts
With Me campaign. Resources include the NEA Bullying Prevention Kit, 10 Steps to Stop and Prevent
Bullying and the Bully Free: It Starts With Me pledge.

My mom had a meeting with the school officials and asked to see the school’s policy and
procedures for bullying.  The school official told her that there were no procedures and no list of
consequences  for bullying at the school.

Because it would not provide a safe learning environment for me, my parents took me and my
younger sister out of this school.
I quickly learned how common bullying is for so many students and I became involved in anti-
bullying awareness. I know what it’s like, and I didn’t want it to happen to any more kids. All
kid deserve to be safe from bullying.

My role in advocating for the Safe and Supportive Minnesota Schools Act was as a spokesperson
for children and youth who have been bullied in schools.  I publically told my story of having
been bullied, lobbied at the Minnesota State Capitol during the 2013 and 2014 legislative
sessions and testified  in favor of the bill at committee hearings. I have been fortunate to get to
know Senator Scott Dibble, who co-sponsored the Safe and Supportive Schools Act. He is a role
mode for me. I also wrote newspaper guest commentary articles and letters-to-the-editor on
“Why I support the Safe and Supportive Minnesota Schools Act.” These were published in our
local newspapers. I also collected over 500 petition signatures in support of the bill. At local
community events, I provided information about the bill. I am still involved in advocating for the
law and its implementation in schools.

The Safe and Supportive Schools Act  will help protect students from bullying by changing the
idea that bullying is “just something that happens to kids” to bullying is something that hurts kids
and it is not acceptable.  This new law creates the mindset that schools should be safe and
inviting places for all students, and that all students are accepted and valued.

I think the best parts of the new law are the enumerated protections and the use of restorative
justice practices.

Enumerated protection is important because it protects those students who are likely to be bullied
more often and more severely.  It sends the message that it’s not O.K. to bully anyone, even if
they are different from you.

Restorative justice practices are an important part because punishing the bully without teaching
anything will not help stop the behavior over the long term. The bully may continue the hurtful
behavior throughout their school years and into their adult years.

Restorative Justice helps all those involved in bullying situations by getting to the reason why
the bullying happened, and coming to an agreement that helps everyone stop the harmful
behavior and repair the harm that was done, so healing can happen. All those involved, including
the people harmed, witnesses, the harm-doer, community members, etc. come together and use a
process that works through the problem and reaches a consensus at the end that all agree to.  This
is how bullying situations can be dealt with in a way that actually puts an end to the harm.

I would tell three main things to kids who are being bullied. First, know that it is not your fault. 
No one should blame you for the harm that is happening to you.  Bullying is a form of abuse, and
anyone who is  being abused needs help from others. Second, tell a trusted adult about the
bullying.  This could be your parent, other caring adult in your life, a teacher, coach, church
youth leader. Finally, hang around with other students who are nice as much as you can.

http://neatoday.org/2014/10/07/all-kids-deserve-to-be-safe-from-bullying-jakes-story-3/