Have you ever bullied or been bullied? If you have bullied or been bullied then you should know how bullying feels like. Bullying is very negative and creates major problems for our society. Nothing good comes out of bullying. It could very well change or ruin a person’s life. In fact, it does ruin many people’s lives. Kids can be mentally scarred if they are teased often. Even worse, they could be killed or fatally injured if the bullying gets extreme. There are many causes for bullying which must be taken care of before bullying can be stopped. T.V. violence, families in poverty, and mis-teachings are just several of the many serious causes for bullying. Bullying must be stopped or prevented no matter how long it will take, it is a deeply concerning matter. Bullying does not always have to be childish play, it can be extremely violent. People may be bruised, injured, or even killed. Kids under bad influence may turn very violent. Parents, relatives, friends, T.V., music and pictures may all influence people, especially when they are depressed or are in a lowered state of mind. Violence on T.V. is a very big influence, particularly the wrestling and fighting shows. Also, T.V. shows are quite readily available for anyone to watch. Kids may try “moves” on people at school because they believe it’s cool. As well, cooperation from childrens’ parents is important, some parents actually encourage their children to fight to look cool or don’t teach them properly. Kids must take their own initiative, as well, they must find out what’s wrong and what’s right for themselves sometimes. Many kids don’t take bullying seriously. However, when a real incident occurs, they are unprepared, shocked, regretful, or dead. Bullying must stop, for it is destroying the lives and futures of many innocents, perhaps not killing them, but ruining them. People may end up physically distorted, paralysed, or dead because of bullying. Aside from physical harm, there is also mental harm. This is equally as destructive. Kids may become extremely depressed from being bullied. As a result, they may refuse to eat, become suicidal, or in return bully other kids to make themselves feel better. Although some of these examples of effects may not seem too serious, they really are. Commonly, there are incidents where bullied students go to school and slaughter many people and eventually kill themselves. For example, several weeks ago Killarney Secondary School had an angered student come to their cafeteria with a knife looking for someone. Dozens of innocent kids have been killed in these types of incidents because one or several kids bullied a student. Most of these incidents occur because a group of kids thought it was cool to bully, or just to show off. These peer pressure incidents caused a great deal of harm and suffering. However, peer pressure is just one of the many reasons bullying occurs. Disfunctional families, being bullied, bad moods, not being taught rights and wrongs are, as well, causes for bullying. As bullying runs amuck, many people will lose their morale, self-confidence, and determination. These people will become lost in despair and may find themselves bullying others which will only create more problems. We must put a stop to bullying. The results of bullying are all negative and very serious. In reality, many bullied people end up with seriously physically injured because people to do no know the extents of bullying. As well, other bullied people may remain in suffering and cower in their homes in fright of bullies. Many of these people have disorders which will “eat” at them till they die. If people are not aware of the potential consequences of bullying, they may have their lives ruined or shattered, or even worse, live to see their family or friends suffer. This bullying must be stopped and prevented before more lives are taken. Word Count: 647

Bullying affects ALL of our children — those who bully, those who are victimized, and those who are witnesses or assistants to interpersonal violence. We can and must reduce this age-old problem.

Bullying is the repeated and ongoing negative action toward one or more students (Olweus, 1993). These negative actions can be direct, as in verbal or physical contact, facial or other body gestures, or indirect, as in the intentional exclusion or refusal to comply with another person's wishes. Bullying occurs when the victim, typically someone viewed as powerless and not retaliatory, is sought out by another, who is characteristically seen as physically powerful or dominant (Rigby, 2002). Hence, bullying may be simply defined as the act of constant aggression toward another individual who lacks the same power.
Who Are the Victims of Bullying? * International and national studies indicate that between 9% and 15% of any student population is a victim of bullying (Horowitz et al., 2004; Malecki, 2003; Nansel et al., 2001; Olweus, 1993; Rigby, 2002). * A U.S. study of more than 15,000 sixth to tenth grade students indicated that 10.6% were victims of bullying (Nansel et al., 2001). * Researchers have found that bullying among adolescents at the middle school level is extensive (Malecki, 2003; Olweus, 1993; Rigby, 2002). * Most victims are identified as physically and socially weaker than their peers (Olweus, 1993). * Even though boys and girls are equally at risk of being bullied, several studies report that middle school boys are more often victimized (Olweus, 2003; Shakeshaft et al., 1997). * Passive victims exhibit reclusive and introverted mannerisms while provocative victims may appear hyperactive, lack concentration, and generally tend to irritate others. Although it may appear that the provocative victim is aggressive, this individual is typically overpowered by the bully and ultimately becomes the victim in the end (National Middle School Association (NMSA), 2001). * Olweus (1993) reported that victims of bullying "often look at themselves as failures and feel stupid, ashamed, and unattractive" (p. 32). * Many adolescents think that teasing, name-calling, shoving, and other harmful actions are just playful pranks (Shakeshaft et al., 1997). This mindset may be reinforced by the adults in their lives. * Pellegrini, Bartini, and Brooks (1999) reported that some adults maintain a belief that students must learn to deal with bullies by themselves (i.e., tough it out). Negative feelings, combined with a mixed array of changes in their bodies, their relationships with their peers and adults, and their emotions increase the risk factors associated with adolescence.
What Coping Mechanisms Are Used by Victims of Bullying? * Depression, isolation, low self-esteem, lack of hope, fear, insecurity, and violent or self-destructive behavior are just a few of the mannerisms evident in victims of bullying (Espelage & Swearer, 2003; Nansel et al., 2001; Olweus, 1993). * Victims of bullying often avoid hallways, restrooms, and even switch schools in an effort to distance themselves from other students (NMSA, 2001). Instead of being visible to others, they will "hang out" in the office, other classrooms, or a secret corner during lunch and break time. * Some students will create a map of safe havens and plan a circuitous route through school to escape being victimized (Wessler, 2003). * Most victims will not report incidence of bullying (Shakeshaft et al., 1997). * Aggressive victims will internalize the continuous victimization until they can no longer cope. Once they have reached their limit, they resort to violence (i.e., shooting a gun, starting a fire, or becoming bullies themselves). Others may choose self-destructive behaviors such as smoking cigarettes, drinking alcohol, or taking drugs (Olweus, 1993).
How Can Educators Instill Resiliency-Building Strategies in Victims of Bullying?
To help middle school victims of bullying break the cycle of despair, it is imperative that the adults in these children's lives take action. Olweus (1993) reiterates this point: "The attitudes, routines, and behaviors of the school personnel, particularly those of the teachers, are decisive factors in preventing and controlling bullying activities, as well as in redirecting such behaviors into more socially acceptable channels" (p. 46). School-wide intervention programs led by caring adults with high expectations and an actively engaging curriculum that includes meaningful literature, collaborative learning, and service learning activities are specific strategies that appear to foster resiliency in victims of bullying.
New and innovative research
A nationally representative study of 15,686 students in grades six through 10, published last year in the Journal of the American Medical Association (Vol. 285, No. 16) is among the most recent to document the scope of bullying in U.S. schools.
In the study, psychologist Tonja R. Nansel, PhD, and colleagues found that 17 percent of students reported having been bullied "sometimes" or more frequently during the school term. About 19 percent reported bullying others "sometimes" or more often. And six percent reported both bullying and having been bullied.
Nansel and colleagues also found that: * Bullying occurs most frequently from sixth to eighth grade, with little variation between urban, suburban, town and rural areas. * Males are more likely to be bullies and victims of bullying than females. Males are more likely to be physically bullied, while females are more likely to be verbally or psychologically bullied. * Bullies and victims of bullying have difficulty adjusting to their environments, both socially and psychologically. Victims of bullying have greater difficulty making friends and are lonelier. * Bullies are more likely to smoke and drink alcohol, and to be poorer students. * Bully-victims--students who are both bullies and recipients of bullying--tend to experience social isolation, to do poorly in school and to engage in problem behaviors such as smoking and drinking. * If you grew up and are functioning in American society, you can probably provide your own definition of bullying and have had some level of personal experience with it. Bullying is an all-too-common human activity that has existed since the beginning of recorded history and is present in most cultures. It is enacted by both boys and girls, as well as women and men. Research suggests that somewhere between 30 percent and 60 percent of American schoolchildren report being bullied. * Bullying hurts. Those who are bullied hate it. They fear it, dread it and try to avoid it. One recent survey found that 58 percent of school children claimed they stayed home from school on at least one day to avoid being bullied. * Bullying is about power. A colleague of ours says, “It’s all about big on little, many on few, smart on less smart, older on younger.” We’re sure you know this fact. At some point, you’ve probably been the smaller one, the younger one or had your interests and feelings unfairly damaged by someone more powerful than you. * The Traditional School Bully
In the drama of the school bully, there are five roles available. You can star as the bully, co-star as the victim or you can play a smaller part as a peer bystander, school official or parent (of the bully, the victim or a bystander). * Most traditional bullying interventions start with the bully. The bully needs to be taught a lesson. And because bullying is inherently unfair, those playing the role of an adult bystander or victim’s parent have a natural urge to teach the bully a lesson through some sort of punishment. * The “punish-the-bully” urge is natural and, unfortunately, ineffective. Think about it. You see a bigger boy picking on a littler boy. You intervene by grabbing the bigger boy by the back of the neck and chewing him out. Yes, your response is natural. Yes, the bigger boy deserved punishment. But ironically, when an adult intervenes in an aggressive or violent manner, the bullying cycle repeats, only this time an older, bigger adult is picking on a younger, smaller bully. * Some anti-bullying strategies focus on the victim, with the hope that the victim can learn effective skills for dealing with bullies. Such interventions try to teach some clever new interpersonal skills. Unfortunately, research and reality generally show that when faced with a big, aggressive bully, most of us can’t recall our cool new skills, and we end up fighting, running, hiding and suffering bruises to our bodies or ego. * As you probably already know, although girls are sometimes physically violent, boys tend to be more physical. They punch, trip, kick and slam each other into lockers. A less-physical form of bullying is more often the bullying-of-choice for girls. This bullying, sometimes called relational aggression, includes spreading vicious rumors, using social exclusion, taunting and other psychologically painful strategies to hurt someone, damage reputations or keep others in line. * New Research on Bullying
It’s not surprising that researchers have discovered we need to do more than punish bullies and support victims. The most recent and compelling research indicates we need to intervene on many levels simultaneously. In other words, bullies, victims, peer bystanders, school personnel and parents all have a role to play in preventing and reducing bullying. Parents should consider the following tips to deter and diminish bullying: • Communicate your concerns about supervision, monitoring and consequences for bullying to your children’s school. • Help your children build a social safety network and encourage them to travel via the buddy system. • Encourage your school to develop anti-bullying social norms for children before middle school; this includes teaching about the difference between tattling and telling. • Help your child’s school use a clear, effective limit-setting system for bullies; bullies need to know exactly what consequences they will suffer if they engage in bullying behavior. • Teach your children anti-bullying strategies. These might include methods for getting the bully on their side, assertiveness skills, humor and conflict-management skills. • Avoid bullying the bully or your own children. One of the ways children learn to be bullies or victims is through their own family experiences. * John and Rita Sommers-Flanagan are both counselor educators at the University of Montana. They are co-authors of “Tough Kids, Cool Counseling.” * For More Information * “The Bully, the Bullied and the Bystander: From Preschool to High School – How Parents and Teachers Can Help Break the Cycle of Violence” by Barbara Coloroso. HarperResource, 2004.. * “Bullying at School: What We Know and What We Can Do” by Dan Olweus. Blackwell Publications, 1993. * “Odd Girl Out: The Hidden Culture of Aggression in Girls” by Rachel Simmons. Harcourt, 2002. * National Youth Violence Prevention Resource Center www.safeyouth.org/scripts/teens/bullying.asp * Project Respect www.dontlaugh.org *
Bullying is a worldwide problem that occurs around us everyday and everywhere. People experience some sort of bullying at some point in their lives, whether they are the victim or the bully. In this essay, I will focus on the causes and effects of bullying in the school environment.

But what exactly is bullying? There are multiple ways to define bullying. It can be described as repeated negative events, which occur over time; directed at a special individual and carried out by one or several people. Bullying is an act of aggression causing embarrassment, pain, or discomfort to another person. It’s an abuse of power that can either be planned or unintentional. In bullying, there’s a clear imbalance of power. Bullying is basically anything that makes a person feel hurt, whether it is physical or psychological. No matter if it is physical or psychological, bullying is wrong. There are two types of bullying. The first type is indirect bullying, which includes intentionally rejecting or freezing someone out of a group. The second type is direct bullying. There are three categories of direct bullying--physical bullying, verbal bullying, and bullying yourself. Physical bullying includes pushing, shoving, hitting, kicking, stealing, etc. Verbal bullying includes mockery, taunting, name-calling, verbal threats of violence, and so on. When you bully yourself, it usually includes emotional abuse. Telling yourself that you’re fat or ugly is an example of bullying yourself. These types of bullying occur everywhere, but the most common place where bullying occurs is at school. Why is the school environment so vulnerable to bullying? I will discuss where and why it occurs in the school environment, as well as the effects it has and how society can prevent bullying. Also, I will describe the common characteristics of bullies and victims.

Bullies are people who need to hurt, threaten, frighten, or control other people. They are often angry, upset, jealous, aggressive, mean, insensitive, and cruel. They usually lack self-confidence and gain confidence and feel powerful by controlling others. Bullies think that being hurtful, aggressive, and frightening is okay. Bullies are often thought of as stupid, although, they are very clever. They have little empathy for their victims and derive satisfaction from inflicting injury and suffering on others. They defend their actions by saying that their victim provoked them in some way. Other characteristics of a bully include being defiant or oppositional towards adults, with a tendency to break school rules. They’re antisocial and have little anxiety. Having a positive attitude about violence and being steered by impulses are some other traits often found in a bully. Although bullies seems to have very high self-esteem, under their aggressive surface they are actually insecure and have very low self-esteem. Children aren’t necessarily always the bullies. Also, men and women, of all ages, can both be bullies.

Bullies often don’t know any good ways of dealing with their problems and/or their parents fight instead of discussing their problems. They often come from homes where physical punishment is used or the parents have taught their children to strike back physically as a way to handle problems. Usually parental involvement and warmth are frequently lacking.

Victims can also be anybody, male or female, and can be of any age. But how do victims get picked? They could be anyone who’s either just in the wrong place at the wrong time or anyone who’s regarded as a “loser.” In general, there are two types of victims: passive victims and resistant victims. In passive victims, there is an acute sense of personal threat, which in most cases is followed by a strong emotional reaction of anxiety, panic, anger, fear, and/or humiliation. Passive victims seek to get away, cry, hide, and perhaps become severely despondent. On the other hand, in resistant victims there will be a sense of threat, unease, and maybe fear. The bullying is seen in a different light. It’s seen as a challenge to be met. Resistant victims may think of escaping, fighting back, acting nonchalantly, seeking help, or even distracting the bully. Although passive victims and resistant victims may react differently to bullying, they share the same qualities and characteristics.

Victims of bullying are shy, timid, afraid, unassertive, lacking in confidence, and people who allow others to control them. They’re anxious, insecure, and cautious. Victims are usually smaller, weaker, and/or younger than their bullies. The school environment is seen as frightening of unfriendly to many victims. They lack social skills and therefore, find it hard to make friends. Victims suffer from low self-esteem and rarely defend themselves in a bullying situation. Another characteristic is being seen as “different.” Being different includes being overweight, wearing glasses, or even being gay. They could simply be the victim because they’re new to the town or to the school. Victims are usually people who are late developers, which means that their bodies haven’t changed or developed yet. They are often clumsy and bad at sports. Also, they have a negative self-image.

People could be the victims of bullying because of their family life. Their family could be either very well off or even the extreme opposite, badly off. This could be a factor of who or who doesn’t gets bullied. Also, a victim could be bullied because their parents are the focus of public attention. For instance, a kid gets bullied at school because his dad is in jail. Victims are often socially isolated and therefore, are close to their parents. Victims’ parents could just simply be overprotective of their son or daughter.

As mentioned earlier, the most common place where bullying occurs is at school. The “hot spots” at school for bullying are in the classroom, on the playground or halls during breaks, and on the way to and from the school. People often wonder why these “hot spots” occur. The many factors that contribute to bullying may explain why bullying occurs more often in certain places than in others. Many people think that the size of the class has an effect on the amount of bullying that happens in the classroom. According to studies, neither the school size nor the class size has any significance for creating an environment where bullying occurs. There’s no proof that a highly populated school suffers from more bullying than a sparsely populated school. Other factors that people believe affect the amount of bullying are poor grades or failing in school. In fact, these factors don’t seem to influence the likelihood of bullying. Factors, such as the family’s economic status, are also not believed to make any difference as to who is bullied or who does the bullying. One factor that seems to diminish the vast amount of bullying that goes on, is whether or not an adult is near during breaks or anytime bullying could occur.

Bullying causes problems that can carry into adulthood both for the victims and the bullies. Bullying tends to increase some students’ isolation. Their peers don’t want to lose status by associating with the bullies. Also, they don’t want to increase the risk of being bullies themselves.

Bullying has a major impact on the victims’ lives. Some victims commit suicide or run away from home. Some victims suffer from depression and stress. People who are bullied often refuse to go to school and find it hard to trust anyone ever again. When the victims get older, they often have difficulty forming relationships. Roughly 7% of America’s eighth-graders stay home at least once a month because of bullying.

The bullies are affected by bullying too. They seem to maintain their behaviors into adulthood, negatively influencing their ability to develop and maintain positive relationships. Approximately 60% of bullies in grades six to nine had at least one criminal conviction by age 24.

How do we, as a society, decrease the amount of bullying that goes on? Especially since teachers and parents are generally unaware of the extent of the problem. Also, other children are either reluctant to get involved or simply don’t know how to help. We need to: develop whole-school bullying policies; implement extra-curricular activities; improve school ground environment; peer counselling; assertiveness training; and provide interventions at the school, class, and individual levels.

Prevention of bullying needs to happen at the school, in class, and at the individual level. As well, bullying can be prevented at home. At the school level there needs to be better supervision of the students’ activities, an attractive outdoor environment, contact phones for the students and the parents, and teacher groups. In the classroom there are many things teachers and students can do. They can make class rules against bullying and have activities that encourage well-being. In the classroom, frequent class councils, co-operative learning, and meetings between the teachers, parents, and students can help to prevent bullying. Teachers or other authorities can have serious discussions with the bully to reduce the amount of bullying that occurs. Any other individual can offer protection to the victim. The victim could simply change to a new class or school. At home, discussion groups can be formed for parents, bullies, and victims. Also, conversations and meeting can be held between the school personnel and the parents.

There are many other ways to reduce the risk of bullying. A physically attractive and stimulating school environment seems to reduce the risk of bullying. A school environment which has a lot of involvement from adults, many positive interests, and warmth, would have less bullying occur than non-attractive schools. Anti-bullying programs, such as parental awareness campaigns and interventions with the bullies and victims, are also effective.

Another way to prevent bullying is to stop the bully itself. There are three approaches to treating a bully. The first approach is the moralistic approach. It requires that the student conforms to the values of the school. The second approach, the legalistic approach, assumes a set of rules, which the bully is expected to be familiar with. The last approach implies listening and establishing two-way communication as an essential element in bringing about change, not only in the bully’s behavior, but also in the bully’s way of thinking and feeling. This is called the humanistic approach.

In conclusion, I think bullying is a very serious problem and I think it can be stopped altogether. I have learned many things about bullying, mostly about the prevention of bullying, and I can’t believe how easy it would be to stop bullying. I’ve been through bullying, both as a victim and a bully, and I think it’s very wrong and hurtful to bully others. I just hope that people everywhere can learn to be less tolerant towards bullying in general. I think it would be great to live in a world where people don’t have to worry about what is going to happen to them, but achieving this would take more than just me.

A report released today links family violence with an increased risk of bullying at public middle and high schools in Massachusetts.

The study from the Massachusetts Department of Public Health and the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention found that students who were both victims of bullying and perpetrators were especially vulnerable. Those students were five times more likely to report that they had been physically hurt by a family member, compared to those who said they were neither a victim nor a bully.
The report is the first to provide such a detailed look at school bullying at the state level, and it comes a year after Governor Deval Patrick signed a law that requires schools to adopt clear procedures for reporting and investigating cases of bullying, as well as methods for preventing retaliation against those who report problems.
The study found that students who said they were both victims and bullies were significantly more likely than either victims or perpetrators to report they had either seriously considered suicide in the past 12 months or attempted it.
"Sometimes, people who we have thought of as perpetrators are actually very vulnerable themselves," said Massachusetts public health commissioner John Auerbach said.
Auerbach's department conducted the survey, and CDC researchers helped analyze the data.
The findings indicate that a quarter of middle schoolers and 16 percent of high school students surveyed said they had been bullied in the past year at school.
It also found that 13 to 15 percent of victims who said they'd been bullied also reported they had either witnessed violence in their families in the previous year or been physically hurt by a family member.
The percentages were significantly higher among bullies and those who said they were both bully and victim. At the high school level, 31 percent of students who said they were both a perpetrator and a victim reported having witnessed violence in their family in the past year.

Bullying statistics
One more necessary component of persuasive essays about bullying is statistics. Here is some statistical data that can help make essays on bullying more strong and convincing: 1. According to statistics, bullying is widely spread in 5 top states: * California; * New York; * Illinois; * Pennsylvania; * Washington. 2. In October 2008, 23% of elementary school students became the victims of bullying. 3. 8% of students miss 1 day of class per month for fear of being bullied; 4. 282,000 students are bullied physically in secondary schools each month. http://blog.course-works.com/2008/12/22/help-with-writing-essays-about-bullying/ By age 24, 60% of bullies have a criminal record. Bullying has not only ruined the lives of victims, but the bullies themselves too. Students all over the world are verbally and physically assaulted by their peers every day. At school, bullies rip their victim's self-esteem to shreds while theirs is sky high. While bullying is seemingly impossible to defeat, it can be overturned. This is possible if parents get involved, students are taught how to identify and stop bullying, and if individuals stand up for and support the victims. These many solutions will most definitely bring bullying to its demise.

* Communicate. Create an environment at home where honest communication can take place. Whether it be the dinner table, the living room or in the car, there should be someplace and time where your student feels free to discuss what matters most in their lives without the fear of being lectured or judged. Students are learning as they go and need a place to openly discuss what’s happening. It may take you asking open ended questions. It’s not a quick process. It’s going to take time to build that relationship, so the earlier you start, the better! If you build that bridge before something happens, they will most likely involve you after something happens. * Love, love, love! Never let your child doubt your love and devotion to them. They need be aware of the fact that they can never lose that love and acceptance from you. You are their shepherds- guiding, protecting, and leading them to adulthood. No matter what a student says to their parent, they need and crave that love from them. * Allow them to participate in the solution. So often, our first reaction is to take care of the problem. But that can complicate the issue. Part of adolescence is learning to deal with aggressive and confrontational people. If at all possible, partner with your child to just that. If they aren’t in physical or emotional danger; allow them to handle it with your supervision. Give them the tools to handle situations and then let them do that.

According to the topnews.us * The Governor, Deval Patrick has introduced a law. According to the law, thebullying in schools has to be reported and investigated. The schools will be required to follow strict procedures to stop the bullying in their premises. * The authorities at the schools in the Massachusetts have assured that they will make sure that the bullying in the schools is immediately stopped. They also confirmed that they will work with the government officials to invent new preventive procedures for bullying. Hopefully the changes in the law will provide the required relief from bullying for the children, parents and authorities.