Anti Bullying Law

[sgtbaker]

As I've come to learn, many states are requiring school districts to adopt and anti bullying laws. It's pretty interesting to see how far we've come from the handwaiving, kids will be kids policy. The process in this district is a zero tolerance policy. The victim must address the complaint with the principal. The principal takes the accused aside and let's them know that there is an unofficial complaint against them. If the accused commits one more act of bullying/harassment towards the same victim, the situation is reported to the state and it becomes an official investigation. Both sets of parent are called to the school where they are present for the students questioning and each student must make an official statement. From this point, if the accused is found to actually be committing acts of bullying/harassment, the response varies from; removal of accused student from any and all classes shared with the victim (in all cases), to required therapy for both parties, to expulsion of offending student. They are labeling it as interfering with a students right to learn.

I have to admit; it's bizarre to see such typically adult phrases like imbalance of power, official complaint, and sexual harassment being used with students in grade school but by the same respect, I can't help but think it's about time.

Thoughts?

 

[Cleon]

It's the same "zero-tolerance" **** that was so big in the 1990s. It didn't do much to stop school shootings and led to things like kids being suspended for bringing Tylenol or nail clippers to school.

I wonder how long it will be before we start hearing stories about students abusing the system by accusing other kids of "bullying" them. Talk about irony.

 

[sgtbaker]

It's the same "zero-tolerance" **** that was so big in the 1990s. It didn't do much to stop school shootings and led to things like kids being suspended for bringing Tylenol or nail clippers to school.

I wonder how long it will be before we start hearing stories about students abusing the system by accusing other kids of "bullying" them. Talk about irony.

No, trust me; at least around here it's not the same old thing.

 

[Lisa Simpson]

Where is this?

 

[Psi Baba]

I wonder how long it will be before we start hearing stories about students abusing the system by accusing other kids of "bullying" them. Talk about irony.

You beat me to it. That was my exact reaction to this brilliant strategy. Kids will always find a way to turn things upside and use policies for the exact opposite purpose of which they were intended.

My suggestion is to round up the bullies, tie their arms to the wall, and let their victims have at them. That will end the bullying real quick. I'm dead serious.

 

[sgtbaker]

I do that all the time and I am sorry; I shouldn't assume that everyone lives in the states. I live in Florida, though.

 

[iknownothing]

A lot of bullying is too slippery to be policed that way. Verbal bullying, exclusion, rumors, etc. -- hard for the adult to pin down what really happened and who's to blame. I don't see this being any help.

Also, there's a lot of potential for adults to misunderstand any given situation and punish unfairly. If a kid's been getting hit, tripped, pushed, etc., and finally one day finally hits back, but that's the one time the teacher is walking by and sees it, then that kid will get punished and labeled as a bully.

 

[sgtbaker]

You beat me to it. That was my exact reaction to this brilliant strategy. Kids will always find a way to turn things upside and use policies for the exact opposite purpose of which they were intended.

My suggestion is to round up the bullies, tie their arms to the wall, and let their victims have at them. That will end the bullying real quick. I'm dead serious.

They have, in our school, RIP or Non-RIP cases. RIP cases are when the victim has corroborating witness', whether it be a teacher, a parent, written abuse, of something of a concrete nature. That being said, non RIP cases have a much deeper investigation policy. In cases where there are student witness' they have each student independantly write what they saw and if all of the stories are consistant with the accused it becomes a part of the investigation.

I have to go back and agree that there is a chance of the system being abused, but that's the case with adults as well. There will always be a risk of abuse but the alternative is not working out so well. Weren't at least, a few of the school shooting cases a response to years of bullying (that's a question, not a fact)?

 

[sgtbaker]

A lot of bullying is too slippery to be policed that way. Verbal bullying, exclusion, rumors, etc. -- hard for the adult to pin down what really happened and who's to blame. I don't see this being any help.

Also, there's a lot of potential for adults to misunderstand any given situation and punish unfairly. If a kid's been getting hit, tripped, pushed, etc., and finally one day finally hits back, but that's the one time the teacher is walking by and sees it, then that kid will get punished and labeled as a bully.

No, it has to be multiple complaints against the same student. They are trying to prevent situations like that so a student never feels backed into a corner.

 

[TragicMonkey]

Well, it's worth a try. Maybe it'll prevent some suicides and school shootings.

 

[Spindrift]

What is the definition of an act of "bullying/harassment"?

Why do people think "zero tolerance policies" are such a good idea? They make it easier for those who are responsible and are supposed to make such decisions avoid having to really make a decision. They often have unintended consequences such as expelling kids for having an aspirin or bringing a dinner knife to cut their lunch.

Unfortunately childhood is one long series of bullying and harassment. As someone who was often bullied (I was skinny, smart, a smart-ass and I wore black rimmed glasses). I would not have wanted most of the people doing the harassing punished severely if at all. There were a couple exceptions. However the blowback from being the squealer would have led to total ostracization. (Is that a word?)

Bullying is horrible, there were days I dreaded recess, so I applaud efforts to reduce it. But childhood dynamics are very complex and trying to use adult sensibilities when dealing with such issues can cause more problems.

 

[Emet]

Who knew? According to this website, 45/50 US states have a law:

http://www.bullypolice.org/

(I haven't looked at the site in detail)

 

[Cainkane1]

As I've come to learn, many states are requiring school districts to adopt and anti bullying laws. It's pretty interesting to see how far we've come from the handwaiving, kids will be kids policy. The process in this district is a zero tolerance policy. The victim must address the complaint with the principal. The principal takes the accused aside and let's them know that there is an unofficial complaint against them. If the accused commits one more act of bullying/harassment towards the same victim, the situation is reported to the state and it becomes an official investigation. Both sets of parent are called to the school where they are present for the students questioning and each student must make an official statement. From this point, if the accused is found to actually be committing acts of bullying/harassment, the response varies from; removal of accused student from any and all classes shared with the victim (in all cases), to required therapy for both parties, to expulsion of offending student. They are labeling it as interfering with a students right to learn.

I have to admit; it's bizarre to see such typically adult phrases like imbalance of power, official complaint, and sexual harassment being used with students in grade school but by the same respect, I can't help but think it's about time.

Thoughts?

It is about time. A stronger student psuhing a weaker student around is disgusting. Harassing a kid until the kid kills themself and doing nothing about it is plain stupidity on the staff of a schools image.

Having experienced this sort of thing myself I agree with those who say "its about time".

 

[Cainkane1]

What is the definition of an act of "bullying/harassment"?

Why do people think "zero tolerance policies" are such a good idea? They make it easier for those who are responsible and are supposed to make such decisions avoid having to really make a decision. They often have unintended consequences such as expelling kids for having an aspirin or bringing a dinner knife to cut their lunch.

Unfortunately childhood is one long series of bullying and harassment. As someone who was often bullied (I was skinny, smart, a smart-ass and I wore black rimmed glasses). I would not have wanted most of the people doing the harassing punished severely if at all. There were a couple exceptions. However the blowback from being the squealer would have led to total ostracization. (Is that a word?)

Bullying is horrible, there were days I dreaded recess, so I applaud efforts to reduce it. But childhood dynamics are very complex and trying to use adult sensibilities when dealing with such issues can cause more problems.

I once observed a stronger kid push a weaker kid around and the weaker kid tyried to fight back. The stronger kid gave the weaker kid a black eye which bled from a cut. Nothing happened to the tougher kid who had started the problem.

Ok at the same time kids were being kicked out for smoking on campus. They were being corporally punished for chewing gum but when a tougher student made another kids life a Hell because they thought it was fun not a thing happened to them.

Once in the parking lot a kid knocked a kids front teeth out for some absurd reason. Nothing happened to the punk. I mean it wasn't just that he had knocked the kids teeth out it was also the fact that the victim was being kneed in the chest and hit while bleeding from the mouth. Nothing happened to the guy that hit him.

Its about time something was done.

 

[Cainkane1]

In my day teachers were too busy smoking cigarettes and yapping in the breakroom to get to class on time and a lot of the harrassment was done before the teacher could see it. There should be cameras in class, perhaps volunteers in school who can help out especially in the bathrooms and on school buses.

The bullies go on to abuse their wives and children , co workers etc. The victims grow up to be neurotic and paranoid sometimes. If there were consequences to bullying when they are young maybe they would grow up to be better citizens.

I once went to Georgia Inmate Locaters and guess who I found out had killed a person? The bully that gave the weaker kid the shiner. He's in prison for the rest of his life. Who knows? If he had been punished then he might have known better later in life.

 

[I Am The Scum]

I don't believe that "zero tolerance" is an appropriate way to describe the above policy. Zero Tolerance has a great deal of negative connotation, and for a very good reason. As previously stated, you have examples of kids taking pain relievers, and the administration kicks them out because "the rule is no drugs whatsoever."

So first we should analyze why there is a problem with zero tolerance for drugs. At a very basic level, we can agree that having students smoke crystal meth on the playground is, at the least, a tad deleterious to the learning environment. Punishment is in order for this offense. Them problem here is that a policy is enacted which removes the administrators as an arbiter on situations. A fair-minded judge would see that a student taking prescription medication is not the slightest bit out of line, but with a zero tolerance policy in place, no such judgment is allowed.

I can see punishment being shifted in this direction in cases where the administration is typically lax in regards to an issue, and so minimum standards are put in place. However, I grew up going to school when zero tolerance for drugs and weapons started to become really popular, and I can't remember a time when the principal would let a kid get by with a dimebag or so.

So does this same criticism hold to the anit-bullying policy? I don't see it. I was initially concerned of false accusations, as well. But I don't think this is "zero tolerance" as previously established. There seems to be an investigative system in place, where the authority can come to a judgment on what has happened, and what is the right course of action.

Seems like a good plan to me.

 

[sgtbaker]

In my day teachers were too busy smoking cigarettes and yapping in the breakroom to get to class on time and a lot of the harrassment was done before the teacher could see it. There should be cameras in class, perhaps volunteers in school who can help out especially in the bathrooms and on school buses.

The bullies go on to abuse their wives and children , co workers etc. The victims grow up to be neurotic and paranoid sometimes. If there were consequences to bullying when they are young maybe they would grow up to be better citizens.

I once went to Georgia Inmate Locaters and guess who I found out had killed a person? The bully that gave the weaker kid the shiner. He's in prison for the rest of his life. Who knows? If he had been punished then he might have known better later in life.

I do agree that allowing it do go on, without intervention does set the pattern for acceptable behavior throughout, at least, schooling. I guess the level of sociopathy or the lack of buttkicking at home, will determin how far they will carry this behavior beyond school years.

Beyond that, bullying and harassment can be viral. It can incite students who wouldn't typically display that type of aggressive behavior, to join in on the "fun". In the old days, the victim either had to grow some tougher skin, ignore it, or be tagged as the tattle tale. Not to mention, while maybe there are the same ratio of bullies to over-all student, the areas where bullying can occur as well as the intensity of the attacks on the person (physical or emotional) have grown. While zero tolerance and legal involvement may be harsh, they do make clear that they are on official warning and the consequences that follow should they bother the victim again. Failing to listen, at that point, at least in my opinion, is a red flag for behavioral/emotional issues that do need to be dealt with to give the aggressor a fair chance later on in life.

I Am The Scum, perhaps I am using the term zero tolerance out of context. What I mean is that they limit the warnings. You get one chance to correct your behavior or the state gets involved. Is there a better term for that?

 

[Dancing David]

As I've come to learn, many states are requiring school districts to adopt and anti bullying laws. It's pretty interesting to see how far we've come from the handwaiving, kids will be kids policy. The process in this district is a zero tolerance policy. The victim must address the complaint with the principal. The principal takes the accused aside and let's them know that there is an unofficial complaint against them. If the accused commits one more act of bullying/harassment towards the same victim, the situation is reported to the state and it becomes an official investigation. Both sets of parent are called to the school where they are present for the students questioning and each student must make an official statement. From this point, if the accused is found to actually be committing acts of bullying/harassment, the response varies from; removal of accused student from any and all classes shared with the victim (in all cases), to required therapy for both parties, to expulsion of offending student. They are labeling it as interfering with a students right to learn.

I have to admit; it's bizarre to see such typically adult phrases like imbalance of power, official complaint, and sexual harassment being used with students in grade school but by the same respect, I can't help but think it's about time.

Thoughts?

The issue , to my mind is that most districts already have anti-bullying policies, enforcement requires buy-in from all staff, often lacking.

 

[Dancing David]

It's the same "zero-tolerance" **** that was so big in the 1990s. It didn't do much to stop school shootings and led to things like kids being suspended for bringing Tylenol or nail clippers to school.

I wonder how long it will be before we start hearing stories about students abusing the system by accusing other kids of "bullying" them. Talk about irony.

Zero tolerance is a problem, but so are school staff who think it is acceptable for students to sexually harrass other students.

 

[Dancing David]

A lot of bullying is too slippery to be policed that way. Verbal bullying, exclusion, rumors, etc. -- hard for the adult to pin down what really happened and who's to blame. I don't see this being any help.

Also, there's a lot of potential for adults to misunderstand any given situation and punish unfairly. If a kid's been getting hit, tripped, pushed, etc., and finally one day finally hits back, but that's the one time the teacher is walking by and sees it, then that kid will get punished and labeled as a bully.

Yes it does happen, but not in the vast majority of cases. The issue is the culture of tolerance in schools and the culture of violence in neighborhoods and at home.