Seven Thoughts on Bullying
I recently gave a keynote where I talked about personalized learning. In order to give a sense of the context, I shared my experience being bullied. I had decided the night before to scrap it from the presentation. I was afraid that they would pick up on insecurities that I might still have as an adult.
Years later, even after counseling and dealing with it in healthy ways, I find myself wanting to hide the story. Instead, I told the story of being thrown into a locker and having my clothes stolen and the sense of despair that I felt in the midst of it.
So, it has me thinking of advice I would give teachers on how to deal with the issue of bullying. Here are a few thoughts:
Years later, even after counseling and dealing with it in healthy ways, I find myself wanting to hide the story. Instead, I told the story of being thrown into a locker and having my clothes stolen and the sense of despair that I felt in the midst of it.
So, it has me thinking of advice I would give teachers on how to deal with the issue of bullying. Here are a few thoughts:
- Know Your Students: It’s hard to find the victims. It is hard to explain the sheer terror of bullying. Your world stops. You feel edgy. It’s harder, still, to explain the shame that results. You feel weak. You have this lingering cycle of, “What’s wrong with me that I’m being targeted?” It’s that shame that keeps bullying secretive. In my case, I wasn’t afraid of speaking out because of retribution. I was afraid of speaking out, because I was afraid of being known.
- Be Vulnerable: I never told an adult, because I never knew of any adults who were bullied. The school