Bullying Welcome all participants to the presentation. Introduce yourself and share your background in working with child safety issues. Mention that the National Crime Prevention Council in partnership with the Bureau of Justice Assistance is the creator of this PowerPoint. Explain that the presentation you are going to give will introduce the participants to bullying and give them some tips for managing bullying in their communities. Refer participants to NCPC’s two websites, www.mcgruff.org (for children) and www.ncpc.org.

What is bullying? Ask the participants, “What do you think of when I say ‘bullying’?” Write their responses on a flipchart. Tell them that bullying is an imbalance of power [characterized by] repeated and systematic harassment and attacks on others perpetrated by individuals or groups. Source: Health Resources and Services Administration (HSRA), National Bullying Campaign, 2004

Bullying is… An imbalance of power Repeated and systematic harassment and attacks on others Perpetrated by individuals or groups Emphasize that the element of bullying that makes it different from other forms of conflict is the imbalance of power. In a conflict between two individuals of equal power, each has the ability to offer solutions and compromise to resolve the conflict. In this case, adults can tell children to try to resolve the conflict on their own or to use peer mediation programs to address the issue. In bullying situations, the imbalance of power between the bully and the victim prevents these individuals from resolving the conflict on their own. Children who are bullied need adults to step in to address the situation. Source: Health Resources and Services Administration National Bullying Campaign, 2004

Bullying Can Take Many Forms Physical violence Verbal taunts, name-calling, and put-downs Threats and intimidation Extortion or stealing money and/or possessions Spreading rumors Harassment via technology (email, text messaging, etc.) Cyber-bullying Tell the participants that bullying can take many forms, as described on the slide. Source: London Family Court Clinic, London, Ontario, Canada

Cyber-bullying harassment and bullying that takes place online or through other mobile devices Spreading rumors about someone through instant messaging Threatening someone on a web log (blog) Creating hurtful websites against someone

Why Cyberbullying is Different Kids who are being cyberbullied are often bullied in person as well. kids who are cyberbullied have a harder time getting away from the behavior. Cyberbullying can happen 24 hours a day, 7 days a week, and reach a kid even when he or she is alone. It can happen any time of the day or night. Cyberbullying messages and images can be posted anonymously and distributed quickly to a very wide audience. It can be difficult and sometimes impossible to trace the source. Deleting inappropriate or harassing messages, texts, and pictures is extremely difficult after they have been posted or sent. National Crime Prevention Council

Kids who are cyberbullied are more likely to: Use alcohol and drugs Skip school Experience in-person bullying Be unwilling to attend school Receive poor grades Have lower self-esteem Have more health problems National Crime Prevention Council

Cyberbullying A Recent Survey of Teens Revealed Cyberbullying was experienced at least one time by 43% of teens, aged 13 to 17. Teens report that in 77% of the cases the cyberbully is someone they know. Girls claim to have been cyberbullied more than boys – 51% to 37%. NCPC Cyberbullying Research Report, 2006 A survey conducted by NCPC in Feb 2006 of a nationally representative sample of 824 middle and high school students aged 13 through 17 participated in an online survey.

Who Bullies and Who gets Bullied? Children who bully Can come from any economic, cultural, or religious background Are often in late elementary or middle school Highlight the characteristics common to children and youth who are bullied. They often stand out as different in some way due to their appearance (weight, size, clothes, disability), sexual orientation, intellect, socio-economic background, or cultural or religious background. National Crime Prevention Council

National Crime Prevention Council Children Who Bully Lack empathy Are concerned with their own desires rather than those of others Find it difficult to see things from someone else’s perspective Are willing to use others to get what they want National Crime Prevention Council

Common Characteristics Among Youth Who Are Bullied These children often stand out as different in some way because of - Appearance - Sexual orientation - Intellect - Socio-economic background - Cultural or religious background National Crime Prevention Council

Personal Attitudes/Behaviors Children who bully Want power Have a positive attitude toward violence Have quick tempers Have difficulty conforming to rules Gain satisfaction from inflicting injury and perceive “rewards” (prestige, material goods) from their behavior Have positive self images National Crime Prevention Council

Common Characteristics Among Youth Who Are Bullied (cont.) Boys and girls are bullied in different ways - Boys are more likely to be bullied physically. - Girls are more likely to be bullied socially. National Crime Prevention Council

How widespread is bullying? The 2008–2009 (National Center for Education Statistics and Bureau of Justice Statistics) indicates that 6% of students in grades 6–12 experienced cyberbullying. The 2011 Youth Risk Behavior Surveillance Survey finds that 16% of high school students (grades 9-12) were electronically bullied in the past year. Research on cyberbullying is growing. Share the statistics on the slide to give participants a sense of the extent of bullying. A study of students in grades 4 to 6 found that 23 percent of the students had been bullied “several times or more” (Melton, 1999). To help put this in perspective, remind participants that 23 percent is nearly one in four young people. Ask them to think about the names of four young people that they know and imagine that one of those young people is a victim of bullying.

The Negative Impacts of Witnessing Bullying More than 50% of teens (ages 12 to 17) witness at least one bullying or taunting incident in school each week (NCPC, 2005). Students in grades 7 to 12 say revenge is the strongest motivation for school shootings; 86% said, “other kids picking on them, making fun of them, or bullying them” can cause teenagers to turn to lethal violence in schools (Cerio, 2001). Emphasize that although most students do not bully others and are not bullied themselves, children and youth often witness bullying. Witnessing bullying has a negative impact on children and youth. Children and youth may fear that they will be the next target of bullying. Youth also see a link between bullying and deadly school violence. If any participant asks if bullying is more common now than in the past, explain that no one really knows. Bullying has traditionally been thought of as a normal part of childhood; only recently has it come to be viewed as a serious problem. The first studies of bullying were conducted by Dan Olweus (Ol-vay-us) in Norway in the 1980s. There are no studies examining bullying from before that time to offer a comparison that would be useful today. National Crime Prevention Council

Signs That a Child is Being Bullied Physical Emotional Behavioral/social Academic Tell the group that when children are bullied, they don’t often tell an adult right away. The child who has been bullied may be embarrassed, or they may think an adult cannot help, or they may fear retaliation from the child or children doing the bullying. However, even if a child does not tell an adult about a bullying problem, there are signs that a child is being bullied. The most important thing adults can do is recognize and act to prevent bullying. National Crime Prevention Council

National Crime Prevention Council Physical Signs Cuts, bruises, scratches Headaches, stomachaches Damaged possessions “Missing” possessions that need to be replaced National Crime Prevention Council

National Crime Prevention Council Emotional Signs Withdrawal and/or shyness Anxiety Depression Aggression National Crime Prevention Council

Behavioral/Social Signs Changes in eating or sleeping habits (e.g., nightmares) No longer wanting to participate in activities once enjoyed Beginning to bully siblings or mistreat family pets Hurting self, attempting or threatening suicide Suddenly changing friends National Crime Prevention Council

National Crime Prevention Council Academic Signs Not wanting to go to school Changing method of going to school (e.g., changing walking route, wanting to be driven instead of riding the bus) Drop in grades National Crime Prevention Council

What To Do About Bullying: Prevention Strategies Strategies for Children who are bullied Children who witness bullying Parents Teachers, counselors, and service providers Schools and community centers Successful prevention is everyone’s business. For the remainder of the presentation you will focus on prevention strategies for those listed on this slide. Before advancing to Slide 23, ask participants what they think is the most effective way a child can deal with bullying. Have individuals share their ideas and write their responses on a flipchart. If a participant offers a response such as “fight back,” write the idea on the flipchart and then ask the participants if they agree that fighting back is an effective strategy. After hearing comments from the participants, point out the negative consequences of fighting back (for example, it could lead to physical injuries or suspension from school). Emphasize that there are many nonviolent strategies to keep children safe and help them manage bullying. For more information on this issue, see the handout in the “Frequently Asked Questions” section at the end of this document. National Crime Prevention Council

Children Who Are Bullied Prevention strategies Tell an adult. Talk it out. Walk away. Distract the bully with a joke. Avoid the bully. Hang out with friends. Discuss the various strategies children and youth can use to deal with bullying. Emphasize that there is no one right way to deal with bullying. Different children will feel comfortable with different strategies, and different bullying situations may call for different courses of action. Children should be familiar with all of these strategies so they can choose the most appropriate one for them. Also emphasize that the objective is not to transfer the responsibility for taking action onto the young person. We teach children and youth these strategies so they can be empowered, but we still need to take action on their behalf whenever we see bullying take place. National Crime Prevention Council

Children Who Witness Bullying Strategies for children witnessing bullying Tell the bully to stop. Help the victim walk away. Recruit friends to help the victim. Befriend the victim. Get an adult. Tell participants that in addition to providing children and youth with strategies to manage bullying if they are victims, we also need to give them ways to deal with bullying that they witness. Remind participants that peers are present in 85 percent of bullying incidents. Observe that mobilizing children who witness bullying is also important because they are effective at stopping bullying. When peers intervene, bullying stops within 10 seconds 57 percent of the time (Hawkins, Pepler, and Craig, 2001). Not only are witnesses effective, but they are willing to intervene. According to one study of 4th through 6th graders, over half of the students indicated that when they see bullying, they try to help the victim or think they should help the victim (Melton et al., 2001). Share strategies witnesses can use: Tell the bully to stop. (“Hey, picking on him isn’t cool.”) Help the victim walk away. (“Sarah, can you come here? I need to ask you a question.”) Recruit friends to help the victim. (“Will you all come with me to help Robert?”) Befriend the victim. (“Maria, do you want to sit with us at lunch?”) Get an adult. (“I think someone needs help.”) National Crime Prevention Council

National Crime Prevention Council Tattling Telling Unimportant Important Harmless Someone being hurt Accidental Purposeful Could solve alone Needs help to solve Trying to get someone in trouble Trying to help someone else National Crime Prevention Council

Children Who Witness Bullying When peers intervene, bullying stops within 10 seconds, 57% of the time. Source: Hawkins, Pepler, and Craig, 2001 Tell participants that as children and youth learn these strategies, they need the opportunity to practice them in a safe environment so they can use them when they see real bullying. Role-playing scenarios give young people the opportunity to take on different roles and practice reacting as children who are bullied or as children who witness bullying. Tell participants that you are going to demonstrate how they can use role playing with young people. Tell them that the role play that you are going to conduct comes from the lesson on bullying in Community Works, a curriculum that is part of NCPC’s teen initiative, Teens, Crime, and the Community. Ask for four volunteers to come to the front of the room. Assign, or ask them to select, roles as the person bullying, the person being bullied, and two witnesses. Share one of the scenarios below and ask the individuals to role play this bullying situation. (Note: You may wish to institute a “no touching” rule with your participants.) Before the actors begin, read the scenario aloud to all participants. National Crime Prevention Council

National Crime Prevention Council Prevention Posters Tell participants that you have just shared numerous strategies to deal with bullying. Ask them to reflect on this information and identify three things that they can do to address bullying. National Crime Prevention Council

NCPC Resources Community Works Helping Kids Handle Conflict Get the Message McGruff Trading Cards Website, www.mcgruff.org and www.stopbullying.gov/what-is- bullying/index.html Training and technical assistance Discovery Education bullying video Distribute the handout that describes resources. Tell the participants that the National Crime Prevention Council has a variety of resources on bullying. These include free trading cards for children that can be ordered through the website www.mcgruff.org. NCPC also has brochures for parents and lesson plans for teachers and community center staff. If possible, obtain copies of some NCPC resources for participants to review. You may also highlight other bullying prevention programs listed on the handout, such as the Take a Stand! Lend a Hand! Stop Bullying Now! campaign and the Olweus Bullying Prevention program. Descriptions of these resources and contact information for requesting additional information are included in the handout.

National Crime Prevention Council Other Resources Olweus Bullying Prevention Program Comprehensive program for schools Training for those implementing the program Stop Bullying Now! U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, Health Resources and Services Administration Take a Stand! Lend a Hand! Stop Bullying Now! Online webisodes and games Resource kit Website, www.stopbullyingnow.hrsa.gov National Crime Prevention Council

National Crime Prevention Council Other Resources National Criminal Justice Reference Service: www.ncjrs.gov National Crime Prevention Council

National Crime Prevention Council The definition of bullying includes the fact that bullying behaviors are repeated over time. How long do acts need to go on before the behavior is considered “bullying”? Although the definition says that acts are repeated over time, action should be taken as soon as any type of bullying is seen. By intervening immediately, we communicate to young people that bullying is not acceptable. National Crime Prevention Council

National Crime Prevention Council 1000 Connecticut Avenue, NW Thirteenth Floor Washington, DC 20036 202-466-6272 www.ncpc.org www.mcgruff.org National Crime Prevention Council