Bullying and ‘buts’

By Winged Rodent

A tutor once told me “everything before the word ‘but’ is a lie.”

For example:
I’d love be at the meeting, but…
It’s an interesting essay, but…
I wish I could go to your bagpipe recital, but…

And the list goes on and on.
I believed that for a while and then learned the hard way, sometimes what is said beforehand is not a lie, and sometimes that “but” is incredibly justified.

The PPTA is an organisation that has been known for taking this approach. The notorious “PPTA But”.
The PPTA But was a real learning curve for me because I discovered a world where, sadly, the ‘but’ is often necessary. Teachers often find themselves in a position where they are presented with well-intentioned initiatives BUT they need the time, support and resources to help carry them out. This is not damning with faint praise, often (though not always) these initiatives have schools’ best interests at heart- they just need to be seen through a more practical lens to be of any use to teachers.

This is how I see the Government’s latest anti-bullying initiative. It’s a great idea ‘but’ teachers will need more resources and support for it to actually work.

And the words before the ‘but’ are definitely not a lie. I really do think it’s a great idea.
The sad fact of the matter is that bullying is a serious problem in New Zealand schools. It’s an insidious thing, we live in a culture where, in some circles, persecuting someone because of their race, sexuality, weight, height, social status, whatever… is an accepted norm, and it’s great to see something being done to negate that. Focusing on de-normalising these behaviours is a great thing, but it’s a responsibility that needs to be shared, and supported.

Back in 2000 a government staffing review group found that students needed greater levels of care and guidance and recommended extra staffing hours and teacher support be provided to help achieve this. This hasn’t happened.

So while resources to combat bullying are great, resourcing is also needed to help teachers work with them.
 This is where the ‘but’ comes in. Something needs to change, but if we really want to change it, we can’t do things by halves.

Bullying is nothing new. As long as there have been schools there have been bullies, what has changed now is that it’s more pervasive. What started as scraps in the playground, notes passed in class and hurtful messages on toilet walls, has moved outside of the school. Text messaging means abusive messages can reach kids wherever they are at any time. Even in the middle of the night, on the celphone they keep under their pillow. Chatrooms and instant messaging mean instead of being ignored in the lunchroom or mocked in front of classmates, young people can be ostracised on a larger and more permanent scale. The World Wide Web means if it’s on the internet it’s there for the world to see.

How can teachers be expected to combat this? It is happening outside of school but its effects are felt as soon as those young people enter the school walls. It’s hard enough dealing with the problems that arise in school hours. Teachers can’t be police, parents and counsellors – at least not without a lot more support and resources.

This is something that needs to be done through teamwork. Families need to play a part, and teachers need more support to be able to play theirs.
It’s not a lie, this is a great idea – ‘but’ we still have a way to go yet.