Bullying on The Rise in Schools

Estimates abound that anywhere from 50 to 90 percent of America's school children in grades six through 10 are either victims of bullying or bullies themselves. But just how clearly have we defined bullying, and what can be done about it?

Beginning with schools, what can be done to make them safe - or at least safer - when physical aggression, verbal harassment and other forms of mistreatment, including cyber bullying, seem to be increasing?

Currently, 21 states have laws on the books that address the link between bullying and the adverse health effects bullying and bullies have on individuals, as well as the community at large. But, according to the Center for the Advancement of Health, just 16 states have clear legislation defining bullying, prohibiting bullying and supporting anti-bullying prevention programs.

Richard C. Gilman, Ph.D., is a child and adolescent psychologist and Director of Psychology, Division of Developmental and Behavioral Pediatrics at Children's Hospital Medical Center in Cincinnati, Ohio. He has expressed his belief that states can do more than they have to address bullying issues. Just having something on the law books doesn't necessarily mean it's effective. And, although some states have defined bullying, harassment, intimidation, etc., not all states define bullying behaviors the same way or have the same concepts.

Bottom line, say Gilman and other professionals, all anti-bullying laws must begin with clarity and be inclusive in defining and explaining bullying and bullying behaviors.

According to the Journal of Adolescent Health, lack of adult supervision after school has been linked to problem behavior, including aggression, in adolescents. And there is compelling evidence that the media is affecting youth behavior. Add to that the growing phenomenon of Internet or cyber bullying, and it's little wonder bullying goes beyond the classroom or school grounds. The Journal states that researchers have also found that cyber bullying is linked to school behavior problems and shares common predictors with verbal bullying and, to a lesser extent, physical bullying. It's also true that cyber bullying seems to peak in middle school.

Perhaps, in addition to better legislation and parental supervision, media literacy programs should be added to the search for solutions to bullying too. In today's world, we no longer communicate in just the written or spoken word. Instead, most information and concepts and ideas are shared and received through TV, radio, the Internet and other media sources. Understanding that, the New Mexico Media Literacy Project was founded in 1993 and has since become an example of an effective media literacy program. With similar programs, schools and other organizations can teach both young people and adults to more effectively access, analyze and evaluate media messages of all kinds, including text, images and sounds.

Regardless of how it's done, few can argue that bullying and related behaviors are on the increase and will take the involvement of parents, families, schools, communities and lawmakers to make our schools and children safer from this kind of behavior.

Sources:

Center for the Advancement of Health; http://www.hbns.org/

Cincinnati Children's Hospital; http://www.cincinnatichildrens.org/svc/find-professional/g/richard-gilman.htm

Journal of Adolescent Health; http://www.jahonline.org/search/quick

New Mexico Media Literacy Project; http://www.nmmlp.org/