Building Community

Abdul and Bullying

By Chantal, Kim, Tami, Charisse and Wendy

Information about Abdul:

While Abdul is at school, he has been experiencing bullying because he has to wear a hearing
aid in order to hear properly. The bullying has caused Abdul to remove his hearing aid which will
ultimately result in the inaccuracy of spoken words to him.

How to help the child that is being bullied?

Abdul and Self-Advocacy:

Being self-aware which will help him better understand why he feels they way he does. Abdul
should also learn how to be assertive, which means that he should learn how to respectfully
speak his mind. Having knowledge in regards to people who are also hard of hearing in Canada
and throughout the world will allow Abdul to realize that he is not alone in his situation. Abdul
should also understand the severity of his own hearing loss as well as be conscience of his
communicational needs. Abdul should also have access to organizations that specialize in
children who are hard of hearing.
Pros: There are many lifelong benefits in when helping a student like Abdul become a strong self-
advocate. Starting while Abdul is a younger student will help him develop into a confident person
and he will hopefully be able to pursue his dreams more easily than if he was more reserved.

Cons: I think that the only con would be that the path an educator would have to take to help a
student like Abdul become a self-advocate is different. There are different needs that need to be
met, and teachers need to make sure they become familiar with these facts.

How to help the child that bullies?

Barbara Coloroso (2002) suggests 7 steps in dealing with the child who bullies. This set of steps
has been chosen because of its effectiveness in dealing immediately with an act of bullying
through discipline but it also provides steps for helping a child who bullies with overcoming that
behaviour. It allows the child to understand what he/she is doing wrong and more importantly
helps change the attitudes and develops empathy, a trait that is normally missing from a child
who bullies.

The seven steps are:

1. Intervene immediately with discipline (not punishment) – shows what he has

done wrong, gives him ownership of the problem, gives him a process for solving
the problem – restitution, resolution, reconciliation, leaves his dignity intact.
2. Create opportunities to do good – helps him to notice and care about others and
realize that he is important and nurtures his ability to empathize with others.
3. Nurture empathy
4. Teach friendship skills
5. Closely monitor child’s TV viewing, video game playing, computer and music
6. Engage in more constructive, entertaining, and energizing activities
7. Teach your child to “will good” – to develop an inner voice that allows him/her to
discern between what is right and what is wrong and then to act on what is right.

How to help the bystanding peers of the child who is being bullied?
According to the Region of Peel Public Health Department a bystander should:
Know the 3 R’s of dealing with bullying:
• Recognize bullying behaviour
• Refuse to be bullied and
• Report bullying behaviour.
This approach can be used by both students who are being bullied and those who witness
bullying. Along with intervention strategies, prevention strategies can be used to refuse
bullying. (i.e. stay away from bullies, don’t play alone and act confident).

Davis (2007) states that teachers can help bystanders take action by:

• Helping them see that their silence makes aggressive students more powerful and
contributes to the harm done to the target
• Model positive behaviour for them through our own actions
• Protect them from retaliation
• Encourage them to tell adults about the cruel behaviour they see
• Help them find ways to reach out in friendship to targets of bullying and isolated peers.

How can we insure a safe and caring community in our classroom?

In order for teachers to ensure a safe and caring community in the classroom, teachers need to
know what to look for. "Bullying occurs when a child or group of children take advantage of the
power they have to hurt or reject someone else" (Trautman, 2003).

Pros and cons of using a classroom approach:

Pros:
• Teachers can have whole-class discussions with the students about what bullying is and
what to do when bullying occurs
• Teachers are able to tell the students directly that bullying will not be tolerated
• Students are able to participate actively by learning about bullying through skits and role-
play
• Teachers are creating a safe environment within the classroom
Cons:
• In some cases, teachers may call out students who are being bullying or students who
bully
• If only using a classroom approach - teachers do not intervene with the situation at hand
and therefore does not address what has happened.
• What may apply in the classroom may be lost when on the playground

Who is involved in awhole-school approach to stop bullying and what are the benefits?
In regards to whole-school approaches, Beane (2009) explains that bullying prevention programs
also seek “to create peaceable, caring environments in which students and adults feel
psychologically, emotionally, and physically safe and all adults and students model self-control,
acceptance of others, kindness, empathy, and respect”.
Benefits to using whole-school approaches:
• All students learn that bullying in their school will not be tolerated at all (part of
school philosophy).
• All staff/school personnel deal with bullying issues in similar ways which follow
consistent, clear policies and procedures.
• Prevention strategies using the whole school approach helps to reduce bullying
incidents in the school as a whole.
• Students are actively involved in helping keep their school safe, respectful, and
caring.
• Everyone in the school community works together to ensure a safe and caring
school community. Everyone's role is equally important.