One School; Four Deaths

One school, four bullying related deaths in recent years. Over 10,000 comments on this one news story.

Think bullying isn't an issue to be concerned about? Think kids just need to "grow up" and deal with things on their own? Think people have been overreacting in the last few weeks with the media blitz on bullying?

Think again. I don't even know where to begin...

CNN Bullying Resources

Bullying has taken over many news reports over the last few weeks, and conversations about bullying are happening all across the country. Almost every single news feed I subscribe to via RSS had at least one article relating to bullying in the last two weeks. Many news sources have devoted entire sections to the issue, or are choosing to run a special series of articles, videos, and other resources devoted to the topic in order to cover the recent tragedies involving bullying that have occurred in the United States.

Leading the charge in my RSS feeds have been CNN and the blog of Anderson Cooper 360, the website companion of the nightly news show Anderson Cooper 360, or AC360.

Each website contains video, articles, opinion pieces, and resources relating to general bullying as well as to specific bullying cases. I was originally going to embed each video in this post, but there are simply too many! Please check out these resources! Each part of the website will in turn link you to other parts. This would be a great idea for a webquest in class or a homework assignment where students have to dig through all the current information on bullying.

In the past, I have used clips from AC360 in my health classes. Last year I used a segment about the suicide of Carl Walker-Hoover. I believe I used one on smoking advertisements as well, but that may have been from another news source.

Check out CNN's special section Stop Bullying: Speak Up! as well as posts on the AC 360 Blog relating to bullying.

No One Should Feel Alone, Part III: PFLAG

I was first informed about PFLAG (Parents, Families, & Friends of Lesbians and Gays) in my senior year of college when my advisor gave us a bunch of information about the organization. Realizing the need to be aware of a variety of resource groups for teenagers, she thought it would be beneficial for future educators to be aware of PFLAG and what it offers.

PFLAG is, according to their website, "A national non-profit organization with over 200,000 members and supporters and over 500 affiliates in the United States." PFLAG is a grassroots network that receives support via a national office in Washington, D.C. as well as numerous regional boards.

PFLAG sets out to, "Promote the health and well-being of lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender persons, their family and friends through: support, to cope with an adverse society; education, to enlighten an ill-informed public; and advocacy, to end discrimination and to secure equal civil rights."

A chapter of PFLAG exists in every single state in the United States, totaling 350 chapters all across the country. Finding one is as easy as accessing their website and entering search criteria. Ten such chapters exist in Massachusetts. Additionally, the PFLAG website contains a list of specific issues relating to the LGBT population, and what advocacy efforts individuals can take on to raise awareness of such issues. Information about education programs is also provided on the organization's website. PFLAG has separate sections on their websites for family members and friends of LGBT loved ones, for gay, lesbian, and bisexual individuals, and a transgender network as well.

PFLAG is a perfect example of the saying, "You Are Not Alone." Their local chapters provide opportunity for individuals seeking support for themselves or someone they care about. This, combined with PFLAG's online resources and commitment to advocacy, make PFLAG a "must-know" as a teacher working with youth at any level.

No One Should Feel Alone: Ellen's Reaction

Last week, Ellen DeGeneres spoke out about the recent bullying related suicides of gay teenagers. While not a resource (those posts are coming up later), Ellen's message is brief and heartfelt. It can definitely be shown in the classroom to stimulate discussion about all that has gone on in the past few weeks.

Please watch the video below:

No One Should Feel Alone

I'm a twenty-four year old, straight, white, male teacher. I was raised in a middle class family who lived in a small, rural suburban town with one traffic light that was almost always green. I have a twin sister who I basically always got along with other than typical sibling things, and two loving parents who aren't divorced. Growing up, people joked about making my family's life into a sitcom. I could go on about my life during college and after college, but I want to stay focused on when I was younger.

I write this because I have no experience with my parents getting divorced, or drug addiction within my family, coming out of the closet, or suicidal thoughts. My life has been, for lack of better words, utterly plain and free of emotionally trying events (well, except for one thing I won't mention). Things have always seemed to work out for me in basically every area of my life, and if they haven't worked out the way they were "expected" to work out, they ended up working out better for me in the long run.

So, how the heck can I help a student who is going through something completely different than what I went through growing up? The student who takes care of their younger siblings because mom or dad is working all the time, or because their parents are suffering from addiction...the closeted gay teenager who is trying to find a balance between fitting into the socially accepted mold of heterosexuality while staying true to themselves...the young girl trying to measure up to the expectations of her parents that she act just like her sister...a student who has lost a parent or sibling...

This is a question I often wrestle with. But ultimately, when students approach me to talk, they don't care about my past or what I have or have not been through. They simply want someone to listen with a set of ears and with an open heart. Providing those two things is the first step. I am by no means an expert or a counselor, and refer students appropriately as needed to other resources. While I've never had to deal with anything that is threatening, I think every issue a teenager wants to talk about is of the utmost importance and should be treated as such.

Recently the media has focused on the suicides of gay teenagers over the last week or so. The suicide of Tyler Clementi has brought at least four other suicides, all of gay young people in the last three weeks, to the attention of the major news media. A few years ago, there was a media blitz about shark attacks, even when statistically, the number of attacks was about the same (or less, if I recall) as usually reported. Columbine, 9/11, the Gloucester "Pregnancy Pact"...major events that brought something specific into our consciousness. In this situation, the event happens to be bullying of gay teenagers. I don't know the statistics, but if this event hadn't captured the event of the national media, there will still be teenagers struggling with thoughts of suicide every single day across the country.

It shouldn't take events like this to make us, as a nation, to address issues that affect thousands of people every single day. As a health teacher, I am all about prevention and not reaction. Bullying is already a hot topic in Massachusetts, and after the events of the last few weeks I'm sure there will be a focus on helping teenagers in need. Hopefully, this is not short lived. While I am happy that issues are being addressed, I'm still perplexed that it takes something major to happen for a dialogue to begin.

This week, I'm going to focus on identifying resources teenagers can use to get help with any sort of problem they might be dealing with. As educators, it is our responsibility to take care of our students. Many students come to us because they don't feel comfortable going to anyone else.

The posts that you will see published this week have been written on Sunday, and will be published automatically as the week progresses. Please forward any information as you see appropriate, and pass it along to your students. I may only get approximately fifty views a week, but if anyone of those fifty people can spread along information that can help someone else then I will have considered these posts successful.

Carry on, friends. No one needs to feel alone.

John Halligan Presentation

Today John Halligan gave three presentations to all of our students. My class schedule originally didn't allow me to go at all, but my principal was able to get me coverage for one of the presentations. Seeing as I teach about bullying, this was a no-brainer!

Mr. Halligan's presentation was unlike anything I have ever seen before. There were no gimmicks, no cheesy pep-talks. Halligan's weapon is his own personal experience and his pain, displayed through nothing other than raw emotion, over the suicide of his thirteen year old son due to bullying. This occurred back when cyberbullying was just really starting to be talked about, and when bullying laws weren't in consideration in a lot of states.

Halligan's message was unique because he was honest, choosing to tell things as they were and without any sugarcoating. Audience members could see pain on his face and hear hope in his voice. Admitting to wanting to kill the kid who was the main cyber-bullying culprit against his son, Halligan then recalls how living with that hate was no way for him to live his life. In meeting with the girl who was also a main bullying culprit, Halligan offers his own story of the difficulties of forgiveness and the hope that someday, bullying will end. That girl, Ashley, even appeared on national television with Halligan to talk about the incident and how it has affected her.

Halligan's efforts helped create the Vermont Bullying Prevention Bill, and he was successful in leading passage of another law requiring mandatory suicide prevention education in Vermont public schools. His presentation also focuses on the effects bullying had not only on Ryan, but on the rest of his family as well. Throughout the presentation tears were shed by both students and faculty, and the post-activity discussion in individual classrooms was hopefully another chance for students to decompress after the emotional presentation. With the new focus in Massachusetts on bullying due to the new bullying law, it's hoped that students will take this message and really work to change the culture of bullying that plagues adolescence.

You may view some video clips on Halligan's website from shows such as Oprah, Primetime with Diane Sawyer, and PBS Frontline. I will say that the clips do not tell the whole story, and do not do John Halligan justice. The power of his presentation cannot be captured in video clips.

During his presentation, Halligan offered to students that all it takes is one person to tell someone to stop bullying for a difference to be made. One person to take a stand and help someone in need; one person to become an ally; one bystander who chooses to take a risk in helping someone else. The middle school students who left the presentation today should all challenge themselves to be that one person. And if that can happen, then we're getting somewhere.

Cartoon Network Tackles Bullying

Bullying has been all over the news in Massachusetts the last few months, and many of the headlines have gained attention nationally. Bullying is a hot topic (the teenage pregnancy of 2010, as I say), and viewpoints about the issue run the gamut.

Today it was announced the Cartoon Network is planning an anti-bullying campaign directed at middle school students. As Neil Swidey mentioned in a recent piece for the Boston Globe Magazine (and many anti-bullying curricula address) the role of the bystander in bullying situations is critical in defusing bullying situations (see an earlier post of mine in the topic). By focusing on the role of the bystander, the network is going to feature anti-bullying content directly in their cartoons, advertisements, and an online curriculum. CNN is partnering with Cartoon Network to provide information for parents to supplement the information kids receive. As mentioned in the article linked above, the "bridging of generations" is a unique element to this campaign. It's fighting a two front war on bullying, and as Hitler found out, two front wars are tough to fight if you're in the middle.

Bullying has always been around, and the attitudes prevalent when adults were children may not apply anymore. Today's middle school students have to deal with around the clock access to bullying through technology: cell phones, Facebook, and other media devices are all culprits in today's bullying age; not to mention the "old fashioned" methods. Cartoons have also been around for a while, and this process is simply taking something that currently exists and tweaking it to fit a need of the times.

I give a big thumbs up to the network for going after this topic after a poll of their audience (children) listed bullying as a main concern...which was not at the top of the list for parents. The campaign plans to use teachable moments in their cartoons, and the online component will contain more information too. Teachable moments might as well be under my interests on Facebook...I point them out whenever I can, about any topic (even unrelated to health), in my classroom. I will point out that this does not replace the need for parents to have timely, important conversations with their children about bullying and other loaded adolescent issues.

Efforts like this on a variety of health topics are needed in order to address the multitude of issues facing today's youth. There are clearly companies willing to tackle the tough issues. We need more motivated, enthusiastic, outside-the-box-thinking individuals to step up to the box! The Cartoon Network and CNN partnership could be a precedent for the future. Imagine the combinations that could be formed to tackle issues!

Recent Bullying In the News

Neil Swidey wrote a piece for the Boston Globe Magazine this weekend about stopping bullies, and examined varying viewpoints on effective/ineffective bullying prevention programs. I've always like Swidey's pieces, and he certainly brings up some valid points about bullying prevention in schools. Swidey focuses on the role of bystanders in bullying situations, something we talk about in sixth grade health. The curriculum we use for bullying prevention is a familiar one, Aggressors, Victims, and Bystanders. This is a research based curriculum used in schools all over the country. Numerous government organizations sing its praises, and it gets high marks from independent reviewers. Due to adding more to our curriculum, we don't get to cover all of the lessons in AVB, so we combine them when we can in order to get as much out as possible.

To be honest, I'm not the biggest fan of AVB. Don't get me wrong, it has its good parts. In my opinion, the best part about AVB is their focus on the three roles people play in any given bullying situation: the aggressor (bully), victim, and bystander. I tend to try to emphasize the role of a bystander, and their ability to either positively or negatively influence a bullying situation. This, combined with strategies students can use to prevent issues from happening, is great information for students to know.

While the material and content in any curriculum might stay the same over time, I feel the way AVB is presented is outdated. For this trimester, I'll most likely try to reproduce the handouts to make them more appealing to this age group while still maintaining the integrity of the curriculum objectives. I'm surprised the publishers of AVB, Teenage Health Teaching Modules, haven't updated the curriculum at all. Talking about portable CD players and rollerblades doesn't really stick with the kids in my classroom.

I do think, as Swidey mentions in his article, that most anti-bullying programs (AVB being one) make standing up to a bully seem "Overly simplistic." If teachers present information to students that seems to be unrealistic, then they're going to zone out. As teachers, we need to engage in conversations with students, understand their beliefs/perceptions/influences, and then go from there. Some students of mine really do believe that anything can be talked out if both sides are willing to do so. Others hear that and laugh, literally. This may be one reason this statement can be so shocking: "None of the current anti-bullying programs, despite their fanfare, have been successful in reducing actual bullying among American students in a meaningful way." Determining why this happens is beyond the scope of this post, and the theories behind what is effective or ineffective are as numerous as there are people. Maybe, right now, someone is figuring that answer out.

The bigger news story around here is Governor Deval Patrick signing an anti-bullying bill into Massachusetts law. With it comes the requirement for all schools to provide "age appropriate instruction on bullying prevention," as well as professional development relating to bullying for all staff. I briefly discussed this change with my principal today, and will likely discuss it with our curriculum director at our meeting later this week. It will be interesting to see the changes that schools across the commonwealth make as a result of this bill! Check back for later posts as we develop a plan to meet the needs of this new law.

As always, please feel free to e-mail me with questions, comments, or concerns.

Phoebe Prince

It appears school lunches and bullying are both hot topics this year, especially with the local, highly publicized story regarding the suicide of 15 year old Phoebe Prince. This media firestorm first occurred back in January and with the recent news that charges have been made, it's back again.

Nine teenagers have been charged with various crimes relating to the death of Prince, which are explained in detail in the linked articles below. The articles share the same common information: unrelenting bullying of Phoebe, kids and teachers who were aware of what was going on, and a fired up public. If you haven't figured it out by now, I don't rehash articles that already have the information for you. So, they're linked below. If a study or article comes out on its own, I'll do a more in depth review (like the New England Journal of Medicine article on salt) but when so many articles appear in a certain amount of time, I just add my thoughts.

Here's an editorial by Boston Globe columnist Kevin Cullen. It's more, uh, blunt than the other reports. Next, the actual articles in the Boston Globe, the Washington Post, and the New York Times. A brief story also appeared in the Springfield Republican.

It's no secret that bullying happens. In order for bullying to stop, students need to learn the skills of how to properly handle a bullying situation. What should someone do if they are being teased or bullied? What can they do as a bystander who witnesses bullying happening? Why do kids bully anyway? To me, this might be the most important question. Part of our sixth grade curriculum includes Aggressors, Victims, and Bystanders. It's a little dated, but my favorite part deals with what students can do as a bystander to a bullying situation, and how they can either prolong the bullying or help end it. We also discuss that choosing not to do anything at all is a decision that has its consequences, as many people in South Hadley have found out. Students should also learn other important life skills, such as self-esteem, communication skills, goal setting, decision making, support networks...all of which can tie into anti-bullying units.

I'm up in the air about the new legislation in Massachusetts regarding bullying because it places most of the blame in one place. Parents are still responsible for their kids, and administrators have so much on their plate already. I'm not saying teachers and administrators should not report bullying behavior (they NEED to do something about it) but I think there are more proactive ways to handle this issue, which is another post in itself! I do like the part about attempting to change the climate of a school, and ultimately, teachers need to be aware of what constitutes bullying versus simple teasing (many may argue there is no such thing as simple teasing). However, so much of bullying can occur outside of school, where teachers and administrators are not responsible for the behavior of their students. I read a report about a parent who paid two boys fifty dollars each to "take care" of someone bullying his daughter. What kind of example does this set? When bullying does occur in school, it's often (not always) very subtle. Teenagers are masters at keeping their behavior discrete. By the time it's being taken care of, another incident is probably occurring. It's a never ending battle; at least it will be until we start changing the culture of a school and community. It is going to be a multi-faceted effort, involving schools, parents, community organizations, and more. Sounds like a great opportunity for schools to work within their coordinated school health programs!

NOTE: I picked up Queen Bees and Wannabes at Borders this weekend, along with a few other books. I'm hoping to start it this week, but with middle school, track, and class all very busy right now, it might have to wait until the weekend.