[Philip10]

“The report [ Office of the Children’s Commissioner report] quoted an international study in 2007 that rated New Zealand Schools among the worst in the world for bullying with rates more then 50% above the international average”

Southland Times 17th March 2009

I was shocked when I read this, does this accord with other peoples experiences?

[Angel2850]

Funny you should mention it today - they were talking on the radio this morning about whether self defense class should be compulsory at all schools in the country because of how bad the bullying is.

they mentioned one school whose way of dealing with the bullies was to call an assembly, and every person put down a name of someone who had bullied them. Apparently it came down to six names which consistently cropped up. These kids were from the lower socio-economic background, but the school got them counselling and has apparently wiped bullying out. ... that seems a much better idea to me.

[seattle]

Is this study related to physical bullying? The U.S. has had a lot of media focus on girls bullying over the past few years- as girls' "have a hidden culture of agression" - a lot different from the boys- but just as damaging.

[Sam B]

This is not my personal experience. My children experienced more bullying in the UK than here. They have not experienced any bullying here, nor are they aware of any serious bullying issues here.

[Helsandfamily]

This is not my personal experience. My children experienced more bullying in the UK than here. They have not experienced any bullying here, nor are they aware of any serious bullying issues here.


Have to say I entirely agree with this. I find the kids better behaved more respectful and polite and just plain less bitchy.

[peebles16]

Have to say I entirely agree with this. I find the kids better behaved more respectful and polite and just plain less bitchy.

Ditto for us too however, my kids are young so have no experience of the high school system :o I have worked with high school kids in NZ and they do seem much more switched on and dare I say more mature than kids I'd worked with in the UK :) They seem more ready to challenge and question bullying and certainly more aware of what is/should be acceptable.

Karenx

[ellenmelon]

i was bullied a lot throughout primary and highschool. in primary school, i was bullied by a teacher. i still feel the impact from it i think, years later (im only 24 but still) :(

[JandL]

Funny you should mention it today - they were talking on the radio this morning about whether self defense class should be compulsory at all schools in the country because of how bad the bullying is.

Surely this would just mean that the bullies are also better trained and those that excel could use it to their advantage even more.

[Waters9944]

Funny you should mention it today - they were talking on the radio this morning about whether self defense class should be compulsory at all schools in the country because of how bad the bullying is.

they mentioned one school whose way of dealing with the bullies was to call an assembly, and every person put down a name of someone who had bullied them. Apparently it came down to six names which consistently cropped up. These kids were from the lower socio-economic background, but the school got them counselling and has apparently wiped bullying out. ... that seems a much better idea to me.

Ranking so high statically, raises a lot of questions. Bullying can only be a problem if the school's fail to address the issue. Schools are responsible for providing a safe atmosphere for children. Bullying falls under the category of safety....it can truly be a form a torture for kids of any age.

And the repercussions of this mental or physical abuse can be catastrophic! Carrie took her revenge at the high school prom! :exit And boy, that wasn't pretty.

[Ana&Steve]

i was bullied a lot throughout primary and highschool. in primary school, i was bullied by a teacher. i still feel the impact from it i think, years later (im only 24 but still) :(
Agree and sympathize; been there!

[Waters9944]

Agree and sympathize; been there!

I've had experience with it too...Funny, in retrospect I understand the teacher better, but who gives a crap about retrospect? At the time, I was traumatized! Children are much more fragile and impressionable, and even one incident can stay with a kid for YEARS....

I think some teachers lose sight of weight of their impact (time to retire). And then, ofc, there are also some mean people who take their stress out on the vulnerable.

[noet]

it is the reason we are emigrating actually. Cause we don't want to put our future kids through it. so we'll homeschool! Both been bullied by teachers mainly, or teachers actually encouraging classmates. And yes, it still hurts.

But as a statistician, 50% more than average, means that if 10 kids get bullied on average, in NZ there are 15. It doesnt say 50% gets bullied. Besides that, I am wondering now if there really is more bullying, or that it gets noticed more. If kids know better what is allowed and what isn't they might also find teasing bullying quicker and call on help quicker. So you just see more of it rather than there actually being more. But that's just my guessing, haven;t been to NZ schools ever.

[veronica]

maybe with smaller schools its noticed more and reported therefore the actual figure perhaps represents the amount reported rather than the actual amount of bullying. by that reckoning any school anywhere with a serious bullying culture that does nothing to sort it out and reports nothing will come up with 100% clear on bullying!!!

As with a lot of these type of statistics they can be distorted if there is a varient on the ground floor level of information. ie bullying is reported on the 1st offence at one school and the 10th offence at another.

[Waters9944]

Both been bullied by teachers mainly, or teachers actually encouraging classmates. And yes, it still hurts.


Sounds like grounds for dismissal. Again, the school/administration is ultimately responsible for the safety of the children.

As a parent, I'd be out for both their job and their neck.

[mylesdw]

“The report [ Office of the Children’s Commissioner report] quoted an international study in 2007 that rated New Zealand Schools among the worst in the world for bullying with rates more then 50% above the international average”

Southland Times 17th March 2009

I was shocked when I read this, does this accord with other peoples experiences?

I would take any such report with a HUGE pinch of salt. Think about what they have tried to do, define bullying (which is difficult enough) and then apply some sort of test for it across children and schools of every nationality, culture and class and end up with a single number that represents average amount of bullying! It's simply ridiculous! Applying an average to a region is meaningless; all that matters is the one school you are considering for your child at this moment. It could be in NZ and way above average (whatever that means). These reports are written by newly graduated students who think they know it all ("A little learning is a dangerous thing") or left wing lunatics with political agendas.

Make your own judgements and talk to people who know the situation; it's far more meaningful.

[dusk]

or right wing lunatics with political agendas :P

To answer an earlier question this study included social network website attacks, texting and other forms of bullying in their statistics along with actual physical bullying

[CJ22]

I tend to agree with Myles that the methodology of this study is probably suspect. How is bullying defined and measured across different countries and cultures? I'm not saying it ain't so, I'm just saying don't neccesarily believe what you read.

I know that in the UK before we left, the horrors of so called 'happy slapping' were becoming an epidemic. I'd be very surprised to find the same thing was 50% worse here.

There's always more to be done, of course. And it's always worth bringing the issue into the cold light of day (which is what such reports achieve, if they achieve anything). But frankly I think they'd gain more traction if they focussed on illustrating the problems with specific cases, instead of relying on suspect studies by post-grads trying to make a name for themselves. But they don't give grants for that kind of work :)

[Nathan]

These reports are written by newly graduated students who think they know it all ...

I understood the research was done by Children's Commissioner Cindy Kiro and the Human Rights Commission. http://tvnz.co.nz/national-news/human-rights-issues-highlighted-in-report-2551560

Does anyone have a link to the actual report, or is entire discussion based on what was reported in the papers and TV/radio? ...or based on what the headlines are?!!

Cheers

[Jo Jo]

I think this is the report here (http://www.occ.org.nz/__data/assets/pdf_file/0016/6028/OCC_SchoolSafetyReport_160309.pdf).

[Junnifer USA]

Our son was placed in a class of students 2 years older that he was in year 8. He was in year 5 when we left the US. The bullying was so bad that each week I had to replace a peice of his ripped up school uniform.
THe school, Kaiapoi North Elementary, used to punish both the victim and the instigator. My son would say, "why should I go to the (principles) office, I've already been beaten up, then I get punished too!"
We were at the school every week, despite their 'policies' they never did anything.
The bullying spread to the phone. At that point my husband went to the parents of the bullies. He told them that he would now call the police. THAT was the only thing that ended the bullying.
During all of this we were working to get our son into a better school. Fortunately we did. He is at St. Andrew's College in Chch. Loves it! No bullying there!

Bye the way, I have even had school teachers tell me that the way they ended bullying of their own children was to threaten police involvement. Yup, it works like a charm!

[Waters9944]

Our son was placed in a class of students 2 years older that he was in year 8. He was in year 5 when we left the US. The bullying was so bad that each week I had to replace a peice of his ripped up school uniform.
THe school, Kaiapoi North Elementary, used to punish both the victim and the instigator. My son would say, "why should I go to the (principles) office, I've already been beaten up, then I get punished too!"
We were at the school every week, despite their 'policies' they never did anything.
The bullying spread to the phone. At that point my husband went to the parents of the bullies. He told them that he would now call the police. THAT was the only thing that ended the bullying.
During all of this we were working to get our son into a better school. Fortunately we did. He is at St. Andrew's College in Chch. Loves it! No bullying there!

Bye the way, I have even had school teachers tell me that the way they ended bullying of their own children was to threaten police involvement. Yup, it works like a charm!

It's abhorrent that you could not rely upon the school to solve this problem.

I'm glad your son is in a better environment now.

[Philip10]

I think this is the report here (http://www.occ.org.nz/__data/assets/pdf_file/0016/6028/OCC_SchoolSafetyReport_160309.pdf).

Thanks for that Jo Jo. The report is from an official source and a respected author. Although I agree that one should view the findings with an open mind, it is certainly not a report written with a political agenda nor should it be dismissed and taken with a pinch of salt as suggested. I feel to do so, is to underestimate the effect bullying has on our children. We should take notice of the report and try to change the experiences that some of our children are having in New Zealand schools.

[Nathan]

Thanks for the link, Jo Jo.

The report is quite good and constructive, in my opinion. It is misrepresented in some of the reporting; for example, the author is not Kiro. The report concludes that NZ schools are improving; and as the original post in this thread states, it’s a different report, not this one, that finds NZ schools have a 50% higher rate of bullying. Some of the media seem to miss the point of the report completely. The report has many constructive suggestions for recognising and for dealing with bullying. At the minimum, I’d think any parent would at least be interested in reading the executive summary and the recommendations.

Here are some links to the media reports:
http://tvnz.co.nz/national-news/school-bullying-not-taken-seriously-report-2543662
http://www.nzherald.co.nz/connect/news/article.cfm?c_id=1501833&objectid=10561938
and
http://www.stuff.co.nz/national/education/2266547/Bullying-reports-early-release-raises-ire

It baffles me that anyone could be dismissive of child abuse, whether it’s perpetrated by adults or other children!

[Philip10]

Thanks for the link, Jo Jo.

The report is quite good and constructive, in my opinion. It is misrepresented in some of the reporting; for example, the author is not Kiro. The report concludes that NZ schools are improving; and as the original post in this thread states, it’s a different report, not this one, that finds NZ schools have a 50% higher rate of bullying. Some of the media seem to miss the point of the report completely. The report has many constructive suggestions for recognising and for dealing with bullying. At the minimum, I’d think any parent would at least be interested in reading the executive summary and the recommendations.

Here are some links to the media reports:
http://tvnz.co.nz/national-news/school-bullying-not-taken-seriously-report-2543662
http://www.nzherald.co.nz/connect/news/article.cfm?c_id=1501833&objectid=10561938
and
http://www.stuff.co.nz/national/education/2266547/Bullying-reports-early-release-raises-ire

It baffles me that anyone could be dismissive of child abuse, whether it’s perpetrated by adults or other children!

Good points