Responding to Bullying

Texas House Bill 1942 Texas House Bill 1942 was passed to address how schools must make their campuses safer for all students specifically regarding the issues of bullying and cyberbullying.

BISD Policy The Brownsville Independent School District prohibits the bullying of a student. It also prohibits retaliation against any person, including a victim, a witness or another person, who in good faith provides information concerning an incident of bullying.

What is Bullying? Bullying occurs when a student or a group of students engages in written or verbal expression, expression through electronic means, or physical conduct that: Will have the effect of physically harming a student, damaging a student’s property, or placing a student in reasonable fear of harm to the student’s person or of damage to the student’s property; or Is sufficiently severe, persistent, or pervasive that the action or threat creates an intimidating, threatening, or abusive educational environment for a student.

Bullying Bullying is a problem that creates a climate of fear, that affects the whole school, and in some cases, the entire community. When we fail to recognize and stop bullying behavior as it occurs, we actually promote violence. The effects of bullying can be serious and even fatal. According to a report by the U.S. Secret Service, bullying played a significant role in many school shootings.

Imbalance of Power It is considered bullying if the conduct exploits an imbalance of power between the student perpetrator and the student victim.

Different Types of Bullying Physical Bullying: Any physical contact that would hurt or injure a person like hitting, kicking, or punching. 30.5% of all bullying in schools is physical. Verbal Bullying: Name-calling, making offensive remarks, or joking about a person’s religion, gender, ethnicity, socioeconomic status, or the way they look. 46.5% of all bullying in schools is the verbal type. Indirect Bullying: Spreading rumors or stories about someone, telling others about something that was told to you in private, and excluding others from groups. 18.5% of all bullying in schools is indirect.

Other Types of Bullying Social Alienation Bully excludes someone from a group on purpose. Intimidation Bully threatens someone else and frightens that person enough to make him or her do what the bully wants. Cyberbullying Sending messages, pictures, or information using electronic media, computers, or cell phones. In 2003, only 4% of cyberbullying was reported; however the growth of this type of bullying is going up fast because of the spread of technology around the world.

Examples of Bullying Bullying of a student may include: hazing threats taunting teasing confinement assault demands for money destruction or theft of property name calling rumor spreading

Effects of Student Harassment and Bullying Lowered academic achievement and aspirations Increased anxiety Loss of self-esteem and confidence Depression and post-traumatic stress General deterioration in physical health Self-harm and suicidal thinking Feelings of alienation in the school environment, such as fear of other children Absenteeism from school

IMPORTANT POINTS: Bullying is always wrong and it is a sign of a larger problem. Students have the right to feel safe at school. Students have the right and are encouraged to report any type of bullying Students have the right to be treated with respect, regardless of race, religion, appearance or social beliefs.

What to do Students who bully, victims of bullying, and bystanders can be referred to counselors and administrators who deal with these groups accordingly. BISD Crisis Intervention Flow Chart for Bullying will then be followed.

Forms to Document Bullying Bullying Investigative Report Findings of Bullying Investigation Parental Notice of Bullying(Victim, Perpetrator or Witness) School Safety Transfer

Preventing Bullying Increase the awareness of everyone at school toward bullying problems. Assess the scope of the problem. Identify both the students that are bullying and the students that are being bullied. Intervene in a timely manner with clear and consistent consequences Encourage by-standers to intervene appropriately to help stop the bullying. Reward pro-social behavior of all students.

Teacher Strategies Have assigned seating (and change seating plan if you see a problem arise). Be consistent. Take every student’s complaint seriously. Have meetings with the counselor and/or administrator to discuss bullying issues. Get parents involved. Be approachable. Create an open and safe environment

Setting up a Bully-free Classroom Talk to your students about bullying. Make anti-bullying part of one of your lessons. Give the students a list of anti-bullying rules that you can also hang somewhere in the classroom. Have the students sign an anti-bullying class pledge on a banner and hang in the classroom. Do activities that promote class unity. Have an anonymous “notes-to-the-teacher” box. Do not allow students to pick their own groups. Keep your eyes and ears open at all time!!

Counseling Services Counseling services for victims, witnesses and bullies will be provided after an investigation has been conducted and verification of an incident has been confirmed.

REMEMBER: Bullying will not be tolerated in BISD and protective measures are in place to ensure the safety of all BISD students.