Teenage deaths from Bullying

[Polyal]

Originally Posted by BradEL

If only it was that easy, during my last year and a half at high school the school introduced free WiFi and then made it compulsory go bring a smart device to many lessons. Instead of giving out excercises on paper it was all on the Google drive, work was also submitted to teachers online in many subjects. I dunno about in aussie but here a lot of schools are going that way with a large amount all ready having the majority of lessons using smart tech, even primary schools are doing it apparently.
It's likely that more and more use of technology will come into play in schools, so it is going to make monitoring online behavior even harder.

There is just no solution to this problem that comes to mind that solves all the problems brought up in this thread. Teenagers just need a good support circle of friends as well as older role models (not nessicarily parents) that they can look to for advice and support if they are bullied.
It reminds me of an old Simpson's episode
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Its OT but you shoudlnt be using a phone for that anyway.

We can go to Mars but we cant control WiFi at a school? I think we can, you can easily ban phones aswell but the schools need to follow through, not just bark about it.

[BENT_8]

We had a parent teacher interview at the end of last term, during the meeting the home class teacher expressed her frustration at the problem of phone use during class time.
I asked her why schools allow them to have phones during class, we didnt need them in our day.
She said the school was hesitant to remove phones because parents would go off about it saying it was their emergency life line etc.
She said she could take the phone from our son during lessons but only if we gave concent, which i did before she finished the sentence.

[PepeLePew]

My daughter is 13 and riding so many waves at (now) high school, and you just can't help but feel utterly powerless as a parent. They're all different, my others have a confidence and sense of themselves which will protect them. You can't help but feel you've failed them somehow. Every day i think, support and remain close as I can to get her through these years. The bully types spot children like her a mile away, their difference, their sensitivity, their vulnerability. Yet oddly it's often those they are closest to which turn and hurt the most.

[raised by monkeys]

Didn't read all of the above, but some observations from my work in schools and community services, particularly working with young people aged 10 -15 is their exposure to inappropriate material; whether directly or indirectly. For example, the number of kids that I work with in primary schools who play GTA 5 amongst other, watch horror movies and whose parents' mouths who don't have filters; and those kids bring that to school.

A lot parents seem to lack the inability to monitor a child's exposure, where they can develop unhealthy constructions of sex, relationships, interactions with others and what is heroic etc. Also placing this responsibility in some way to the community. History has many examples of community raising children (indigenous Australian is a great example). Exposure to material on mainstream and social media is atrocious. But kids who tell me the ins and outs of the 'collector' movies and 'freddy got fingered' is an absolute joke.

I did have an upbringing in the 80/90's hype of action stars and was given a day off school to watch total recall (albeit; dad was receiving chemo treatment and was 50/50 at the time and used to do body building - and I was competing in karate and training for black belt grading at 14 since aged 7) but I had parents who had the ability to relate this information. Some parents misconstrue this and don't explain, deconstruct ridiculous misconceptions of male masculinity and its impact on their children.

Imagine a kid hearing rim job for the first time. Google is their new dictionary...

We also hover around blurred lines of the impact of attachment disorders to parent figures and other mental health issues leading to attention issues; but simply put, I think a lot of parents refuse to be accountable for a healthy upbringing of children due to their own unhealthy developments as children, and due to accountability/policy issues the community feels forced to turn a blind eye. Schools can only attend to so much, but parental education/realisation I see a larger part of a solution.

Complex issue with various factors and I feel or the victims and perpetrators, and their families.

[snopony]

Ive managed to also teach my child that if they are feeling that they are bullied, to look at the person doing the bullying and realise that they are a product of what they are exposed too.... without mincing words, its enabled them to look at the bully and think to themselves that they are only acting out that way because their homelife is prett *********d up. wich has given my child the ability to realise its not really them as a person the bully is aiming at. Its helped greatly. of course if violence is involved, yes, go to the teacher etc.

[blueoval]

I concur with what you are saying Shaun. Well said. I don't even know what a rim job is unless its speaking along the lines of a car. Excuse my personal ignorance. haha

The sad fact is, parents are being taught what they have been taught and it goes down from generation to generation, each time the values become more blurred, misconstrued and warped. Almost like chinese whispers. With the saturation of electronic gadgetry, social media, gaming & internet, the lines get scrubbed and redrawn with different agendas.

I fear for the future to be honest.

[superyob]

Nobody's fault but parents who can't get their spit together...

[Road_Warrior]

Sister in law was having issues with her eldest (8yo) and his behaviour at home, being aggressive and swearing at her, he was fine on school holidays but as soon as he went back to school the behaviour started. She called one of those helplines and talked through some of his behaviour and they advised that it sounded like he was being bullied at school as it was classic behavioural symptoms for his age from being bullied, a few pertinent questions to the boy soon flushed out what the problem was, she went in to visit the Principal of the school to lodge a formal complaint and apparently if a bullying complaint is made they now have no choice (in WA apparently, dunno about other states) but to look into it and put a “management plan” in place. Then, for whatever reason, the boy who was doing the bullying and his family left town/moved away. I’m not sure what the status of the matter is now.

Supervisor/Manager at work was having issues with his 11yo daughter being bullied, not sure whether by one student or more, she was getting to the stage of being hysterical and not wanting to go to school because of it, after his wife complained to the daughter’s teacher and it seemed to fall on deaf ears, he went to the Principal and threatened to make a formal complaint to the Education Department unless they did something about the bullying, then surprise surprise, the “issue” was being “managed” by the school with the bully child’s parents.

I guess the message here is find out where you stand in terms of the process they use, and arm yourself with facts beforehand so you can’t get fobbed off.

[CoupeKing]

You may not have been bullied....but did you stick up for the kids that were?

[LTDHO]

Bullying is nothing new, more than likely since the caveman.

It is dealt with differently now, bit by the victim and the bully.

(I'm sounding old but) kids seem to get away with a lot today than what I would have back in my day. Most kids then would consider the punishment (and if they think they can get away with it) first, even if for a second. Today no punishment exists so nothing to think about, just do.