Whimsical Journeys

According to an article from dosomething.org, each year over 3.2 million students are victim to bullying (“11 Facts About Bullying”). Every day children ranging in age from six to approximately 18 are being bullied in schools both public and private. According to a Clemson University study that surveyed 524,054 students and 1,593 schools across the nation over the last two years, 17 percent of children, grades three through 12 reported that they had been bullied two to three times a month if not more (Carroll). The problem is that the bullying in schools elementary through high school continues to go unnoticed and unpunished by the adults in the school. Although bullying can happen outside of school, reports say that it is estimated that 160,000 children miss school every day due to fear of attack or intimidation by other students (PEP). Anti bulling programs need to be enforced in schools because every day a child’s life is in danger due to a bully. The schools top priority should be to ensure that the students attending have a safe learning environment where they do not feel fear. In an article from Time Magazine, John Cloud agrees: “Bullies can be anywhere, but there is no place they show up more than in schools” (“When Bullying Turns Deadly: Can it Be Stopped?”). Students should not have to fear attending school on a daily basis because of a bully.

With the installment of anti bullying programs in schools, awareness would be raised about bullying and students would be more aware of the affects it has on the victims. An article from parents.com states that “since 2010, federal funds and grants have been provided to 11 schools with deep-rooted bullying problems, and the grants also include a survey for students that gives them a voice to address bullying openly” (Huang). The number of schools in the United States, both public and private together exceeds 132,000. To only have anti bullying programs in 11 schools is obscene because that leaves millions of children still ignorant to the affects of bullying on others. Anti Bullying programs would be a valuable addition to schools and their students. My own experiences with bullying have opened my eyes to this very issue. My cousin who is now a sophomore in high school has been bullied for the past two years because of her weight. She is on the cheer leading squad and is extremely intelligent, however, her peers feel it necessary to constantly say outrageous things to her about her weight. This has lead to a very rough journey for her in the past two years. She has fallen victim to an eating disorder along with feeling the need to work out excessively. If the students that were bullying my cousin knew the effects it is having on her, I believe that they would stop.

Fig. 1. This image explains that people who use hurtful words as a form of bullying hurt their victims just as much as physical bullying can hurt (Behance).

Bullying can lead to a decrease in the victim’s educational process. According to an article from dosomething.org, approximately 160,000 teens skip school every day because of bullying (“11 Facts About Bullying”). Attending classes in school is a necessary condition for the success of the students learning in each subject. When students do not attend their classes multiple days of the week, they are more likely to do poorly in them due to the fact that they will not know the material of the courses. In an article from The Huffington Post, it is stated that those who are bullied also suffer academically. The results of the study mentioned in the Huffington Post article state that: “students who reported being bullied in tenth grade saw a slight decrease in GPA by twelfth grade” (“Bullying Victims See Lower GPA's, Particularly High Achieving Blacks and Latinos, Study Shows"). The study showed that black and Asian students had a 0.3 decrease in GPA, and Latinos had a 0.5 decrease in GPA (“Bullying Victims See Lower GPA's, Particularly High Achieving Blacks and Latinos, Study Shows"). In today’s society, education is an extremely important asset to obtain. Unfortunately, learning is far more difficult for those being bullied due to the affects on children’s psyches according to Terri Baltz, author of “Psychological Effects of Bullying in an Educational Setting,” an article from examiner.com. In extreme cases, however, students will drop out of school altogether. According to the article “Bullying Statistics,” one out of every ten students that drops out of school does so because of repeated bullying (PEP). Thus, anti bullying programs would not only help raise awareness of the issue at hand, but would also allow victims to be relieved of the stresses of bullying and focus on their studies.

It is common for students that fall victim to bullying to reach a breaking point, which can lead to a dangerous rebellion against those who bullied them. According to an article from a4kclub.org, 87 percent of students surveyed said that shootings are motivated by a desire to “get back at those who have hurt them” (“Bullying Statistics”). In instances of gun violence in schools, the shooter puts not only the targets in danger, but the other students around them as well. School shootings are often portrayed in television shows and in movies. In the show “One Tree Hill,” there is a character named Jimmy who is a victim of bullying throughout the high school years of the series. In his last episode, he brings a gun to school and causes mayhem among the student body. In the end one student is shot as well as himself. Although statistics say that revenge is the strongest motivator for school shootings, the student behind the gun is often just as scared as the students being threatened by it. According to the article “Bullying Statistics,” one out of 20 students have seen a student with a gun at school (PEP). I believe that anti bullying programs in schools would prevent bullying and therefore would keep schools safer as there would be less victims wanting to take revenge on those who bullied them.

The most prominent issue with bullying is that it often leads to the suicide of the young victims. The numbers for youth suicide are shocking. According to an article from nydailynews.com, “one in six high school students has seriously considered suicide, and one in twelve has attempted it, according to the semi annual survey on youth risk behavior published by the Centers of Disease Control and Prevention” (Neal). The young generations that are attending school now are the people of the future. This world will rely on the youth to be educated and intelligent and able to continue to advance our society for the better. Yale University did a study that showed bullying victims are about five times more likely to consider suicide than non-victims (Young). With such a high suicide rate, brilliant young people are dying every day. This is not a problem to be taken lightly. The article continues: “Overall, the suicide rate among teens has climbed in the past few years, from 6.3 percent in 2009 to 7.8 percent in 2011 numbers which reflect the trend gaining national attention as more teen suicides are reported as a result of bullying” (Neal). This is a problem that needs the attention of schools around the country. If the bullies of today were educated on what the outcome of their bullying could be, they would be less likely to continue victimizing people.

Fig. 2. This image shows the extreme lengths that victims of bullying go to, to make the terror stop (Web Design Burn).

Despite all of the horrible outcomes as a result of bullying, some argue that although bullying does exist, it is just “kids being kids.” The children being bullied are far too sensitive, which can often times make bullying seem worse than it actually is. In fact, some will say the anti bullying programs are the problem, rather than the solution. According to an article by Kenneth Wangner, he believes: “Government mandated anti bullying programs provide a disservice to our youth by discouraging self-authorization and empowerment in the face of oppression” (Wangner). This is a prime example of someone who believes that anti bullying programs will not fully stop those who are determined to bully. Michael Josephson, author of an article called “We Don’t Need Anti Bullying Programs 712.5,” states that: “Instead of anti bullying programs, we need a pro-kindness strategy” (Josephson). He continues: “We need to create a culture of kindness, encouraging a spirit of generosity and love where differences are accepted and celebrated rather than targeted” (Josephson). Using the strategy that Josephson mentions would cut the need for the anti bullying programs that many people find to be highly ineffective.

Anti bullying programs do have a high success rate. According to another article from the Huffington Post, author David Crary states: “There's been a sharp drop in the percentage of America's children being bullied or beaten up by their peers, according to a new national survey by experts who believe anti-bullying programs are having an impact” (Crary). The people that believe anti bullying programs are counter productive are wrong. I believe this because although they may not help every one, the programs do help a high percentage of the students. In a study done by the US Department of Justice, they found that the percentage of children that had been physically bullied over the past year has declined from 22 percent in 2003, to under 15 percent in 2008 (Crary). If adults involved in the school systems were to continue to allow students to feel “empowerment” by bullying, there would be more drop outs, more school shootings, and more suicides among the young generations. This is yet another reason why the people of the opposing argument are wrong in their solutions to bullying. Lastly, in the same article from The Huffington Post, Crary describes one of the more successful anti bullying programs, the Olweus Bullying Prevention Program. He states: “It is a comprehensive program that includes forming an anti-bullying committee, training staff to intervene immediately if they observe bullying and meeting with students and parents when problems occur” (Crary). As these examples show, anti bullying programs can be effective in most schools that attempt them.

Creating anti bullying programs through the schools of the United States would greatly help the victims to feel safer in their learning environment. According to Secretary of education, Arne Duncan, “The fact is that no school can be a great school until it is a safe school first. A positive school climate is foundational to start academic achievement” (Duncan). Duncan is correct in his statement; the youth of today is what our society’s future relies on. The young generations are the future and in order for them to be successful they need to have the best possible educational experience. Bullying often gets in the way of this. If more adults in the school systems step up to fight to have anti bullying programs in their schools I believe that they will be a success. Although some people may argue that anti bullying programs do not work in the school systems, using the programs are more helpful than not enforcing any kind of information on the issue at all.

Whimsical Journeys

Tuesday, April 30, 2013

Bullying Presentation

Drunk Driving Presentation

Works Cited

Bullying: A Deadly Game