What Can You Do?
 

Parents

  • Set a good example at home.
  • Work with your child on social skills. (i.e. assertiveness, awareness, respect for self and others, conflict resolution, boundary setting)
  • Collaborate with Teachers and Schools
  • Collect as much information about incidents as possible before responding.

 

Schools

  • Enforce positive inclusion. Being left out for reasons that have nothing to do with behavior is unacceptable.
  • Create a sphere of safety. Be available and listen.
  • Educate about responsible internet use.
  • Encourage student body to create an anti-bullying campaign.
  • Create bullying awareness programs for students, teachers, and parents.
  • Encourage peer mentoring.

Communities

  • Change social norms around bullying.
  • Seek out local support for bullying prevention.
  • Adults must be willing to address bullying wherever it happens.
  • Form a community based prevention group made up of leaders from many different disciplines.
  • Coordinate and integrate with other related efforts.
  • Provide training in bullying prevention and response.
  • Organize a community event to develop a call to action and mobilize the community.
 

As part of our continuing series "Assignment America," Steve Hartman takes a look at bullying in America, and speaks to a victim of bullying - and the bullier, who has had a change of heart.