Anti-BullyingAnti-Bullying Policy
Anti-Bullying Policy ORMISTON COLLEGE 2014
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Anti-Bullying Policy
PURPOSE OF THE POLICY
Ormiston College does not tolerate any form of harassment including bullying. All members of the College Community are committed to ensuring a safe and caring environment that promotes personal growth and positive self-esteem for all. This will be facilitated via the College’s commitment on taking action to protect students from bullying and to respond appropriately when bullying does occur.
This policy sets out the school wide approach for addressing bulling and reflects our community’s support of the Queensland Schools Declaration Against Bullying and Violence. (See Appendix A).
Scope This policy applies to employees, volunteers, parents/carers/students, and people visiting the school site.
Responsibility Headmaster
Points of Contact The Deputy Head of Junior School, Year Coordinators (Year 7 to 12), the Deputy Head of Middle School, the Deputy Head of Senior School.
DEFINITIONS
What is bullying? Ormiston College has adopted the National Centre Against Bullying definition: “Bullying is when someone (or a group of people) with more power than you repeatedly and intentionally uses negative words and/or actions against you, which causes you distress and risks your wellbeing.”
This definition is also reflective of the findings of bullying expert Dr Ken Rigby who undertook a consultancy for the Department of Education and Training to provide current information about research and initiatives in the area of bullying in order to inform the future work in Queensland schools.
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Dr Rigby (Rigby, 2010) defined bullying in the following way: “Bullying is a systematic and repeated abuse of power. In general bullying may be defined as: dominating or hurting someone unfair action by the perpetrator(s) and an imbalance of power a lack of adequate defence by the target and feelings of oppression and humiliation.”
In addition, Dr Rigby stated that a school’s definition should identify that: bullying is repeated behaviour involves a power imbalance, and takes many forms (Rigby, 2010).
Bullying can take many forms. The National Centre Against Bullying identifies five kinds of bullying: 1. Physical bullying - This is when a person (or group of people) uses physical actions to bully, such as hitting, poking, tripping or pushing. Repeatedly and intentionally damaging someone's belongings is also physical bullying. 2. Verbal bullying - Repeated or systematic name calling, insults, homophobic or racist remarks and verbal abuse. 3. Covert bullying - Such as lying about someone, spreading rumours, playing a nasty joke that make the person feel humiliated or powerless, mimicking or deliberately excluding someone. 4. Psychological bullying - For example, threatening, manipulating or stalking someone. 5. Cyber bullying - Using technology, such as email, mobile phones, chat rooms, social networking sites to bully verbally, socially or psychologically.
Within the Safe to Learn (DCSF, 2007) resource it is identified that students can be bullied for a variety of reasons. Specific types of bullying may relate to: race, religion or culture appearance or health conditions sexual orientation home and family circumstances learning needs or disabilities gender or sexual bullying.
What behaviours are not bullying While it is important to understand and define what bullying is, it is also important to be clear to the school community, what behaviours are NOT bullying. Dr Rigby (2010) identifies that for some people the term ‘bullying’ is a highly emotive term and its use may lead to an over-reaction.
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The National Centre Against Bullying acknowledges that while the following behaviours are often upsetting to those involved, they do not constitute bullying: mutual arguments and disagreements (where there is no power imbalance) not liking someone or a single acts of social rejection one-off acts of meanness or spite isolated incidents of aggression, intimidation or violence.
While these behaviours would not be considered bullying (because they do not involve deliberate and repeated harm and a power imbalance) they need to be addressed in the same way as other inappropriate student behaviours.
POLICY
The policy of Ormiston College is to take a proactive approach to bullying by establishing processes to educate and inform students about bullying and procedures to follow in the event that a student is being bullied.
An important consideration for all members of the Ormiston College community is that overcoming bullying is neither simple nor quick. Ormiston College will constantly reinforce the fact that bullying is not acceptable and remind students how to counteract bullying, as well as offering programs to lift self-esteem and resilience; students need to be aware of their responsibilities not to bully and not to condone bullying by being silent bystanders; and parents need to be confident to approach the College with their concerns, and encouraged to work with the College in a non-blame situation so that their children are protected.
Educational and Prevention Programs
Ormiston College is a community that greatly values the development of effective social skills and positive relationships across all areas of school life. As such, it is important that students, staff and parents/carers understand what bullying is, how it impacts on people and how bullying is responded to at Ormiston College. All students will be educated about the College’s anti-bullying, including cyber-bullying, guidelines as follows: Education for all year levels will occur through the delivery of “You can do it!” programs and at various assemblies throughout the year. Year 8 and 9 students will be taken through formal workshops including activities and discussions on the issue of bullying.
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Workshops for Senior School students focusing on Cyber-Safety are delivered as part of the 1:1 Laptop Program.
In addition: parents will be included in the education process. e.g. Parents and Friends evenings and Newsletter information all teaching staff will be continually educated with regard to bullying at our school and more importantly, what their responsibilities are a bullying audit will be conducted in Years 8 & 9 at least once every two years
Ormiston College is a signatory to the Kandersteg Declaration as a way of communicating to our community our commitment to address bullying. The Kandersteg Declaration is a pledge of long term commitment and determination to promote healthy relationships and prevent bullying and victimisation in children and youth that resulted from the Joint Efforts Against Victimization Conference held in Kandersteg, Switzerland in 2007.
Responses to bullying
Whilst reports of bullying will be investigated and acted upon, Ormiston College has a range of responses that may be implemented. Some responses may include support for targets of bullying and perpetrators, the use of specific interventions and/or disciplinary measures.
It must be noted that during the investigation process an assessment will be made as to whether given behaviours are consistent with the definitions contained within this Policy. It is important that the Ormiston College Anti-Bullying Policy is not seen as an entity that is separated from the rest of the College’s structure, activities and policies. For example, if bullying amounts to harm as referred to in the College’s Child Protection Policy then the matter must be dealt with under the Child Protection Policy.
When circumstances allow, a member of staff/ senior student will deal with the problem on the spot, in order to defuse the immediate conflict. Once the immediate issues have been dealt with, the management of a bullying situation can be found in the diagram at Appendix B.
Cyber-bullying is a type of bullying which involves the use of information and communication technologies such as email, (mobile) phone and text messages, instant messaging (SMS), chat rooms and video internet sites e.g. YouTube. It can be particularly harmful because it can happen
Ormiston College Page 4 of 24 Anti-Bullying Policy Anti-Bullying anywhere and at any time. Thus young people who are the victims of cyber-bullying have no place where they feel safe. If the bullying is of a serious and threatening nature then obviously it becomes a legal issue and students and parents should seek advice by reporting the matter to the police. Further information regarding cyber-bullying is contained within this policy.
Reporting and monitoring bullying
At Ormiston College reports of bullying are taken seriously. The members of the College community involved in the management of bullying situations can be seen in the diagram at Appendix C.
Reports of bullying will be collated and monitored to inform the school community about the extent of bullying and to identify particular areas of concern for future action. This analysis will generally focus on major locations where bullying occurs, sex and age of victims and bullies, and strategies which have been successful. A review of the school’s policy is undertaken every 2 years, taking into account this biannual data.
CYBER-BULLYING
The Internet, mobile phones and other communication technologies have resulted in a new form of bullying, commonly called cyber-bullying. This involves the use of information and communication technologies to support deliberate, repeated and hostile behaviour by an individual or group to hurt others. The issue of cyber bullying has been the focus of a number of research and review processes, such as the Australian Covert Bullying Prevalence Study (Cross, D., Shaw, T., Hearn, L., Epstein, M., Monks, H., Lester, L., & Thomas, L., 2009) and the Review of the National Safe Schools Framework (McGrath, 2005).
In a report commissioned by the Victorian Department of Education and Training (Bernard & Milne, 2008) the main forms of cyber bullying are identified as: Flaming: online fights using electronic messages with angry or vulgar messages Harassment: repeatedly sending nasty, mean or insulting messages Denigration: Posting or sending gossip or rumours about a person to damage his/her reputation or friendships Outing: sharing someone’s secrets or embarrassing information or images online Exclusion: Intentionally and cruelly excluding someone from an online group Cyber stalking: repeated, intense harassment and denigration that includes threats or creates significant fear.
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Cyber-bullying is different from other forms of bullying because: it is often difficult for adults, who are not as technologically savvy as their children, to detect; it is often outside the reach of schools as it happens on home computers or via mobile phones; and hurtful messages can be communicated to a very wide audience, around the world, with remarkable speed.
It is also a particularly cowardly form of bullying because the cyber-bully can effectively hide behind the anonymity of the Internet and is able to reach the victim at home. Thus, the home is no longer a refuge for students bullied at school.
As for other forms of bullying, there is no one approach that will always work for cyber-bullying. Ormiston College offers parents with the following advice: For younger children parents might consider the use of filters, labels and safe zones so they can restrict the sites their child can access or the materials they can receive (see the NetAlert site at http://www.netalert.gov.au/ for advice about filters and other ways to restrict access to dangerous materials). For younger and junior secondary school students parents should consider keeping the computer in a public area of the house, such as the family room, so they can see what sites are being accessed and the type of messages their child is receiving. For all young people, parents should be advised to talk to their children about the ways they can protect themselves when using information technologies. For example: o to be careful who they give their telephone number to or their online handle; o never give out or share personal information numbers (PINS); o don’t believe everything you read online – just because someone tells you they are fifteen, it doesn’t mean they are telling the truth; o never send a message to others when you are angry. Remind them that what they write becomes available in cyberspace and cannot be taken back; o never open a message from someone they don’t know; o be polite in all online or text message dealings; and o never arrange to meet someone they have met online unless they take their parents or (for older children) a trusted friend with them.
If a child reports he/she is being bullied on-line parents should advise them:
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not to respond to cyber-bullying messages as this is only likely to encourage the bully. Bullies want them to respond; to report the bullying to parents and to their teachers; not to erase or delete messages from cyber-bullies even if they really don’t want anyone else to see what is written – these messages may reveal clues about who has written them; never be ashamed to tell someone if they receive a frightening message. It’s not their fault that there are some very strange people in the world; and to report that they have received a bullying message to their ISP (Internet Service Provider). If the message is forwarded to the provider, it may be able to trace the sender.
The Role of Ormiston College
Because cyber-bullying often occurs outside of school it is difficult for schools to control. In most cases, however, cyber-bullying should be treated similarly to other forms of bullying. The most important thing that Ormiston College can do is to educate students about cyber-safety, cyber- bullying and talk about inappropriate online behaviour in the context of Student’s Online Code of Conduct.
The Australian Government NetAlert site gives the following advice to young people about dangers online: Always be alert when on the internet. While there are some excellent sites to visit there are also some bad ones like pornography, animal cruelty and hate sites. If something appears on your screen that disturbs you, tell your friends, a teacher or parent, or contact NetAlert on 1300 669 024 or by email to [email protected] for advice on what to do. Remember, you will not get into any trouble by letting people know what you have stumbled across. If you hear or see your friends getting into places that look unsuitable, remind them of the potential dangers and advise them on how to get out of the site. Keep all personal information to yourself (including photos, your name, the name of your school, the name of your family members and your phone number). Strangers might use your personal information in a way that you never intended them to. Chat rooms are great ways to talk to people but be aware that some people in them are not who they say they are. If someone or something disturbs you in a chat room, leave and find another one where there are people you like. Talk to your parents, carers or teachers about advice on how to deal with stranger danger.
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Not everything you read on the internet is true. Be smart and make decisions for yourself on what you think is right and wrong. Be careful downloading free games or files. People can trick you into clicking on a link that sends you to an unsafe zone or makes your computer download a virus. Only give your mobile phone number to your family and friends and if you start getting upsetting or annoying text messages, tell a teacher or parent. Always seek help from adults or friends. Parents might not know as much about the internet as you, but they know about life and together you can work out any problem that you might encounter when online.
Despite the best efforts of parents and schools, young people are likely to overcome attempts to restrict or censor their use of the internet. Teaching students about ethical and legal use of technology is, therefore, essential. Please refer to the Student’s Online Code of Conduct Policy and the Cyber-safety Use Agreement for more information about the requirements in regard to internet use.
SCHOOL AND STAFF RESPONSIBILITIES
As a community we have a responsibility not to allow cases of bullying to go unreported. Thus, in order to enjoy the rights associated with being a member of the College’s community we must have the courage to speak up, even if this involves some personal risk.
The College will: Involve students, staff and parents in the development and review of its Anti-Bullying Policy, including its policy on cyber-bullying. Identify one or more members of staff as a Bullying Contact Person. Ensure all staff are familiar with the school’s anti-bullying policy and provide appropriate professional development on a regular basis, including at the time of induction of new staff members. Provide an agreed definition of bullying Ensure that all accessible areas of the school are patrolled Provide processes for reporting bullying incidents for staff and students Offer support strategies for individuals who experience bullying Deliver appropriate behavioural support and consequences for those students who behave inappropriately Provide preventative strategies
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Ensure processes are in place for the recording of bullying incidents Arrange for the periodic review of all processes.
Staff members will: Watch for early signs of distress in students. This could be evident in any aspect of school life Ensure they are familiar with the school’s anti-bullying policy Address bullying in their curriculum and explicitly teach students about conflict and bullying Implement resilience and anti-bullying programs that help students become more confident Educate students with regard to their responsibilities as bystanders to a bullying incident Make efforts to remove occasions for bullying by active patrolling during supervision duty Where bullying is observed, intervene immediately to stop the bullying Offer the victim immediate support and help and outline what will now happen Report suspected incidents to the appropriate staff member such as the Deputy Head of Junior School, Head of Junior School, Form Teacher, Year Coordinator, Deputy Head of Middle School, Head of Middle School, Deputy Head of Senior School or Head of Senior School who will follow the designated procedures Ensure they do not model bullying behaviour in interactions they have with students, parents or other staff members.
In situations where bullying occurs, staff at the school may also: Assist students to develop more appropriate social skills. i.e. Teach students how to cooperate and “get on” with others Run anti-bullying workshops Initiate an intervention strategy Conduct mediation or conflict resolution sessions Implement a behaviour management plan or playground plan for individual students Apply disciplinary consequences including detentions, suspensions or exclusions to students who bully others.
STUDENT RESPONSIBILITIES
If students who are being bullied have the courage to speak out, they may help to reduce pain for themselves and other potential victims. Students should:
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Report all incidents of bullying to a trusted senior student, teacher or year level coordinator or other staff member. Actively support students they know are being bullied. Refuse to become involved in bullying, including as a bystander.
If you are being bullied: Stay calm Tell the bully to stop Move away from situation Talk to someone you trust about what has happened, for example a parent/carer, teacher or friend, and get them to help you to take the right steps to stop the bullying When talking about what has happened make sure you tell them: What the person/s has been doing? Who has been involved? Where have the incident/s occurred? Who else has seen the bullying behaviour? How often has it happened? What have you already done about it? Keep on talking until someone listens to you and the bullying stops Don’t blame yourself for what is happening.
If you see someone being bullied (or witness it online), keep safe and choose your response to match the situation: Speak up and let the person doing the bullying know that what they are doing is bullying Refuse to join in with the bullying (including as a bystander) and walk away Help the student who is being bullied to ask for help Ask a teacher or support person for help Report what happened Use some of the links at the end of this document to help you find more information about bullying.
PARENT RESPONSIBILITIES
The College recommends that parents should:
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Watch for signs of distress in their child, such as, unwillingness to attend school, a pattern of headaches or stomach aches, equipment that has gone missing, request for extra pocket money, damaged clothing or bruising. Early contact is essential at this point. Take an active interest in their children’s social life and acquaintances Advise their children to tell a staff member about any incidence. If possible allow their children to report and deal with the problem themselves. Respect can be gained through taking the initiative and dealing with the problem without parental involvement Ensure they do not model bullying behaviour in interactions they have with the school staff and administration.
If your child tells you they are being bullied or you suspect this is the case. Parents should: Help your child to identify the bullying behaviour and ask them: o What has been happening? o Who has been involved? o Where have the incidents occurred? o Has anyone else seen the bullying behaviour? Discuss with your child some immediate strategies. Make a plan to deal with the bullying. Encourage them to: o Talk with the teacher o Walk away o Firmly say “No!” Report to the school’s Bullying Contact Person or any other member of school staff if they know, or think, their child is being bullied. Check that your child has spoken to someone about the problem and arrange a meeting if necessary to address the situation Be clear about what you expect the school to do to help your child Keep a written record if the bullying persists: who, what, where and when? Do not encourage retaliation Communicate to their children that parental involvement, if necessary, will be appropriate for the situation Be willing to attend interviews at the College if their child is involved in any bullying incident Be willing to inform the College of any cases of suspected bullying even if their own child is not directly affected Use some of the additional internet resources listed at the end of this document to assist you and your child to learn more about bullying and prevention.
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When staff, students and parents work together we create a more caring environment at Ormiston College.
Sometimes children who are bullied do not talk about it with parents/carers or teachers. They are concerned that “telling” will make matters worse. Some signs that a child may be experiencing bullying may include: loss of confidence, fearfulness or anxiety changes in eating or sleeping habits, bedwetting health problems, vague headaches or stomach aches unhappiness, tearfulness or mood swings, sudden temper tantrums reluctance to go to school, changes in academic performance lack of friends missing belongings or torn clothing.
INTERVENTION STRATEGIES
Ormiston College utilises a number of intervention strategies in responding to bullying incidents. In cases of serious bullying, careful investigation may need to be undertaken, leading to planned or systematic treatment involving the bully or bullies and in some cases, others such as the target of the bullying, bystanders and parents/carers.
The nature of the bullying incidents will help to determine which method is most appropriate, as does the availability of school resources, including trained practitioners. Nevertheless, in cases where initial attempts to deal with bullying behaviour have resulted in the bullying continuing, “The Method of Shared Concern” is generally the intervention to be initiated.
The Method of Shared Concern
This is a non-punitive approach. It involves first working with the suspected bullies and with the target, in one-to-one meetings. When progress has been made, a meeting is held with the suspected bullies as a group to plan how the problem might be resolved. Subsequently they are joined by the target and an agreed solution is negotiated. Although this approach can be time-consuming, outcomes are overwhelmingly positive and it is uniquely appropriate for dealing with cases of group bullying in which the target has behaved provocatively; this occurs in about 20 per cent of cases. Violent or criminal behaviour is normally not handled using this approach (Rigby, 2010a).
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Further details can be found at Appendix D.
Restorative Practice
The use of restorative approaches has proven effective in many schools. The aim of these approaches is to work with students rather than doing things to them or for them. Such approaches are underpinned by the principle of restorative justice whereby the student causing harm is held to account for his/her behaviour. This means: accepting responsibility for the harm caused to the individual being bullied accepting responsibility for the harm caused to others (e.g. staff, friends or family) recognising the need to take action to begin to repair the harm caused all those involved agreeing to a range of actions, which will be monitored over an agreed period of time.
There is a range of restorative approaches, from informal meetings with students where they can talk through their issues in a structured way, to, at the most formal end, a restorative conference with an independent facilitator. Restorative approaches can be effective when the requisite time and resources are invested, but it is important they are used in conjunction with, not in place of, disciplinary measures (Rigby, 2010a).
The Disciplinary Approach
Disciplinary measures must be applied fairly, proportionately and consistently and take account of any reasonable adjustments students may require and the needs of vulnerable children.
Disciplinary measures have three main purposes: to impress on perpetrators that what they have done is unacceptable to deter them from repeating that behaviour to signal to other students the behaviour is unacceptable and deter them from doing it.
Disciplinary measures for bullying are intended to hold students who bully to account for their behaviour, and ensure they accept the harm they have caused and to learn from it. Disciplinary measures may also provide (as appropriate) an opportunity for the student to put right the harm they have caused.
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When other strategies and disciplinary measures do not resolve the problem, the school leadership team may be required to apply disciplinary absence measures, as appropriate (Rigby, 2010a).
POLICY RELEASE DETAILS
Prepared by C. Askin (Dean of Students)
Date of Policy January 2014
Review Date July 2015, in consultation with students, staff and parents
REFERENCES
Bernard, M., & Milne, M. (2008). Schools Procedures and Practices for Responding to Students Who Bully. Victorian Department of Education and Early Childhood Development.
Cross, D., Shaw, T., Hearn, L., Epstein, M., Monks, H., Lester, L., & Thomas, L. (2009). Australian Covert Bullying Prevalence Study (ACBPS). Child Health Promotion Research Centre, Edith Cowan University, Perth.
Department for Children, Schools and Families guidance (DCSF) (2007). Safe to Learn: embedding anti-bullying work in schools. United Kingdom.
McGrath, Dr H. (2005) Making Australian Schools Safer: A Summary Report of the Outcomes from the National Safe Schools Framework Best Practice Grants Programme (2004-2005). Faculty of Education, Deakin University, Melbourne.
Rigby, K. (2010). Addressing Bullying in Queensland Schools: Consultancy for the Department of Education and Training, Brisbane.
Rigby, K. (2010a) Breaking the Cycle. Education Review, Sydney.
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RELATED POLICIES, DOCUMENTS AND RESOURCES
Child Protection Policy – Ormiston College Cyber-safety Use Agreement – Ormiston College Student’s Online Code of Conduct Policy – Ormiston College Tackling Bulling Behaviours (Non-Punitive Approaches) http://www.clickview.com.au/LinkStart/?videoid=508 Alannah and Madeline Foundation http://www.amf.org.au/AboutUs/ BOUNCE BACK! http://www.bounceback.com.au/ FRIENDS for Life www.friendsinfo.net/index.html Friendly Schools and Families Program http://www.friendlyschools.com.au/about.php Kids Helpline http://www.kidshelp.com.au/ KidsMatter http://www.kidsmatter.edu.au MindMatters http://www.mindmatters.edu.au/default.asp ReachOut http://au.reachout.com National Centre Against Bullying http://www.ncab.org.au/about/ National Safe Schools Framework http://www.dest.gov.au/sectors/school_education/publications_resources/profiles/national_safe_scho ols_framework.htm You Can Do It! www.youcandoit.com.au
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APPENDIX B
Responses to Bullying Management Process
Please note –Due to the various and at times extenuating circumstances that are part of any behavioral incident, the following flow chart is to be read as a guide only.
Stage 3 Bullying Behaviour Continues Suspension / Exclusion
Stage 2 Bullying Behaviour Continues Student withdrawn from the Playground or Classroom and given a final opportunity to work out a solution
Stage 1a Stage 1b Bullying Act Observed or Reported Bullying Behaviour Continues The Victim may have attempted to solve or greater intervention required the situation. All parties are made aware The Method of Shared Concern or of the Anti-bullying Policy. Strategies for Restorative Practice intervention is conflict resolution are devised and both initiated and/or Detentions are issued parties are satisfied with the outcome. i.e. The Victim feels secure and the bully is prepared to modify his/her behavior in future. The victim understands that any further bullying must be reported immediately.
The target, the bully, reporting person or any other member of the College community may Bullying Acts Occur seek help from a qualified counselor at any stage.
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APPENDIX C
Responses to Bullying Junior School Chains of Responsibilities
Headmaster
Head of Junior School
Deputy Head of Junior School
‘Shared Concern’ Operative or Restorative Practice Facilitator This will be a designated person within the College
Class Teacher
Reporting Person Victim or Representative Any Member of the College Community Victim, Teacher, School Officer, Parent
Parents, Friends, Prefects, Teachers, Yard Duty etc. Teacher, School Officers
Responses to Bullying Middle & Senior School Chains of Responsibilities
Headmaster
Head of Middle or Senior School
Deputy Head of Middle or Senior School
‘Shared Concern’ Operative or Restorative Practice Facilitator
This will be a designated person within the College
Year Coordinator
Reporting Person Victim or Representative Any Member of the College Community Victim, Teacher, School Officer, Parent Parents, Friends, Prefects, Teachers, Yard Duty etc. Teacher, School Officers
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APPENDIX D
The Method of Shared Concern
by Ken Rigby
The Method of Shared Concern is an intervention procedure for working on bully/victim problems in schools. It was devised by the Swedish psychologist, Anatol Pikas (pronounced "peekas"). What follows is an account of this procedure as I have come to understand it through participation in a workshop run by Professor Pikas in Australia and through discussions with teachers who have repeatedly and successfully employed the method with school children.
The method is best conveyed through role playing and small group discussions. Nevertheless, it is, in my view, possible to convey the essential elements and rationale of the method in writing. I would ask, however, that where possible teachers and counsellors who wish to try out this approach discuss it first with their colleagues and ensure that they have a common understanding of what is involved.
Before it can be used it is essential that the principles and procedures of the method are thoroughly understood that its use has general support in the school.
Initially at least the method outlined below should be followed in detail. To begin with, select cases of bullying that do not involve serious cases of assault, nor relatively trivial cases which can be dealt with less formally. As one becomes familiar with the method, it becomes clear under what circumstances the method can be applied most effectively.
The Method
Briefly, the Method of Shared Concern involves the following stages:
Stage 1.
A bully/victim problem is identified. For this one needs to have reliable information about who is involved, including (a) the person or persons who are being bullied by another individual or group (b) the person or persons who continually engage in carrying out the bullying.
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Information about what is happening and the concern felt by the victim is ideally obtained through observations and reports, rather than through talking directly with the victim. (This is to prevent repercussions on the victim for having "told")
Stage 2.
A number of students are identified as having taken part in the bullying, or to have supported it in some way. Each one is seen in turn, starting (if known) with the likely ringleader.
In these meeting with individual students, it is important not to make any accusations. The meeting begins with the interviewer inviting the student to sit in a chair opposite (without an intervening desk) and waiting for eye contact before the interaction begins.
The interviewer starts by sharing a concern for the person who is being victimised. Once the feelings of the interviewer have been clearly - and sincerely - conveyed, the student is asked to say what he or she knows about the situation.
As soon as the student has acknowledged some awareness (not necessarily guilt) relating to what has been happening, the student is asked directly what he or she can do to help improve matters. Note that the interviewer is not trying to "get to the bottom of the matter" and to apportion blame but to produce a constructive response and change the situation.
Commonly suggestions are elicited. But if they are not, the interviewer may make suggestions, normally ones that are not so difficult for the bully to accept. The interviewer should express strong approval for any constructive proposals, but arrange for another meeting (at an agreed time) to find out what has actually been done. Close monitoring is essential.
At this meeting no threats are made nor any warnings given The remaining students in the group are seen, again individually, and the procedure repeated.
EXAMPLE OF AN INTERACTION BETWEEN INTERVIEWER AND STUDENT (To get a feel for the Method act or role play the following with a partner) PHASE ONE Interviewer (Int) I hear that some students have been giving Tom a bad time recently? What do you know about it?
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Student (S) (Long pause). It wasn't just me! (There may be a flat denial of personal involvement - but the Int can still continue as follows) Int. OK, but what can you tell me about it? (Int is not trying to elicit a confession) S. Well, some people have been calling him names - pushing him around a bit - just having fun really. Int. I see. I am concerned that Tom's been pretty depressed, even staying home from school. It sounds like things aren’t so good for him right now. S. I suppose so.
PHASE TWO This can begin as soon as there is any acknowledgment that the situation - for Tom - is bad. Int. I am wondering what you can do to make things a bit better for Tom. S. Who me? Int. Yes, you S (Long pause). Well, I suppose I could stop making fun of him - calling him names. Int. (Enthusiastically - not grudgingly). That would be excellent. Try not to tease or upset him - and we will meet again next Tuesday at this time to see how things have gone. S. Is that all? Int. Yes, that's it. See you next week.
Some variations 1 The suspected bully may deny knowledge of what has gone on. This may be due to genuine ignorance, or more likely (if sound preliminary work has been done) be a refusal to cooperate. One can only repeat one's concern - and say: "Well, it seems like you don't want to talk about it today. We can talk later." (The bully is not getting out of it). 2. The bully may deny personal involvement or say it was somebody else. One might say: "Well, you have some influence with X. I wonder if you could have a word with her. She would respect what you might say” 3. The student may seek to pressure Int to say why he or she has come to suspect him of doing such a thing. Here the Int needs to be careful to make it clear that the suspicion is not based on what the victim has said, but rather on reports from (unspecified) others, ideally, through personal observation. Don't get into an argument over this. Return to one's main theme: that is, the bad time being experienced by the victim and what can be done about it.
Stage 3.
Interview with victim The victim is seen after all the suspected bullies have been interviewed.
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It is essential that the interviewer begins by expressing concern, sympathy and support over what has been happening.
However, questions need to be asked to find the out whether the victim has been doing anything to bring on the bullying - that is by acting as a provocative victim.
The interviewer discloses that he or she has actually talked with the bullies individually and that each of them agreed to cooperate.
The interviewer undertakes to meet again with the victim to see how things develop.
Stage 4.
Further meetings are held with individual bullies (as previously arranged) to check on whether they have honoured their promises and what progress has been made.
Once it is evident that good progress has been made, a meeting with the whole group is organised. At this meeting it is usually possible to (i) compliment the members on the progress that has been made and (ii) to "fall in with" (or somehow elicit) a suggestion from members of the group that the victim be invited to join them for a final meeting to demonstrate that the problem of bullying has really been resolved.
Assurances must be obtained from individual members that they will act positively towards the victim at such a meeting.
Stage 5.
The victim can normally be induced to join the group for a final meeting, with assurances that there will be no unpleasantness at the meeting. If all goes well, the meeting will serve to demonstrate publicly that the bullying is well and truly over.
Stage 6.
Notice that in cases where the victim has behaved provocatively, the interviewer must seek to facilitate adjustments in the behaviour of both sides, that is, play the role of mediator. The aim is to get the students to reach an agreement - ideally in writing and in an agreed form - about how each will behave towards each other in future.
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THE RATIONALE OF "SHARED CONCERN" 1. It is assumed that bullies typically (not always) are insensitive to the harm, or the extent of the harm, they are doing to the victim. This insensitivity is due to their involvement in a group which seems to give legitimacy to their bullying activities and prevents them from feeling personally responsible for the outcomes. 2. What they appear to gain mostly through bullying is a sense of being part of a group which is "having fun." 3. Yet as individuals, bullies commonly feel uncomfortable about what is being done. 4. A hostile blaming attitude on the part of an authority figure is likely to increase the desire for them to continue bullying and unite the bullies more strongly. 5. Working with individuals by initially sharing with them one's concern for the victim is likely to elicit a more positive response. 6. Although the method involves a non-blaming approach, it does not in any way seek to excuse or condone bullying. It is in fact quite direct and confrontational. It strongly invites and expects a responsible response. 7. Having made a commitment to the interviewer, generally means that members of the bully group will not talk to each other about what has transpired. Group influence is thereby weakened. 8. Careful monitoring of what ensues after promises have been made is absolutely essential 9. Interviewing the victim first should be avoided, because if the bullies suspect that the victim has informed on them, he or she will be further endangered. 10. Victims are not always "innocent", and it is important to understand what they may be doing to provoke the bullying. One may need to work directly on changing the victim's provocative way of behaving. 11. Although the aim is to re-individualise bullies, the idea is not to "break up" groups (students have a right to enjoy being in a group) but eventually to change their attitudes and behaviour towards the victim and other potential victims. 12. It is important to see the whole group of "bullies" together after progress has been made towards improving the situation, to congratulate them on what they have been able to do, and to work through any residual problems with the victim present. 13. An important benefit from this approach is that it can lead to a "change of heart" on the part of bullies and remove the need for constant surveillance. 14. The use of punishment is often ineffective. It may breed resentment, increase group solidarity, jeopardise the victim further, and challenge bullies to practise ways of bullying that are hard to detect.
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15. It does require some careful thought and planning on how to use the method with students. However, it need not be time-consuming. Short interviews and meetings only are often all that is needed. 16. There is now good research evidence that the method is effective in at least two cases in three (see Smith and Sharp, 1994). It has been used in many British, European and Australian schools with excellent results. 17. However, in severe cases of bullying or where individuals do not respond to shared concern, further action may be needed, including interviews with parents and even suspension.
Further information about the Method of Shared Concern is to be found in these sources:
Pikas, A. (1989). The common concern method for the treatment of mobbing. In E. Roland and E. Munthe (eds), Bullying, an international perspective. London: Fulton.
Rigby, K. (1996) Bullying in Schools - and what to do about it. Camberwell, Melbourne. Australian Council for Educational Research, pp 209-220. [Also published in London: Jessica Kingsley (1997) and Toronto :Pembroke, 1998].
Smith, P.K. and Sharp, S. (Eds.) (1994). School Bullying: insights and perspectives, London: Routledge, pp 195-202.
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