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A new approach

Posted October 15, 2015 11:00 pm

By Pete Spitler Staff Writer

As part of a new statewide approach to bullying, Chester Grade School hosted an anti-bullying presentation on Wednesday for parents that was sponsored by Human Support Services.

Anne King, chief program officer at HSS, outlined new tactics of combating bullying by - in part - establishing a comprehensive, yet simple, plan for students to report incidents of bullying behavior quickly.

"We are educating what reporting is opposed to tattling," said CGS Principal Tim Lochhead in a follow-up interview on Thursday. "We have Stop, Walk and Talk. Tell them to stop, walk away from it and talk to someone about it."

Both Lochhead and King said the approach is not a change in policy, but rather a means of educating and empowering students on what they can do to stop bullying.

"We still have the same consequences and discipline that we do," Lochhead said. "There are boxes and you can make reports in every room if there's an issue.

"We have committee members who are picking these up on a daily basis and are addressing them. They could be anonymous or they could not be."

Lochhead said he feels awareness is a big proponent to changing behavior and heightening the awareness of bullying is having a positive effect.

"The staff is part of that education because all of that protocol is reinforced in the classroom," Lochhead said. "It's not just the classroom itself, but also from the administrative and social work aspects."

In King's presentation, bullying was defined as "when he or she is exposed, repeatedly and over time, to negative actions on the part of one or more persons, and he or she has difficulty defending himself or herself."

King said research shows between 65 percent and 85 percent of children are not directly involved in bullying, but rather are bystanders. A slide during the presentation identified the need to empower bystanders and witnesses to report the behavior.

"Reporting is to keep someone safe," said King, explaining the difference between "reporting" and "tattling." "Yourself or someone else."

The presentation also identified a myth that children who bully suffer from low self-esteem and insecurity, and pick on others to make themselves feel important.

King, who stated research shows bullies exhibit average to above-average self-esteem, said lack of empathy and poor parenting also play a factor.

"Bullies are looking for control and they rarely stop if the behavior is ignored," she said.

For parents, King listed three techniques:

• Learn about what is happening at your child's school.

• Participate in efforts to banish bullying behavior at school.

• Talk to your child about their experiences in and out of school and encourage them to talk to their teachers about it as well.

One of the parents in attendance at the presentation asked what CGS's policy was of notifying parents of bullying behavior.

"If the severity is bad enough, you will get a call," Lochhead said. "If it's physical, you will get a call."

"If you have any indication there is something going on, inform the teacher so they can watch out for it," he added.

One of the presentation's suggestions was rechanneling the power behind the behavior instead of suppressing it, including creating activities in which the affected child can "lead."

"Pro-social consequences work best, rather than traditional detentions," said a slide, which suggested pairing up an older child with a younger or having the child volunteer in school activities.

"It's all about communication and what I like about this is the approach," Lochhead said after the presentation. "It gives kids more tools they didn't have before."

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