Common Keys to Success

The schools and state task force profiled in this booklet have indicated similar keys to implementing a successful schoolwide bullying prevention:

1. Schools need to be serious about implementing the program. This means that:

• Administrators from the principal to the school board need to promote the program and fund it fully.

• The principal must provide leadership in the school and have the commitment to carry it out.

• Implementing a balanced, thoughtfully written policy that isn’t overresponsive is crucial. So-called punitive “zero tolerance” and “three strikes and you’re out” policies are not effective. Tougher rules with tougher consequences won’t build a positive culture.

• Policies are no good if they aren’t backed up by the administration. Teachers need to know that the principal is fully behind the policy so there is consistency on what is important schoolwide.

• One-shot workshops will not improve the situation. There are no magic bullets, no quick fixes; success requires remaking the school climate. This can’t be done with half your staff.

• The school must have a committee to share the responsibility and ideally a committee coordinator who receives a stipend.

• A schoolwide bullying prevention program should build a climate in which children feel cared for and respected, with consistent rules and policies, and where adults model appropriate behavior.

2. Teachers need to understand that their response to bullying makes a difference. Teachers need to validate a child’s pain and concern when a child comes to them for help. “If we are minimizing the problem, we are sending a message that their concerns don’t matter,” says Saufler from the Maine Project Against Bullying.

3. Children can’t do it alone. You must develop an atmosphere of trust within which kids can have the courage to report bullying, either of themselves or others. If you teach the students to report bullying, but you don’t prepare your staff to respond appropriately and effectively, you will be defeating your purpose. Children will quickly learn that they will receive inconsistent or non-responses and will no longer report bullying.

4. Bullying is not part of normal conflict. Says Saufler, “Be real clear about that with parents, teachers, and children: bullying is continued abuse of power that is intentionally hurtful.” Teacher and staff training should emphasize this fact and train teachers to look at the dynamics between children who are bullied and those who bully. Peer mediation is an inappropriate response to bullying because of the power imbalance of the situation. Says Saufler, “You would no more sit a child who bullies and his/her target down to talk it out than you would sit down a wife and her husband who abuses her.”

5. Playground areas, cafeterias, and bus stops must be supervised. These are the areas where most bullying occurs. Supervision means being alert and responsive to children’s interactions.

6. Teach children strategies to reduce bullying incidents. Teach them that if they invite a child who is standing alone to join their conversation or game, the child will be a less likely target for bullying.