The status of your school’s anti-bullying policy is!….

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At the very least, the issue of school bullying is a human rights issue (Shute & Slee, 2022). Historically (Slee, Campbell & Spears, 2013), adults’ views have been privileged over those of children, but the 1989 UN Convention on the Rights of the Child, ratified by Australia in January, 1991 drew attention to the rights children and young people have and which should be upheld.   For example Article 19 in the United Nations Convention of the Rights of the Child  :“Children have the right to be protected from being hurt and mistreated, physically or mentally”.

Guidelines for Developing a School Anti-Bullying Policy & Grievance Procedure:

The following guide-lines are based on the author’s experience and research.

Process: (i) initial consultation with key stake-holders including students, parents, teachers, community members (ii) drafting/reviewing the policy involving key stakeholders (iii) launching the policy into the classroom & school (iv) disseminating the policy eg newsletters sent home, inclusion in school diaries, uploaded onto school website etc  (v) evaluation and review

Content of an Anti-Bullying Policy

·       Reference to the rights of individuals eg UN Declaration

·       A statement of the school’s anti-bullying stance eg school’s mission statement

·       A statement regarding the proactive personal responsibilities of all members of the school community to be sensitive to bullying and to act to prevent it

·       A plain language definition of bullying

·       Identification of types of bullying incl. cyberbullying

·       A commitment to regularly review/update the policy

·       Reference to the ‘grievance’ /reporting procedure’ to follow if an incident occurs (this may be a separate document)

Content of a grievance procedure

As generally described a grievance procedure is a means of dispute resolution

·       a consultative process involving all members of the school community

·       The procedure should be in plain language considerate of the developmental level of the students eg primary vs secondary students

·       The steps to follow in the event of a bullying incidents should be limited in number

·       The steps should be explicit eg who to report to eg classroom teacher

·       There should be a commitment to the students that there will be a follow up when the incident is reported

·       The procedure should involve a written record of the incident when it is logged

·       The student’s care-giver/parent should be notified

IDEAS FOR SCHOOLS & CLASSROOMS.  Consider how long has it been since your school reviewed its anti-bullying policy and grievance procedures?

IDEAS FOR SCHOOLS & CLASSROOMS.  Is your schools’ anti-bullying policy prominently displayed in your classroom? Are there copies displayed around the school?

References

Shute, R. H., & Slee, P. T. (2022). School bullying and marginalisation: Harmonising  paradigms. Singapore: Springer Nature.

Slee. P.T. , Campbell, M., & Spears, B. (3rd.edt.)(2012). Child, Adolescent and Family Development. Melbourne.  Cambridge University Press. 

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