Bullying in New Zealand

Bullying in New Zealand

 

Bullying affects a proportion of children and young people in all primary and secondary schools. It is an issue of growing concern to practitioners, parents and researchers in many countries. Children who are the targets of this peer-led aggression risk being physically hurt, rejected and socially excluded, or being the butt of rumours, name – calling, and put – downs. Over time, the effect on young people’s mental health can be devastating. Children who are the victims of such aggression are significantly more likely to be depressed, to have low self – esteem, and to report feelings of loneliness. (Sullivan 2000)

 

Students who were frequently victimized, witnessed violence at home or hurt others had, in general: poorer mental health; poorer relationships with family, friends and school; higher rates of using cigarettes, alcohol and marijuana; higher rates of unsafe sexual behaviour; and higher rates of stealing than students who had not had these experiences of violence. (Fleming 2007)

Bullying is a conscious and willful act of aggression and/or manipulation by one or more people against another person or people. Bullying can last for a short period or go on for years, and is an abuse of power by those who carry it out. It is sometimes premeditated, and sometimes opportunistic, sometimes directed mainly towards one victim, and sometimes occurs serially and randomly. (Sulivan 2000)

It has become a hot topic in the New Zealand media recently. Even Prime Minister John Key has got involved by instructing the Ministry of Education to write all schools reminding them of their responsibilities and urging them to review their anti-bullying policies. “New Zealand has been ranked second worst among 37 countries when it comes bullying in primary schools, according to a major international report.” (Stuff 2008)

Students reported various forms of bullying, including: people spreading rumours about them (48%); making sexual jokes, comments or gestures (38%); using hurtful names (41%); or threatening physical violence (33%). Of the students who were bullied in all these forms 32% reported that it was pretty bad, really bad or terrible. 57% said that they did not know why they were picked on; 5% said it was because of their body shape; 13% because they were smaller than other people; 24% because of their ethnic group or culture; and 8% because people thought they were gay. Some students were victims of regular ongoing bullying at school: 6% of students reported they were bullied at school one or more times every week. Of these 51% reported that the bullying was pretty bad, really bad or terrible. (Fleming 2007)

Schools find bullying difficult to deal with for many reasons. Often they are the last to find out about a bullying incident because of the code of silence where victims are afraid to seek help. There is a legal requirement that schools provide safe learning environments and the Ministry of Education expects all schools to have a policy on dealing with bullying and to record bullying incidents.

New Zealand has a wealth of programmes and resources from which schools can choose. The Restorative Justice Programme is popular in many schools, Eliminating Violence focuses on improving a school’s culture, Kia Kaha, developed by the NZ Police Youth Education Service is a successful anti-bullying programme. The Ministry of Education provides Resource Teachers for Learning and Behaviour (RTLBs) who provide information about programmes and help schools develop and implement strategies to manage behaviour.

Bullying occurs in every school and the key to change is for schools to recognise the importance of using students’ full potential to become resources not problems.

Schools are not only for academic learning; social/ emotional development skills must also be valued and taught. (Duncan, 2011)

 

Sources:

Duncan Yvonne (2011): Bully-proofing our schools. In peaceworks. Auckland, New Zealand: The Peace Foundation.

Fleming T., Watson P., Robinson E., Ameratunga S., Dixon R., Clark T., Crengle S. (2007): Violence and New Zealand Young People: Findings of Youth2000 - A National Secondary School Youth Health and Wellbeing Survey. Auckland, New Zealand: The University of Auckland.

Stuff (2008): NZ 2nd worst in world for School Bullying. Retrieved 4th October 2011 from http://www.stuff.co.nz/national/761094/NZ-2nd-worst-in-world-for-school-bullying

 

Sullivan, Keith (2000): The Anti-Bullying Handbook., South Melbourne, Australia: Oxford University Press.