Bullying Website from the State Department

I received the following email (in italics) on Wednesday. It is about a new website the state department created to provide parents, educators, and students with information on bullying and how to prevent it. You've probably noticed that "bullying" has become a big buzzword in education and a great deal of attention, literature, and training has focused on it. My classroom lessons at all grade levels emphasize respect and treating peers appropriately, and the book we read school-wide about bucket-filling makes reference to bully behavior. Bullying specifically is part of our county's second grade counseling curriculum, and will be the topic of a lesson next semester.

One definition of bullying is offered below, but another catchy one I learned in my old school district is "Bullying happens when someone with more power hurts someone with less power on purpose over and over again."  Bullying can hurt people's bodies, feelings, friendships, or property/belongings. I have a few lists of strategies to use against bullies- if you'd ever like me to send a copy home with your child, please let me know. One of my favorite strategies to teach classes is to include everyone. I like that idea because all kids can do it. It does not require bravery, or put students at risk of getting hurt if they try to stand up to a bully. And, if we did more of it, it would prevent a lot of bullying before it ever started! The idea is that the kids likely to bully or be victimized would be accepted, included, and surrounded by other kids who could witness and report disrespectful actions.

If you're looking for further information, check out the website below. Allan L. Beane has also written some excellent books on the subject.

The Alabama Department of Education (ALSDE) announces the release of the Stop Bullying in Alabama website to provide students, parents, teachers and school administrators a variety of resources to help combat bullying in Alabama’s schools. On December 1, these supportive resources will be made available on the award-winning Alabama Learning Exchange (ALEX) www.alex.state.al.us, at no cost to educators, students, or parents.

Bullying in Alabama’s schools is a serious issue that cannot be ignored. Bullying occurs when a person is exposed, repeatedly and over time, to negative actions on the part of one or more other persons, and has difficulty defending him or herself.

Dr. Yvette Richardson, Alabama State Board of Education member for District IV is taking the lead in this statewide campaign to stop bullying in educational settings and online. “No child in our schools should ever feel scared or demeaned for any reason. It is up to adults to help them respond to bullying when it occurs, and also to take every step to ensure it does not occur in the first place,” said Richardson.

She appeared on Fox 6’s, “What’s Right with Our Schools” program recently outlining the plan to put an end to bullying in Alabama’s schools. Richardson is currently leading a task force assembled by ALSDE that includes teachers, parents and community leaders from a variety of Alabama agencies and organizations. The goal of this task force is to help implement Alabama's Student Harassment Prevention Act, signed into law in 2009.

In addition to passing a law against bullying in our schools, and requiring schools to incorporate board-approved anti-bullying policies to combat these startling statistics, ALSDE designed the Stop Bullying in Alabama website. The ALEX website will feature a variety of resources for parents, teachers, administrators, and students all designed to stop bullying in Alabama. School administrators who set up an account through the Administrator section can opt for a free service that is available to create an anonymous “Report a Bully” button that can be displayed on school websites for students to use. Model policy guides to implement a bully-free school plan will also be available.

Bullying can take many forms, including physical, verbal, indirect, social alienation, intimidation and the newest form, cyber bullying. Stopcyberbullying.org defines cyberbullying as when a child, preteen or teen is tormented, threatened, harassed, humiliated, embarrassed or otherwise targeted by another child, preteen or teen using the Internet, interactive and digital technologies or mobile phones.

The Cyberbullying Research Center states that 20% of students report experiencing cyberbullying in their lifetime. A 2009 survey by the Associated Press and MTV showed that 50% of young people aged 14-24 have experienced “digitally abusive behavior.”

With a video introduction by Richardson, the Stop Bullying in Alabama website will be available free to all Alabama residents. The Stop the Bullying in Alabama website will be prominently featured on the award-winning ALEX (Alabama Learning Exchange) website, which attracts 120,000 monthly visitors. To view the website, go to http://alex.state.al.us/stopbullying/.

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