- In the mid- to late 1990s, a series of violent shootings took place at schools across the nation, most notably the Columbine killings in 1999. A report from Stateline.org indicated that bullying played a part in such shootings: that they were caused by children who felt victimized and/or "pushed too far." While overall levels of bullying had not increased, the media attention engendered by such incidents prompted schools to address bullying more aggressively with coherent policies.
- Bullying includes traditional methods such as physical intimidation and verbal taunting, as well as newer methods such as bullying by text or bullying online. School bullying often takes place beyond the sight of adults, and victims may be scared to come forward for fear of reprisals. School bullying policies need to address all aspects of the problem and must foster an atmosphere in which unseen incidents become clear.
- A successful school bullying policy must clearly define what constitutes bullying (that is, genuine harassment or intimidation, rather than a spirited discussions about sports or politics, for instance). It needs to give victims a safe place to express their concerns to teachers or administrators and must help teachers recognize signs of bullying when victims refuse to come forward. Punishments need to be clearly defined and have a real impact: every student must understand the consequences, which need to firmly discourage future bullying incidents. Finally, the school needs to monitor the overall effect of its policy and make adjustments where necessary.
- A 2006 article published by the American Medical Association covered an extended test on school anti-bullying policies conducted in the Netherlands. It reported that the number of bullied children decreased in schools with coherent anti-bullying policies by as much as 25 percent. Similar effects were reported by experiments in England, Belgium and Norway.
- Bullying has complex roots, and cannot be dealt with by school officials alone. Parents and family members need to become involved as well, with attention given to the children's home life as well as his behavior in school. This applies to the bullies as well as the bullied; while bullying behavior should never be excused and bullies should suffer the punishment for their behavior, school districts need to look for ways to improve the bully's own emotional state, instead of just writing him off as a "bad seed."
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