Verbal Bullying

In a 2018 survey of 9,000 people ages 12 to 20, 10 percent said they were bullied each day and more than 50 percent said they were bullied at least once a month. ¨A bully is a person who uses strength or power to harm or intimidate those who are weaker¨, according to The Google Dictionary. Bullies, as we know them, are continuing to increase their strength. As multiple recent movies and TV shows have brought to light, bullies continue to rule schools. Adults need to start taking it more seriously.

Adults tend to say that bullying is "just a part of growing up," but it can actually lead to serious mental health issues. This is not part of growing up. It is undermining confidence and health, and bullying is not getting any better.

In the United Kingdom, there's an annual survey by Ditch the Label, that in 2018 surveyed 9,000 people ages 12-20 about bullying. The research found that 10 percent of the respondents were bullied daily and more than 50 percent were bullied at least once a month. In 2013, 43 percent of surveyors said they were bullied frequently.

Bullying hasn't gotten better; in fact, it's gotten worse. This kind of data must make us stop and think about how we treat others. But here's the thing: It's hard when adults don't punish you or make you feel ashamed for bullying another person. Bullies aren't disciplined enough in schools, even with zero-tolerance policies. Evidently, bullies don't take a second to think about it before they hurt others, because they most likely won't face the consequences. This is where the system is flawed.

I've seen physical, verbal and cyberbullying firsthand. When there's physical bullying at my school, the kid gets suspended for 3 days and then comes back and does what he or she did again. When verbal bullying occurs, the faculty usually pretends not to hear or do anything about it. Once, I was called a name and my friend told a teacher who was standing right next to us. That teacher said that wasn't very nice and then walked away. I understand sometimes that it's not a school's place to step in when cyberbullying takes place. However, occasionally it is; when they get the chance to step in, they don't.

I've seen physical, verbal and cyberbullying firsthand. When there's physical bullying at my school, the kid gets suspended for 3 days and then comes back and does what he or she did again. When verbal bullying occurs, the faculty usually pretends not to hear or do anything about it. Once, I was called a name and my friend told a teacher who was standing right next to us. That teacher said that wasn't very nice and then walked away. I understand sometimes that it's not a school's place to step in when cyberbullying takes place. However, occasionally it is; when they get the chance to step in, they don't.

I've seen physical, verbal and cyberbullying firsthand. When there's physical bullying at my school, the kid gets suspended for 3 days and then comes back and does what he or she did again. When verbal bullying occurs, the faculty usually pretends not to hear or do anything about it. Once, I was called a name and my friend told a teacher who was standing right next to us. That teacher said that wasn't very nice and then walked away. I understand sometimes that it's not a school's place to step in when cyberbullying takes place. However, occasionally it is; when they get the chance to step in, they don't.

In the study, "Authoritative School Discipline: High School Practices Associated With Lower Bullying and Victimization" from the University of Virginia, it was found that schools are safer when rules are enforced and adults are available to support students. "Structure and support" were proved to be related to a decline in bullying and victimization. It's important that staff at schools emphasize anti-bullying efforts in order to create safe school communities.

In the study, "Authoritative School Discipline: High School Practices Associated With Lower Bullying and Victimization" from the University of Virginia, it was found that schools are safer when rules are enforced and adults are available to support students. "Structure and support" were proved to be related to a decline in bullying and victimization. It's important that staff at schools emphasize anti-bullying efforts in order to create safe school communities.

Bullying is cruel and should not be tolerated. It is not part of growing up and certainly should not take place in schools. Giving bullies firmer punishments and taking bullying victims more seriously is a start to creating safer, bully-free schools.

Let me tell you a story about Carolin who get bullied:

When Carolin was in elementary school, Carolin was a very happy and outgoing kid and had lots of friends. But when Carolin started secondary school, some older kids started to bully and tease him. All of Carolin´s friends from elementary school left me because they didn’t want to be seen with him. At Carolin school, everything was all about money and clothes. I had huge glasses and I was really ugly and everyone laughed at me. Then a boy (he was in about 8th grade) started to follow me around. He called me names, took my stuff and made up rumors about Carolin. One day he and his friends beat Carolin up on the bus. No one wanted to be friends with me anymore. Then I became friends with two girls in my class. They started making up rumors about Carolin. Everyone kept telling me what a bad person he was. In 6th grade, the bullying got even worse. Everyone said he was ugly and Carolin should just kill myself. In 7th grade my mom made him attend afternoon classes (full-time school was voluntary at my school). The kids in afternoon class started bullying him, too. They followed Carolin around and took photos of him in the bathroom to send them to the whole school. When Carolin got home from school, Carolin would go to his room and cry all evening. Carolin never talked to anyone. His grades dropped and Carolin teachers started to talk to my parents. They told them Carolin was lazy and refused to participate. They knew Carolin was bullied but they never did anything to stop it. Everyone hated Carolin and he didn’t have a single friend. Carolin just want to tell everyone who is going through the same: It gets better.

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