Bullying in Our Education System Final

BULLYING IN OUR EDUCATION SYSTEM
Bullying in Our Education System

Belen Muro
Jaquelin Chavez
College of Saint Mary
Abstract
The purpose of this study is to examine how common bullying is in the education system.
Researchers used both quantitative and qualitative research methodology in this research.
Quantitative data will involve teachers experience and descriptions regarding bullying, whether
it may be regarding their students or their personal life. Qualitative data will tell more
information as far as the teachers personal feelings toward bullying. The literature review
attempts to describe what bullying is, types of bullying, and how it can be prevented. The
information gathered through the literature review was basic background information used for
the study on how teachers handle bullying in the classroom. The researcher formed a connection
from what they learned in the literature review to the responses they collected through the online
survey. The results suggested that bullying starts as early as Kindergarten, bullying is not
tolerated in their classrooms, and that communication and respect are the key.
Introduction
According to the Anti-Bullying Ambassador Campaign, run by charity The Diana Award, thirtyeight percent believe that their educational institution does not take bullying seriously. The
purpose of this study is to analyze and compare how different educators handle the subject of
bullying. Through this study, we will also compare the severity of bullying as students, maybe
even what teachers may go through in regards to bullying in the educational system.
Assumptions
Through the completion of the study, researchers will assume that these educators will
have completed the survey to their best of their ability. The researchers assume that they are
honest with the experience they have had in their classrooms as educators, and their experiences
with the issue of bullying in the education system.
Operational Definitions
Bullying- Bullying is repeated verbal, physical, social or psychological behavior that
is harmful and involves the misuse of power by an individual or group towards one or
more (persons. http://www.schools.nsw.edu.au/studentsupport/bullying/definition/).
Bully- A bully is person who uses strength or power to harm or intimidate those who
are weaker.
Victim of bullying- children who are bullied suffer more greatly from anxiety,
depression, loneliness, and post-traumatic stress than do other children, and they have
a heightened risk of suicide (http://www.education.com/reference/article/what-is-abully-victim/).
Types of bullying1. Verbal bullying including derogatory comments and bad names
2. Bullying through social exclusion or isolation
3. Physical bullying such as hitting, kicking, shoving, and spitting
4. Bullying through lies and false rumors
5. Having money or other things taken or damaged by students who bully
6. Being threatened or being forced to do things by students who bully
7. Racial bullying
8. Sexual bullying
9. Cyber bullying (via cell phone or Internet)
(http://www.violencepreventionworks.org/public/recognizing_bullying.page)
Educational positions- positions in the education system included, but are not limited
to, general education teacher, special education teacher, principal, substitute or
administrator.
Who Will Benefit

This information could be of great benefit to everyone, such as administrators,
teachers, students, and parents. From this research, teachers and administrators may have a better
insight on how bullying may impact their classroom. This research will be done google docs.
Survey. The questions asked are targeted towards teachers and their experiences working with
different ages. From this research, new teachers will be able see the diverse levels of bullying
among different ages through the stories and advice of more experienced teachers.
Literature Review
Introduction
There are many different definitions for bullying. The Oxford Dictionary defines bullying
as, the act of using superior strength or influence to intimidate (someone), typically to force him
or her to do what one wants. Bullying has always been in schools, but lately it has become a
greater problem in almost every school, this includes elementary schools. According to the
Nebraska Education Association, Nearly 30 percent of students are either bullies or victims of
bullying, and 160,000 kids stay home from school every day because of fear of bullying. It now
seems impossible for someone to not get bullied at least once in their life time. Bullying can be a
form of attention seeking method for those who are having trouble at home, being bullied
themselves, or just dont know how to handle certain situations in their life.
Schools have started focusing on the issue of bullying more closely; they try to provide a
safe environment and a sense of belonging for all students. It is important for students to feel safe
in their school community. Having a sense of belonging is also important because we as humans
tend to seek that exact feeling. Everyone wants to feel as though they are welcomed and a part of
something, or someone. Belonging is the extent to which students feel personally accepted,
respected, included and supported by others in the school social environment. Such a
conceptualization of school belongingness extends beyond enrolment at school, to mean that
students have established social bonds amongst themselves and with teachers, and perceive the
rules governing schools as important and protective (Vaz, 2015).
According to the book, The Bully, the Bullied, and the Bystander by Barbara Coloroso,
there are five different forms of bullying.
Physical bullying: involves some sort of violence against another person by either
damaging property, or the person physically.
Sexual bullying: harassment that occurs in connection with a person's sex or with
sexual activity; may lead to physical, verbal, or emotional.
Emotional bullying: making a person feel isolated and ridiculed largely through
teasing, shouting, mocking and ignoring. In this case, the bullying doesnt necessarily
have a physical component, and for that reason it is sometimes harder to spot.
Racial bullying: using another persons race or skin color become a factor. It can be
through making fun of a person, and racial discrimination.
Cyberbullying: the use of electronic communication to bully a person, typically by

sending messages in an intimidating or threatening manner. Social media is the
highest and most common type of cyberbullying.
Bullying does not occur only among students. Teachers can also be bullied by their own
students, parents, and or colleagues. It seems that teachers may no longer be respected for the
hard work that they do. Instead, they are looked down on and are expected to do as they are told
by everyone. Parents themselves seem to think that they can do a better job at making such
decisions; such as teachers being paid to babysit their children. What is overlooked, however, are
the long hours and hard work that every teacher puts in to educating each and every one of their
students. Teachers dont get paid much, but that is not why they go into the field. Teachers enjoy
teaching, and wish for every one of their students a great future. Being able to teach and see their
students grow each day is the best part of being a teacher.
Due to the major development of bullying, it has become more difficult for teacher to
have a full control of the situation in their classroom. There are many things that teachers can try
in order to prevent or stop bullying in their classroom.
There is also evidence suggesting that teachers might be less effective in this
regard. For one thing, they may not be aware of bullying. For example, it has been found
that teachers intervene in only 4% of bullying incidents on the playground and in only
18% of bullying incidents in the classroom. This may be because bullying often takes
place on the playground, in hallways, in lunchrooms, and other places where teachers are
not around. Teachers may also fail to take action: Even when they were judged to be
aware of bullying, they did not intervene in one out of four cases (Veenstra, 2014).
Proper education on the prevention of bullying for both students and teachers are almost
non-existing. There should be programs in the school system in order to educate students on
bullying. The responsibility shouldnt just be the teachers responsibility, but the school as a
whole community. The school environment should be safe and supportive for every student.
Students should have the freedom to express themselves without being scared of what others will
think of them.
Recent studies show that bullying is a serious and common problem, with many
children and adolescents in both Western and non-Western countries. Bullying is usually
defined as repeated, negative actions by one or more peers toward a person who cannot
defend himself or herself. To diminish the prevalence of bullying, numerous prevention
and intervention programs have been developed and implemented. Despite some
promising programs that have shown good outcomes, most of these initiatives have been
modest at best in their success and have produced moderate to low effect sizes. Part of the
reason for these small effects is that an adequately comprehensive model of the
development and maintenance of bullying behavior is lacking and important factors may
have been overlooked (Scholte, 2010). As previously stated, there are five different
types of bullying: physical, sexual, emotional, racial and cyberbullying. The five types of
bullying can be found everywhere. Anyone can be the victim of bullying, as well as
anyone being the bully.
The Bully
Anger can usually be seen as the base of bullying. jealousy, anger, frustration, personal
issues, or problems at home or outside of school. It is hard to think that children seek violence as
a solution to their problems.
There exists disagreement in the literature concerning the psychological
impacts of bullying on the aggressors. Findings found that youth who bully others
experienced the fewest psychological symptoms and tended to have higher status
in their peer groups than either targets or aggressor-targets. In the long-term,
youth who bully are at higher risk for abusing drugs and alcohol and dropping out
of school. It also appears that aggressive behavior early in life is linked to future
criminal activity, particularly for chronic offenders, while pre-adolescents who
engage in bullying behavior are at an increased risk for engaging in gang activity
during adolescence. Issues of power and aggression can have long-term impacts
as youth who bully are often involved in dating aggression and sexual harassment
during the adolescent years. Furthermore, studies have found that youth who
bullied others were more likely to have criminal convictions by age 30 while
those that drove had more traffic violations than did their peers who did not
engage in bullying behaviors (Pister, 2014). It is hard to believe that bullying can
cause such a huge issue and impact in not just the person being bullied, but also
the bully. Schools should focus on programs that help teachers find possible
techniques to use in their classroom to help students calm down and handle their
feelings and behavior.
On the other side, not all bullies bully because of anger or stress. Some just bully because
they enjoy bullying and the power. Bullying can be a form of building that persons self-esteem;
they bully because they enjoy it. In our society, power can be everything, and by having power
one may feel like anything can be accomplished. Power is just like greed, and nothing good may
come of it. Graham states that current research on bullying indicates the opposite viewthat
bullies have an inflated sense of self. Another myth that recent research dispels is the notion
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that no one likes a bully. Graham shows that not only are many bullies regarded highly by their
peers, but they also have many friends and enjoy popularity. Some students perceive bullies as
cool, and may even imitate them because of their admiration. Bullies are also less likely to
blame themselves for conflict with others and are more likely to blame their victims (Morgan,
2012).
The Bullied
A person who is bullied may face many challenges, and may not always go to an adult to
find a solution. Those who are bullied dont usually go to seek help from a teacher because of
fear. It is thought that teachers should be aware of everything that is going on in their classroom,
and should be able to seek unwanted behavior in their classroom. That is not the case though, a
teachers job is to educate his or her students, and provide a safe environment for their classroom
community. There are others such as councilors and the school principal who can assist in
stopping the issue. Students should feel safe, and be able to seek help from others without fear.
Youth who both target others and are bullied have been found to be the most profoundly
impacted by bullying situations. They tend to be the most marginalized group of students,
think that they are the least socially acceptable, and are the least popular amongst their
peers. Furthermore, the youth also display an array of psychological difficulties: they
have a greater likelihood of reporting loneliness and insecurity, exhibit greater degrees of
depression, and display conduct problems. In addition, they experience more academic
difficulties than do youth who are only either aggressors or targets of bullying. Youth
who are identified as both targets and aggressors view themselves as more inadequate
than do youth who only bully, are more anxious, have lower self-esteem, and are
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unhappier than either youth who only bully or are only targets. Youth who play both roles
are at an increased risk for developing subsequent psychiatric disorders and best fit the
profile for future violent offending (Pister, 2014). Students who are being bulled in
school dont enjoy school, and feel unsafe in it as well. Feeling unsafe in school is one of
the worst feelings ever. Schools are to make their students feel safe in their community; if
thats not the case, then students are not able to have a good school experience. More
importantly, students are not able to focus on their education because of the bad
experiences. This may lead to students not trusting teachers because they may believe
that the teacher or school is now aware of whats going on in the schools.
The Bystander
Throughout time, bullying has changed and evolved in so many ways. Not only has the
type of bullying changed, but there are others like the bystanders who are also now considered as
part of the bullying process when he or she doesnt take action when bullying is being witnessed.
The bystander is seen as the person who has the obligation to step in and defend the person who
is being bullied. Although defending defined as taking a stand on behalf of the victim by
directly stepping in, seeking help, or comforting the victimis a prosocial act, it carries social
risk because students who bully others are often perceived as popular among their classmates.
Because of the negative consequences victimization brings for individuals as well as for others
who witness victimization, it is critical to understand which factors spur, and which ones hinder,
bystanders to stand up for and defend victims (Peets, 2015).
Stepping in may be hard, but students need to understand that being brave and standing
up for others is necessary. Bullying needs to be stopped and not tolerated in schools. Because of
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the issue of bystanders being scared of the bully, or the fear that they themselves will be bullied
if they intervene, they will not do anything about what they have witnessed. Bystanders rarely
intervene in bullying situations and there are few or no consequences for the person who is doing
the bullying. Instead, the bully is rewarded for his or her actions through the reactions from peers
and the impact of the behavior on the target. In bullying situations, the aggressor is similar to
both the target(s) and bystanders in terms of age and peer group. Although there are differences
between the aggressor and the person who is being bullied, students who identify with the
aggressor are more likely to imitate the bullying behavior and act aggressively towards the
target (Pister, 2014).
Types of Bullying
Recent data on the number of students who are victims of bullying indicate that between
30 and 80 percent of students in schools reported being targets of peer victimization (Morgan,
2012, p. 174). As stated before, there are five types of bullying that can be categorized into their
own group. Physical bullying, emotional bullying, sexual bullying, racial bullying, and
cyberbullying are five of the most common types of bullying.
In the past, the most common type of bullying was physical bulling. Not much was done
when it came to physical bullying. Children were to toughen up and be a man, or fight back.
That was just a way of growing up, and was seen as a rite of passage for every child. Bullying
may be viewed as an inevitable part of growing up, but it is hurtful and debilitating for the
victims. Many eventually escape with only painful memories; for some, however, the repeated
slights, harassment, rejection, and sense of isolation lead to violence against themselves or
others. Heres how one fourth-grader expressed the feeling of frustration: I feel I always get
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picked on at school. I dont get included at all. People tell me I am going to hell. I get called
carrot top, loser, mentally retarded. I get so mad. I tell, and no one believes me. I cry, and still no
one believes me. Sometimes I really want to kill myself (Siris, 2004).
The first type of bullying would be sexual bullying. It has become another main issue
when it comes to bullying. Sexual bullying is a type of bullying and harassment that occurs in
connection with a person's sex or with sexual activity. It can be physical, verbal, or emotional.
When bullying behavior involves unwanted sexual comments, suggestions, advances, or threats
to another person, it's called sexual harassment or sexual bullying. Because of technology, sexual
harassment has become easier and more common. A snap of a picture, an image, or a text
message can be used to sexually harass someone. For example, if a rumor is spread throughout a
school about someones sexuality, then everyone will hear about the rumor, and then start more
rumors. The chain just keeps getting bigger and bigger. In this case, the only person affected
would be the person on who the rumor is about. This will most likely lower their self-stem, cause
trust issues, embarrassment, sadness, and anger. A full range of emotion can happen; as well as
actions.
Second, emotional bullying has then evolved from physical violence, and is also in a way
linked to physical violence. The nursery rhyme about how sticks and stone can break my bones,
but words may never hurt me has never been true. Words do hurt, and those words can then lead
into emotional issues. Harsh and mean words can hurt our self-esteem and confidence. In a
study of prospective teachers understanding of bullying it was found that interactions involving
physical aggression was labeled as bullying more often, viewed as more serious and considered
more worthy of intervention than verbal aggression. Boulton found that teachers tend to see more
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egregious behaviors such as physical assault and verbal threats as bullying, however, they did not
consider name calling, gossiping, or intimidating looks as bullying. In a study done by Bauman
and Del Rio, it was discovered that preservice teachers considered relational bullying to be less
serious than other forms of bullying. Considering the negative impact of relational aggression, it
is critical for teachers to be able to identify social and relational bullying as well as the more
overt and obvious forms of verbal and physical bullying (Allen, 2010). It is important to
understand that bullying can be presented in many ways, not just physically. Pain can be given
and received physically, mentally, and emotionally.
Racial bullying is the fourth type of bullying. Research finds that immigrant parents
highly value education and hold high educational expectations for their children. Some studies
have found that foreign born parents hold higher educational expectations for their children than
U.S.- born parents (Thao, 2009). Racial bullying is when a person uses another persons race or
skin color become a factor. It can by through making fun of a person, and racial discrimination.
Racism is a big issue throughout society, it can also be found in schools. Children who are
victimized by racial bullying have decreased ethnic self-esteem and global self-worth. In-group,
out-group processes such as in-group favoritism and out-group discrimination are related to peer
victimization. Because members of the majority group are less likely to be bullied by their own
members, they have a reduced risk of being discriminated against in general, by virtue of
membership in the largest group. Those in smaller groups do not have this advantage. Members
of the minority groups are more likely to be the target of discrimination because there are fewer
of them compared with majority groups (Schumann, 2013). Racism is a big issue; it is a learned
characteristic. People learn certain behaviors and pass it on. Racism can be a big issue in schools,
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especially when it comes to the minority. People have migrated to the United States to find a
better future for themselves and their family. Immigrant families come for freedom, better
education, and for a better life. No person should ever be discriminated by the way they look, or
because they are different. Schools teach about history and culture, and students should learn
how to value traditions and cultures.
The last type of bullying is cyberbullying. Cyberbullying is the use of electronic
communication to bully a person, typically by sending messages in an intimidating or threatening
manner. Technology is constantly changing, and are now more and more involved in everyday
personal life. There are many advantages with technology being incorporated in classrooms, but
there are also some disadvantages such as using programs to help students review lesson, gain
more knowledge, practice math or language arts, and having students learn how to properly use
search engines. People can be cruel and use technology for the wrong reasons. Electronic social
communication has provided a new context for children to bully and harass their peers and it is
clear that cyberbullying is a growing public health concern in the United States and abroad
(Christian, 2013).
Teachers Being Bullied
When people think of bullying, they usually think of a group of two or more students at
school. But in fact, bullying can happen anywhere, and to anyone. Teachers themselves can be
victims of bullying from students, parents, or coworkers. There have been many occasions where
people dont realize all of the hard work that teachers do, and think little of teachers. The lack of
respect towards teachers is surprising and very sad. Students nor parents have the respect for
teacher, or the understanding of what a teacher is. Thirty-five percent of school teachers say that
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they have been cyber bulliedand not just by their students, but by parents as well. Twelve
percent came from other staffers, while students carried out 72 percent of the abuse. Much of the
cyber-abuse came through students or others forming Facebook groups to denigrate a teacher.
Teachers also pointed to the site RateMyTeachers.com as a breeding ground for abusive
comments (Davis, 2011). Its amazing how students and parents can bully a teacher.
De Wet named students bullying behaviors toward teachers as educator targeted
bullying and defined it as an aggression directed against teachers, who are meant to be sources
of leaners social, cognitive, and emotional well-being and safety. He persistent and vigorous
abuse of teachers, ignoring teachers, swearing at or mocking teachers, gossiping about teacher,
and damaging teachers belongings can be included in the definition of students bullying toward
teacher. Researchers also stress the importance of power imbalance between bully and victim
(zkl, 2003). Teachers shouldnt have to be afraid of their own students. There should be
respect among the student, teacher, and any other staff. Schools are a workplace for teachers and
a learning environment for students; for this reason, schools should be a safe haven. Teachers
should not have to go in to their jobs fearing what could await them. It is important that teachers
feel safe within their work establishment. Not everyone would choose education as their chosen
career, we need to remember to show respect those who have. Education is a field chosen based
on the passion an individual has, not for its financial reasons.
Teachers who are being bullied can then face greater issues when it comes to teaching.
More recently in America, bullying toward teachers was examine from the viewpoint of
students. At the first stage of the research, 28.2% of the 2,300 students and at the second stage of
the research 16.3% of the 919 students stated that they had bullied their teachers. Additionally, in
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a qualitative research, De Wet concluded that students bullying toward teachers can have effects
on teachers personal lives, the teaching and learning process, and teachers relationships with
other individuals in society (zkl, 2003). When it comes to bullying in schools it is due to
how things are managed both at home and at schools. Research suggests that bullies and victims
tend to come from families where parenting is either passive or authoritarian, and that children
who come from homes where they have experienced authoritative parenting are less likely to be
involved in either bullying or victimization. The authoritative teacher is demonstrably in control
of the classroom environment, and has a clear agenda and purpose, while encouraging the
individual members of the class to develop their self-determination and independence within
reasonable boundaries. The authors claim that in classrooms that are managed in ways other than
with an authoritative style, a bullying culture can develop. A disruptive interaction between
teacher and student can sometimes trigger a chain of actions and reactions that spirals out of
control, leading to coercion, chaos, and damage (Allen, 2010).
Classroom Management
It is important for teachers to know what type of classroom management is best for them
and their students. Classroom management establishes rules and expectations for the classroom
in general. Research over the past few decades have consistently indicated that new teachers
feel unprepared when it comes to classroom management skills and that they are often
unprepared to function successfully in todays classrooms with regard to managing
administrative tasks, curriculum, and behavior problems (Allen, 2010). When classroom
management is done right, students respect their teacher, thus making bullying less frequently. It
is also said that over the years, teachers can experience a form of burnout feeling when
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teaching just gets old. This is when students tend to misbehave the most because they are aware
of the burnout and novice situation. During these situations, teachers should ask themselves what
is causing the bullying in the classroom, why, and if the bullying and misbehaving is connected
to the classroom management?
A narrow view of classroom management sees it primarily as discipline and
management of student misbehavior. However, successful teaching requires more than
controlling student behavior. According to Evertson and Harris, the meaning of the term
classroom management has changed from describing discipline practices and behavioral
interventions to serving as a more holistic descriptor of teachers actions in orchestrating
supportive learning environments and building community. Brophy echoed those
sentiments when he stated that the most successful teachers approach management as a
process of establishing and maintaining effective learning environments. Finally,
Larrivee noted that classroom management is a critical ingredient in the three-way mix
of effective teaching strategies, which includes meaningful content, powerful teaching
strategies, and an organizational structure to support productive learning. Successful
teachers employ strategies for establishing rules and procedures, organizing groups,
monitoring and pacing classroom events, and reacting to misbehavior, and when done
well, it looks seamless, even invisible. Despite an understanding that classroom
management is a complex set of skills that includes much more than being able to
influence and control student behavior, there remains an overall impression that
classroom management is primarily about discipline (Allen, 2010).
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The type of school environment, whether it be positive or negative, can have a

tremendous effect on a teachers classroom management style. Teachers may not always know
how to handle a certain situation, or in many occasion, what they are doing wrong. There is a
line of research that developed a profile of the classroom context that makes it virtually
impossible to create the type of positive learning environment. Mayer enumerated the variables
that appear to contribute to punitive school environments that promote antisocial behavior:
1. an over-reliance on punitive methods of control
2. unclear rules for student deportment
3. lack of administrative support for staff, little staff support of one another, and a lack of
staff agreement with policies
4. academic failure experiences
5. students lacking critical social skills that form the basis of doing well academically and
relating positively to others, such as persistence on task, complying with requests,
paying attention, negotiating differences, handling criticism and teasing
6. a misuse of behavior management procedures
7. lack of student involvement
8. lack of understanding or appropriate responding to student differences (Allen, 2010).
When teachers realize what they are doing wrong in their classroom, or consider their classroom
management, things can change for the better. Classroom procedures, rules, and a positive
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environment can make a big change. Teachers and students need to be respectful towards each
other in order to build and maintain a good relationship.
Teacher as a Bully
Just like students can bully teachers, teachers can also be bullies towards students as well.
The media can portray teachers in very negative ways. Teachers are usually portrayed as people
with money issues, emotionless, and mean. There is always a student who will believe that their
teacher doesnt like them, but that may not be the whole story. Despite not wanting to see
teachers as bullies, there are teachers who can behave like bullies towards their students. As
previously mentioned, bullying isnt always physical; it can be emotional and racial bullying as
well. Differences in race, gender, or sexual orientation need not limit a teachers ability to make
a connection with a young person. In my own work with students and schools, I have generally
found kids to be the least prejudiced of all people. They tend to respond well to caring adults
regardless of what they look like (Sadowski, 2013).
In many occasion, teachers may not always know that they are bullying their students.
Four common ways that teachers may unintentionally bully students are through sarcasm,
opaque name calling, refusing late or unidentified work, and humiliating future students whom
they perceive as having potential behavioral problems in the classroom (Sylvster, 2010). During
my classes and when discussing about how to make proper connection or relationships with
students we are always advised not to use sarcasm. Sarcasm may be a fun way to make other
laugh, but not everyone is able to understand sarcasm. Sarcasm is very likely to hurt peoples
feelings, demoralize, and insult the students. Giving students nick-names may cause students to
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lose trust, and dislike their teacher later on their future. Another form of teacher bullying would
be, teachers not taking students work, teachers are stating that even though the students work
hard to finish the assignment, that it doesnt matter. If the procedure on handing in late work
wasnt established during the beginning of the year, then students were not aware. The work
should be taken and grading under this circumstance. Teachers could take a couple of points off
because of the late assignment, and students should also state a reason on why the assignment
was late. Humiliations should never be used as a method to teach a student that they are wrong.
Humiliating students should never be acceptable in the classroom. Teachers shouldnt humiliate
students who have behavioral issues. This may lead to more issues, and low self-esteem. When
bullying is ignored, administrators are tacitly sanctioning a teacher's bad behavior and
mistreatment of students. Children may attempt to seek help from their parents, and although
some parents may confront the teacher, others are less likely to do so because they (a) feel
intimidated or inferior due to their socioeconomic status or level of education; (b) may be from a
culture where teaching is held in high esteem and would be unlikely to question overtly the
teacher's conduct, expectations, or methods of classroom management; or (c) are uninvolved in
their children's school life (Sylvester, 2010). Thus, meaning that teachers
Summary
Thus, bullying may come in many forms. Bullying can be either physical, emotional,
social, racial, or through cyberbullying. Its hard to face that bullying has become an everyday
thing in schools. Every school has bullies, but we know that by establishing expectations,
setting the tone, and monitoring behaviors, we can minimize their influence (Hoerr, 2013).
School should be a place where everyone feels safe, and not victimized. By creating a safe
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school environment, students wouldnt have to worry, or be scared of what could happen while
theyre at school. Teachers should know how to handle all situations when it comes to putting a
complete stop to bullying. Bullying should not be tolerated in schools, and schools should have a
program to help their school be a no bullying safe zone for each and every one of their students
and staff. Even when teachers witness clear cases of bullying, they are often reluctant to
intervene either because they feel unprepared to respond effectively or because they are not sure
if the victimized students would welcome their help. Thus, although teachers are likely to
intervene when they feel the bullying is serious, in many cases, they are not likely to intervene
unless students approach them directly for help (Cortes, 2014).
Classroom management is also very important as well as the classroom climate. School
climate is based on patterns of peoples experience of school life and reects norms, goals,
values, interpersonal relationships, teaching, learning, leadership practices, and organizational
structures (Espelage, 2014). By establishing good classroom management, teachers are able to
establish their classroom procedures. A form of respect and admiration can be made from the
students towards the teachers. Its important for teachers to understand that they have the power
of their students future. A teachers job is to education each and every one of his or her students.
Its hard to understand how teachers could become the victims of bullying. Students are
not the only one who can be bullied in a school environment. No one should have to deal with
the disrespect of others; let alone be in constant fear of someone hurting you. No one should be
treated wrongly, or be taken advantage of. By building positive relationships, good classroom
management, and procedures with students; teachers could eliminate bullying in their classroom.
On the other hand, teachers may not always be the victims of bullying. Teachers themselves
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could be the bully towards students. Teachers may not always realize that they are hurting their
students feelings with jokes, nicknames, or sarcasm. Being funny can build friendships with
people, but it should be taken seriously and not lightly. Not everyone is able to understand
sarcasm, and it can lead to issues between people.
Bullying can be very damaging for everyone, and it should be taken seriously. Schools
should provide programs that teach students that the school is a bully free zone. Schools need to
create a positive safe environment where students are not scared or dreading of going to school
every day. Teachers should also create a safe community for each and every one of their students.
Bullying has many major effects in the classroom because of the many different types of
bullying, teachers being bullied by parents and students, and teachers as bullies.
Method
Design
Both quantitative and qualitative research methodology will be used within this
research. Quantitative data will involve teachers experience and descriptions regarding bullying,
whether it may be regarding their students or their personal life. Qualitative data will tell more
information as far as the teachers personal feelings toward bullying.
Population
The participants of this research will include a wide diversity of teachers. These
teachers will be from different grade levels; some having more than one grade level experience
throughout their career. Their positions also very, some teachers have only been in the general
education classroom and others may have gone from teachers to principals or administrators.
24
Teachers will also have a different amount of teaching years on them. Some have over two
decades of experience, while others have been teaching for only one year.
Another difference among the teacher that may have an effect on their response may
be the fact that there will be both male and female students. Having the younger and older
generation of teachers as well as female and male teachers are factors that are expected to bring
several different insights when it comes to experiences and personal beliefs regarding the topic.
These teachers will be asked to participate at their own interest.
Data Collection
Data for this research will be conducted through an online survey. The survey consists
of a total of seven questions for teachers; six were open-ended questions and one was a closeended question. The open-ended questions were designed to allow the teachers share as much of
their experience(s) as they wish to do so. During the month of March, the researchers will give
teachers who consider participating access to the online survey. This link was given to any and
all educational professionals who are known to be or have been a part of the educational system.
Analysis of Data
The data of this research will be collected through the online responses of the
participants. Researchers will find common characteristics between the responses of the
participants. This may include the differences of experiences between those newer and older
generation of teachers. Researchers will also determine the severity of bullying at different age
stages; different teachers will have worked with different school-aged children. Another aspect to
take into consideration is the many methods teachers take to deal with this issue in their careers.
25
This information will be presented through media presentation in front of college students and
staff during Scholars Day.
Limitations
A limitation that arose through the research is the amount of time given to a wide
variety of teachers to complete this survey. Misunderstanding of the questions may also provide
a limitation.
Results
Within analyzing our data, we came up with five themes that seemed to be the most
important. We then categorized our results into each theme. The five themes that were found
were society, behavioral, social-emotional bullying, students, and communication-support.
During our research we wanted to determine the definition of bullying; one that would be
common for all of our participants. According to a local district handbook, bullying is defined as
any ongoing pattern of written or verbal expression, electronic abuse, physical acts, or gestures
intended to cause distress upon one or more students. However, when one of the participants
discussed their responses personally, another issue came up.
The issue that was brought up was the concept of teasing, arguing, and bullying. One
participant in particular claimed that it was very important to fully understand the importance of
knowing the difference between each subject. As said by the participant, arguing is something
that is natural occurring. Kids, even adults, will many times have some arguments. As human
beings, we all have our different views and opinions on different issues. Arguing is something
that is completely normal.
26
Teasing is something that may be difficult to fully understand. Teasing can be a normal
occurring thing as well; especially when it is done between friends and all parties are aware that
it is done in a PLAYFUL manner. Teasing between friends should not be considered as bullying.
However, when said teasing no longer seems as being playful by all parties and is constant, then
it can be considered as bullying. Consistency is another key aspect when referring to the different
between playful teasing and bullying.
I think that it happens, but too often, behavior that is typical of children is given the
label of being bullying, when it is not. This is a quote from one of our participants. The first
theme that we came upon was society. With this quote we analyzed that the participant was
referring to the overuse of the word bullying. Society often looks to any negative behavior from
one student to another as bullying, when this is not always the case.
Another issue of society that we faced was the responsibility that is placed on the
teachers. Often times teachers are given the full responsibility to deal with bullying on their own.
Parents are thought to believe that teachers should be able to handle all and any type of bullying
on their own. Again, this is not the case. Our participants saw it important and essential to have
the help and support from parents, other administration, and even students themselves.
Behavior was the second theme that came up within our research. We categorized
students characteristics that would then place them in one or another form of bullying. The main
behaviors we saw were cyber-bullying, physical bullying, social bullying, and emotional
bullying; we decided to then combine social and emotional as one.
27
Cyber-bullying is the misuse of any sort of technology to harm other students. This
could include texts via cellphones or the use of the Internet to spread rumors or cause any other
type of distress. Our participants did mention the use of social media; many students today are
now using social media, not always for positive reasons. Physical bullying is another form of
bullying as well. This could include hitting, pushing, punching or any other sort of physical
contact used to hurt another student.
Like stated, when we looked at the social and emotional bullying we combined them
into one. This is for the reason that within our survey along with other research, we found out
that one can lead to the other. One interesting fact that we saw in our survey was that social
bullying could begin at a very young age. One of our participants explained that the I do not
want to be your friend has been seen in the youngest grade of Kindergarten. Another participant
mentioned that they often see exclusion as part of social bullying, more common among girls.
This brought out the fact that social bullying is also associated with emotional bullying.
Emotional bullying is harming others by hurting them mentally or emotionally.
Students needed to be a complete separate theme. We decided to express how boys and
girls use bullying different. Based on our result we noticed that there was a difference among
bullying within boys and girls. Boys tend be more physical violent, while on the other hand girls
tend to be more rational. Boys are also targets of violent and threatening behaviors. Girls tend to
use gossip, rumors, and social exclusion behaviors as a form of bullying. Bullying is seen more
within boys due to their violent behavior than in girls.
Based on our results, communication and support seemed to be the best solution towards
solving issues within bullying. We the researchers believe that students, parents, teachers, and
28
staff should all communicate with each other for support. By communicating with each other, we
are able to better handle the issue of bullying. One participant in particular stated how important
it is to be more proactive rather than reactive. By coming up with solutions that will actually help
the student rather than just warning and punishing the child. For example, there needs to be a
proper plan and solution to solve the issue. Instead of putting the bullying in the PAC room,
suspending, or expelling the child.
Conclusion
The researchers plan to use this information not only during their own future career,
but also intend to help other new-coming teachers present at Scholars Day. Bullying is a major
concern for students, parents, and teachers; the results of this research will give new generation
teachers a better insight of this issue.
Appendix I
Interview Protocol
29
1. What do you think about bullying in the classroom?

2. Are you currently teaching or have you taught in the past? For how many years?
3.
4.
5.
6.
7.
Have you held any other position besides teaching in the education department?
Describe any bullying incidents you have experienced in your classroom?
How have you dealt with them?
How effective was this?
Have you, as a teacher, ever been a victim of bullying?
How did you deal with it?
APPENDIX II
Consent Form
Consent to Participate in Research
Spring, 2016
30
Bulling in Our Educational System

Jaquelin Chavez
Phone number: (402)-321-1627
Email: jchavez83@csm.edu
Belen Muro
Phone number: (402)- 378-6313
Email: bmuro6357@csm.edu
Thank you for agreeing to participate in this study which will take place during the month of
March, a one-time survey.
The purpose of this study is:
1. To fulfill a course requirement for EDU 496, Reasearch Seminar taught by Dr.
Merryellen Towey Schulz at College of Saint Mary.
2. To gain insight and experience in the topic of bullying.
The methods to be used to collect information for this study are explained below.
(describe your methods briefly here use a small font and try to keep it to one page)
We will use the information from this study to write a report and present the findings at the CSM
Scholars Day, April 30th. This report will be read by the course instructor and other students in
the class.
We guarantee that the following conditions will be met:
1. Your real name will not be used at any point of information collection, or in the written
report; instead, you and any other person and place names involved in the study will be
given pseudonyms that will be used in all verbal and written records and reports.
31
2. If you grant permission for audio or video recording, no recordings will be used for any
purpose other than to complete this study, and will not be played for any reason other
than to complete this study. These recordings will be destroyed upon completion of the
project.
3. Your participation in this research is voluntary; you have the right to withdraw at any
point of the study, for any reason, and without any prejudice, and the information
collected and records and reports written will be turned over to you.
4. You will receive a copy of the report that is submitted to the instructor.
Completion of this survey confirms your agreement to participate in the study.
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