School bullying

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Vodcast Six Issues with parents and evaluating
anti-bullying work
School Bullying
Dr Ken RigbyConsultant
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The concerns of parents

• Increasingly parents have become concerned about
  the problem of bullying, especially when it
  involves their own child
• Many want to be assured that the school is taking
  the matter seriously and there are effective
  procedures to deal with cases of bullying

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Proactive work with parents

• As far as possible involve parents in the
  development of anti-bullying policy
• Enable them to make a contribution for example
  through answering questionnaires about bullying
• Ensure that each parent has a copy of the
  schools anti-bullying policy, and relevant
  information on bullying appears on the schools
  website
• Inform them through newsletters of relevant
  developments in the school, especially actions
  being taken to educate students about bullying
• Invite parents to meetings to discuss issues of
  esteem, eg, problems associated with cyber
  bullying

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Involving parents in addressing bullying

• Not all bullying need involve parents. With low
  level bullying the school is in loco parentis.
• With serious cases of bullying normally parents
  need to be involved.
• Parents of children suspected of bullying and
  parents whose children have been bullied raise
  different issues.

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Working with parents of children who have engaged
in bullying

• Contact the parents and arrange a meeting
• View the matter as a problem over which close
  collaboration is needed
• Avoid any suggestion that questions their childs
  character
• Explain how the school is handling the matter and
  seek the parents support
• Emphasise that the schools action is in accord
  with agreed school rules

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Working with parents whose child has been bullied

• Recognise that the anger and (often) critical
  tone of the parent is understandable and avoid
  being counter-aggressive
• Listen carefully and supportively and obtain
  as much information about the bullying as the
  parent can provide
• Explain that the school will need time to
  investigate the matter further but that the
  parent will be informed of what happens
• Although the parent may insist upon a particular
  course of action, make it clear that the school
  will act in accordance with its publicised
  anti-bullying policy (as endorsed by the parent)
  

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Common mistakes

• Suggesting that the parent of the victim
  discusses the matter with the parent of the
  bully. Usually disastrous.
• Not contacting the parent of the victim to check
  on the outcomes of the intervention
• Not recognising the possibility that the victim
  may have been provocative and the bullys
  parents may have some reasonable concerns.

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For parents wanting help

• Recommend literature or courses that are helpful
  in promoting the kind of parenting that makes
  bullying less likely

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Evaluation

• There are two matters that may concern a school
  wanting to evaluate its work to counter bullying
• (i) Whether the policy or program has led to a
  reduction in bullying
• (ii) Whether actual interventions with cases of
  bullying have been effective

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Evaluating policies/programs

• First seek to discover how well the policy or
  program was implemented
• This means systematically asking questions of
  staff members
• Decide whether the implementation was
• (i) really thorough
• (ii) only partly implemented
• (iii) implemented hardly at all

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Assessing the nature and degree of change brought
about by the policy/program

• This can only be done validly by obtaining
  estimates of the prevalence of the bullying
  before and after the implementation and comparing
  the changes with that found in a control group
• Often it is best to invite an external person or
  organisation with appropriate skills and
  objectivity, eg., a University looking for a
  project to evaluate

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Evaluating interventions with cases

• For each case addressed, record its nature
• eg. how severe mode of bullying
• eg. verbal, physical, indirect, cyber, some or
  all of these.
• How prolonged?
• Whether there was group involvement age, gender,
  ethnicity
• Describe the method or methods of intervention
  actually used
• Rate the success of the outcome as
• (i) the bullying stopped
• (ii) the bullying got less severe
• (iii) there was no change
• (iv) things got worse for the victim

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Evaluating interventions with cases continued

• In rating the outcome, obtain data from
  interviews with the victim and with the bully or
  bullies, and then, if practicable, from
  bystanders, teachers and parents
• Repeat the inquiry a month or so later to see
  whether the situation has altered
• Make a recommendation as to the effectiveness of
  the intervention as carried out in relation to
  the kind of case and factors involved

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Questions

• What level of collaboration exists at your school
  between parents and staff in preventing and
  addressing problems of bullying? Suggest ways it
  could be improved.
• What do you think your school could do
  realistically to evaluate efforts to reduce
  bullying?

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