Schools leaving students at the mercy of psychological bullying

Schools leaving students at the mercy of psychological bullying

Article from:
Tanya Chilcott
February 23, 2010 12:00am

QUEENSLAND schools are failing to properly deal with the two worst kinds of bullying and often don't even check how their existing anti-bullying measures are working, the Government's own expert has warned.

Current approaches to tackling bullying inside the education system are unlikely to stem the growing menace of cyber-bullying. They also are unlikely to curb the effects of children deliberately excluding others.

The stark warnings are contained in a highly anticipated report by Professor Ken Rigby, commissioned last year by the State Government.

The report says cyber-bullying and social exclusion are "now seen as the most damaging of all to the mental health of targeted children".

After a review of the state's schools, Prof Rigby has concluded they are failing to follow up on how well their existing anti-bullying measures are working.

"This needs to be remedied before schools can discover, with confidence, what works at their school," his report said.

Prof Rigby also warned the Government that it needed to continually provide the best new advice to its education department.

He recommended every school be made to report annually on its anti-bullying tactics and then be encouraged to note them on their website.

One in three children are bullied in class almost daily, according to research released by Education Queensland last year.

The Rigby report, Enhancing Responses to Bullying in Queensland Schools, highlights a lack of education in schools about the range of anti-bullying measures available.

It wasn't all bad, however, with Prof Rigby saying he was "much impressed" during his visits to state schools on their "dedication and sheer inventiveness on what was being done to address bullying".

"I have worked with schools in every state in Australia, and it is not my impression that Queensland schools are less dedicated or less effective in dealing with bullying than any other state or territory," he said.

"However, I do believe that a good deal of useful advice and guidance can and should be provided by the Department of Education and Training and by other educational jurisdictions."
Prof Rigby acknowledged he only visited a small sample of schools, with only staff and stakeholders – not parents or students – interviewed.

Education Minister Geoff Wilson said he would "carefully consider" the recommendations.
Mr Wilson said the report was an important step in his commitment to dealing with bullying and behaviour in Queensland schools.

The report will be released today.

adapted from:http://www.news.com.au/couriermail/story/0,23739,26761013-952,00.html

Summary

The two worst ways of bullying in Queensland schools are cyber-bullying and social exclusion which can adversely affect the victims’ mentality. However, they are unable to tackle the problem completely. A review has been done and it shows that they have neglected the effectiveness of current anti-bullying measures. Prof Rigby suggested the schools to share their tactics in overcoming the problem and also disclose them in the internet. He also mentioned that the Department of Education and Training has the obligation to provide advice and guidance to solve the problem.

Critique

The article highlights the issue of bullying in the state by disclosing a statistics released by Education Queensland last year. It is found that a child has one third probability to be bullied almost every day. This indicates the seriousness of the problem. However, it seems like Prof Rigby only emphasized on the responsibilities of the Government and school authorities in the effort of tackling the issue. I disagree that the parties mentioned to carry the full burden. Parents should involve actively in the anti-bullying measures as well to enhance their effectiveness.