In 101 Facts about Bullying, Dr. Robin D'Antona and Dr. Meline Kevorkian have crafted a down-to-earth and useful guide to a number of basic facts about bullying, its causes, and its consequences. This book could be useful for parents and for children interested in learning more about bullying and how it is related to issues such as school climate, teaching, interventions, and prevention. The layout of the book lets the reader jump easily to the facts most pertinent for them and many readers should find that an appealing characteristic. The book is not an exhaustive analysis of the research literature, but rather it pulls out the most concrete and relevant issues in bullying and presents them one at a time.
Research has suggested that many students are and will continue to be bullied. We live in a social world, and this is especialy true in school. One hundred percent of children are touched by bullying as a victim, perpetrator or bystander.
The behavior should not be tolerated or dismissed, especially when their consequences reach far beyond the classroom.
The research is consistent that bullying and teasing create a fear and concern for safety that retards and stop the learning process and may have long-lasting negative effects.
In a recent study, 77 percent of students said they have been billied, and 14 percent of those who have been bullied said they have experienced severe reactions to the abuse.
According to Hostile Hallways: Bullying, Teasing and Sexual Harassement in School (2001), in a national sample, 8 percent of boys and 79 percent of girls said they have been bullied.
We seem to have full agreement that talking about drogs, alcohol, and peer pressure is a must for our youth. Our children are very vulnerable and can overwhelmed and intimidated by general peer and school preasure. When bullying and teasing enter the equation, schools become a place of survival rather than a place of learning. Too often, our children are feeling like nobody can help when it comes to bullying. They often see it happening and don’t know what to do resolve the problem.
We have all seen infomercials and ads that talk about the importance of talking with our children about drugs an alcohol. We must do the same thing when it comes to protecting their self esteem, over-all well-being and sense of belonging. Bullying involove both physical and mental components. One of the best things that we can do to combat bullying is to ask kids what they think. When we ask them about their school day we must ask about the unstructured part of the day. Ask questions such as: Who did you sit with at lunch? How often are kids bullied in your school? What happens to kids who are bullied? What happens to bulliers?
This is an user-friendly, accessible, and well-organized resource. The authors stress that prevention is the responsibility of all adults who work with children. This book provides 101 short, informative articles covering the research on bullying; defining the practice; victims; bullies; bystanders; cyberbullying; media and video violence; the consequences and legal ramifications of bullying, and prevention. The format will lend itself well to group discussions and give teachers and others who work with young people a solid basis upon which to explore the issues surrounding this prevalent problem. Each chapter also has a list of resources and citations that provide opportunities for additional exploration. This volume would make a great addition to professional collections, along with Barbara Coloroso’s The Bully, the Bullied, and the Bystander (HarperCollins, 2003), Carol McMullen’s Creating a Bully-Free Classroom (Scholastic, 2005), or Elizabeth A. Barton’s Bully Prevention: Tips and Strategies for School Leaders and Classroom Teachers (Corwin, 2006).
The straightforward language is used to dispel the many myths about bullying and to drive home the point that bullying is harmful and should never be accepted by our society. If every parent of a child in school read this book, our schools would be much safer places.
The book was not yet translated in Romanian language, but may be bought physical or electronic from:
http://www.amazon.com/101-Facts-about-Bullying-ebook/dp/B0025KVPP2.