Research: Bullying and its impact (schools)

A selection of New Zealand and international research and resources on the various impacts of bullying at school. 

Teāniwaniwatakatāpuiwhānui: Tearongataeramōngārangatahi: Sexual attraction and young people’s wellbeing in Youth19.  

Youth19 Research Group, The University of Auckland and Victoria University of Wellington, New Zealand. Fenaughty, J., Clark, T., Choo, W. L., Lucassen, M., Greaves, L., Sutcliffe, K., Ball, J., Ker, A., & Fleming, T. (2021). 

This report highlights findings from the Youth19 Rangatahi Smart Survey (Youth19)  for same-sex and multiple-sex attracted (SSMS) young people and young people who are not sure of their attractions or have no sexual attractions (NSN) in the areas of: demographics, including financial hardship; whānau relationships; peer and community relationships; schooling and aspirations for the future; violence and safety; sexual health and sexuality; health and wellbeing, including emotional wellbeing and substance use; and access to health services. These findings are compared to young people who identify as heterosexual and cisgender (i.e., people whose gender aligns with that which they were assigned at birth), or cis-heterosexual (CH) for short, participants. [From introduction]. 

Youth19 brief: Transgender and diverse gender students.  

Youth19 and The Adolescent Health Research Group, Auckland and Wellington. Fenaughty, J., Sutcliffe, K., Fleming, T., Ker, A., Lucassen, M., Greaves, L., & Clark, T. (2021). 

Key findings from the Youth19 survey for transgender and diverse gender secondary school students. Also recommends actions to take and gives support resources. 

Youth19: Safety & violence brief.  

Youth19 and The Adolescent Health Research Group, Auckland and Wellington. Fleming, T., Archer, D., King-Finau, T., Dewhirst, M., & Clark, T. (2021).  

This brief presents secondary school students’ concerns about violence and safety. It presents statistics on safety at home and school, unwanted sexual experiences and witnessing or experiences harm or violence. 

Youth19 Rangatahi Smart Survey, Initial Findings: Hauora Hinengaro / Emotional and Mental Health.  

The Youth19 Research Group, The University of Auckland and Victoria University of Wellington. Fleming, T., Tiatia-Seath, J., Peiris-John, R., Sutcliffe, K., Archer, D., Bavin, L., Crengle, S., & Clark, T. (2020). 

This report provides an overview of Youth19 mental health findings. It shows that the mental health of young people is worsening over time. In its recommendations, it notes (on p. 17) that freedom from violence, bullying and discrimination is one thing that helps to improve the mental health of young people.  

Prevent Bullying / Welcome—Positive Behaviour for Learning.

Ministry of Education. (n.d.). 

This web page presents information about bullying prevention for NZ schools. It’s part of the PB4L programme website - Positive Behaviour for Learning. It includes a short description of what bullying is, how to work together, the whole school approach, the bullying free framework and tips for success. Follow the links for more information and resources. 

Exploring young Pacific tertiary students’ views and experiences of bullying [Thesis, ResearchSpace@Auckland]. 

Patolo, T. (2016). 

The aim of this study is to explore ways young Pacific tertiary students understand Pacific youth bullying based on their shared experiences and perspectives. Major themes emerging from the findings include: the importance of bullying conversations in Pacific families, ‘what Pacific youth bullying is’, the role of Pacific identity in bullying, the challenges around definitions of bullying for young Pacific peoples, and the concerns for young Pacific peoples’ mental health, safety and suicide in relation to bullying. This research will inform current policies and contribute much needed information to current generic worldviews. [Abridged from abstract] 

East Asian, South Asian, Chinese and Indian Students in Aotearoa: A Youth19 Report. The University of Auckland.

Peiris-John, R., Kang, K., Bavin, L., Dizon, L., Singh, N., Clark, T., Fleming, T., & Ameratunga, S. (2021). 

This report presents contemporary information on the health and wellbeing of secondary school students in New Zealand who have an Asian identity.  Overall, most Asian students had positive feelings about school and felt cared for by their teachers. Most perceived that they had good to excellent general health, most had good psychological wellbeing and were satisfied with life. Substance misuse was relatively low among Asian students. Despite these positive findings, one in four Asian students reported being treated unfairly by a teacher because of their ethnicity, 10% reported being bullied in school because of their ethnicity or religion, and about half felt unsafe in their neighbourhood. They were also more likely to report witnessing or experiencing violence at home compared to their European peers. Many reported significant rates of emotional and mental distress. Mental health, particularly among female students, is of significant concern for this population. Overall, one in five students reported forgone health care. Compared to their European peers, South Asian students in general, and Indian students in particular, were more likely to report household poverty (despite similar proportions reporting one or both parents working), a difference not evident for East Asian and Chinese students. Compared to their European peers, East Asian students and Chinese students were more likely to report not having enough quality time with family and not having an adult outside the family they can trust. They were also more likely to experience significant depressive symptoms and less likely to access health care compared to their European peers, differences not evident for South Asian and Indian students. The authors highlight the importance of disaggregating youth data for the overall Asian group into East Asian and South Asian to gain a better understanding of the relationships between ethnicity and health, and to extract pertinent information that could be used for targeted interventions. [From Executive Summary].  See also https://www.youth19.ac.nz/publications/asian-students-report    

Negotiating multiple identities: Intersecting identities among Māori, Pacific, rainbow and disabled young people.  

Roy, R., Greaves, L. M., Peiris-John, R., Clark, T., Fenaughty, J., Sutcliffe, K., Barnett, D., Hawthorne, V., Tiatia-Seath, J., … Fleming, T. (2021). 

In this report, the authors explore the wellbeing of Aotearoa New Zealand secondary school students with the following identities using data from the Youth19 Rangatahi Smart Survey:  
• Rainbow rangatahi Māori  
• Pacific Rainbow young people  
• Rangatahi Māori with a disability or chronic condition  
• Pacific young people with a disability or chronic condition  
• Rainbow young people with a disability or chronic condition  
• Young people who are both Māori and Pacific.   
 
This survey asked participants about a range of issues, including safety at school and safety in the community.  One of the recommendations (p. 87) relates to bullying: ‘Promoting education.  The inequities in safety and belonging at school in this study highlight the need for inclusive practices and policies. Schools and institutions have a duty to ensure that all young people are safe and included. This should include:  
• Addressing discrimination, harassment and bullying  
• Including and valuing diverse identities as part of the enacted curriculum   
• Ensuring bathroom, uniform, sports, social, pastoral and learning facilities are inclusive for all.’ 

Flexible resources and experiences of racism among a multi-ethnic adolescent population in Aotearoa, New Zealand: An intersectional analysis of health and socioeconomic inequities using survey data. Lancet, 400(10358), 1130–1143. 

Simon-Kumar, R., Lewycka, S., Clark, T. C., Fleming, T., & Peiris-John, R. (2022). 

This research explores the experience of racism between and among privileged majority adolescent groups and targeted minority (Indigenous and ethnic) adolescents in New Zealand.   

Indigenous and ethnic minority experiences of racism are heterogeneous. Structural flexible resources (wealth) and, more substantially, embodiment flexible resources (perceived Whiteness) mitigate individual experiences of racism. In multi-ethnic western societies, anti-racist interventions and policies must address both structural deprivation and associated intergenerational mobility and colourism (ie, implicit and explicit bias against non-White youth). [Abridged from abstract] 

He Whakaaro: What do we know about bullying behaviours in New Zealand? 

Mhuru, M. (2021). Education Counts.

This paper summarises what we know about bullying in the education system. Bullying has widespread implications not only for the students exposed to it (those who are bullied, those doing the bullying and the observers), but to their family wellbeing and the culture of schools and communities. We provide a setting for further discussion and research into bullying by examining the trends and forms of bullying that are currently known in New Zealand.  Notes: This paper notes all the NZ surveys and studies asking about bullying in the school setting. It pulls together statistics from several studies and is a good review of the NZ situation.

Our kind of school: Student, whānau, staff, and school community views on what makes positive, inclusive, safe school environments where bullying is prevented and responded to. 

Office of the Children’s Commissioner, MAI World, & Ministry of Education. (2021). Office of the Children’s Commissioner.

Our Kind of School flips the question of bullying prevention around by focusing on why some schools and kura are so good at being a safe place for everyone. The purpose of this project was to collect examples of good practice and identify the barriers and enablers schools face when seeking to create safe and inclusive environments. 

An evaluation of the KiVa anti-bullying program in New Zealand.

Green, V. A., Woods, L., Wegerhoff, D., Harcourt, S., & Tannahill, S. (2020). International Journal of Bullying Prevention, 2(3), 225–237.

This paper describes the introduction of the KiVa anti-bullying program in New Zealand. KiVa is a whole-school program developed in Finland that includes both indicated and universal actions for children aged 7 to 15 years.

‘Good morning boys’: Fa’afāfine and Fakaleiti experiences of Cisgenderism at an all-boys secondary school. 

Howell, T., & Allen, L. (2021). Sex Education, 21(4), 417–431.

This article explores the schooling experiences of 12 fa’afāfine and fakaleiti who attended an all-boys faith-based secondary school in Aotearoa-New Zealand. Fa’afāfine are Samoan, and fakaleiti Tongans who are assigned male at birth, but enact varying degrees and types of behaviour deemed as feminine.

PRISM: Human Rights issues relating to Sexual Orientation, Gender Identity and Expression, and Sex Characteristics (SOGIESC) in Aotearoa New Zealand—A report with recommendations.  

Human Rights Commission of New Zealand. (2020). Rights Commission.

This report showed that bullying people on the basis of sexual orientation, gender identity and expression and sex characteristics is a breach of their right to an education.

Assessing and building wellbeing. 

Boyd, S. (2019). Set: Research Information for Teachers 1, 54.

The article is about the Wellbeing@school kit and discusses the evidence for social and emotional learning, including a focus on wellbeing and fostering a strong sense of belonging in students. Good social and emotional learning is shown to lead to less bullying and other negative behaviours, contributing to better student outcomes.  A whole school approach is advocated with a range of actions in 5 areas - leadership, culture, policies and practices, support for students, prioritising professional development.

New Zealand teens and digital harm: Statistical insights into experiences, impact and response

NetSafe. (2018, June). 

The study focuses on the prevalence of New Zealand teens’ experiences with a range of unwanted digital communications in the previous year and the impact these experiences had on them, both emotionally and in carrying out everyday life activities. It also describes teens’ responses, the effectiveness of their coping actions, and to who they would turn for help in the future. The study reveals distinctive differences regarding experiences of harm and/or distress through unwanted digital communications among different sub-groups of the population surveyed. More noticeable are the varying experiences in the context of gender, with girls being more likely to experience disruptions in their everyday life activities and an emotional toll because of unwanted digital communications.

Self-harm, suicidal behaviours, and cyberbullying in children and young people: Systematic review

John, A., Glendenning, A. C., & Marchant, A. et al. (2018, April). Journal of Medical Internet Research, 20(4), e129.

Victims of cyberbullying have a greater risk of both self-harm and suicidal behaviours and to a less extent, perpetrators of cyberbullying are at risk of suicidal behaviours and suicidal ideation when compared with non-perpetrators. Policy makers and schools should prioritise the inclusion of cyberbullying involvement in programmes to prevent traditional bullying. 

Education matters to me: Emotional wellbeing

(2018, March). Education matters to me series. Wellington: Children’s Commissioner.

These reports support the Education matters to me: Key insights report published in January 2018. The reports are based on responses to an online survey and face-to-face interviews with children and young people, who said when bullying happens they need to know it will be dealt with and they will be kept safe. For many rangatahi at secondary school, bullying and racism remain in the top ten things most frequently identified as something they would change if they could. 

Zealand. 

A familiar face: Violence in the lives of children and adolescents 

(2017, November). New York, US: UNICEF.

The report presents current data on four specific forms of violence – violent discipline and exposure to domestic abuse during early childhood, violence at school, violent deaths among adolescents, and sexual violence in childhood and adolescence. They note 35 per cent of New Zealand children aged 13–15 reported being bullied monthly. 

Child and youth voices on bullying in Aotearoa: Engaging children and young people in matters that affect them

(2017, May). Wellington: Children’s Commissioner.

The perspectives of children and young people range from: strong ideas on how to change culture and combat bullying; to hopeless feelings that it is inevitable. They also have varying perspectives on the causes and impacts of bullying. Some children and young people are empathetic towards those who bully, knowing they have difficult lives. Many want greater support for victims, to help them, and for everyone to play a role to stop the bullying.

New Zealand’s school climate for learning. What we know from TIMSS 2014/151 

(2017). Wellington: Ministry of Education.

Even though most students felt safe at school, they experienced bullying behaviours at school more frequently than students in many of the other participating countries. Compared to 2010/11, there was a decrease in the proportion of Year 5 students experiencing some of the behaviours such as being made fun of or called names, being hit or hurt by other student(s), or having something stolen from them. However, compared to the previous cycle, more Year 9 students reported experiencing the individual bullying behaviours at school. 

Growing Up in New Zealand: A longitudinal study of New Zealand children and their families. Now We Are Four: Describing the preschool years 

Morton, S.M.B, Grant, C.C., & Berry, S.D. et al. (2017). Auckland: University of Auckland.

The report's researchers found bullying behaviour started early and was a frequent and persistent experience for some. For around one in ten children, being bullied or picked on had been a part of life since they were two years old. Just over a third of children had been bullied or picked on by other children at some stage by the time they were four.

New Zealand teens' digital profile: A factsheet

Pacheco, E., & Melhuish, N. (2018, February). NetSafe.

The fact sheet presents findings regarding New Zealand teens’ use, and attitudes towards, digital technologies and online safety. These findings are part of a larger quantitative study about experiences of risks and harm online. The study is led by NetSafe, in partnership with the Ministry for Women. The factsheet provides government agencies with evidence-based insights that can inform policy development and support in favour of New Zealand’s young people.

Insights into digital harm: The online lives of New Zealand girls and boys

(2017, November). New Zealand: Ministry for Women and NetSafe.

This research is the first of its kind in New Zealand to investigate gendered differences in online harm from the point of view of girls and boys. It establishes a gendered evidence base about digital harm experienced by young people in New Zealand.

Exposure to violence, a risk for suicide in youths and young adults: A meta-analysis of longitudinal studies

Castellvi, P., Miranda-Mendizábal, A., & Parés-Badell, O., et al. (2016, December 20). Acta Psychiatrica Scandinavica, advance online publication.

Early exposure to interpersonal violence confers a risk of suicide attempts and particularly suicide death in youths and young adults. Includes data from the Christchurch Health and Development Study and the Dunedin Multidisciplinary Health and Development Study, along with data from other longitudinal studies from around the world.

Bystander intervention, bullying, and victimisation: A multilevel analysis of New Zealand high schools 

Denny, S. et al. (2015). Journal of School Violence, 14(3), 245-272.

Results from this research indicated that a total of 6% of students report being bullied weekly or more often and 5% of students reported bullying other students at least weekly. Results of multilevel analyses suggested that schools characterised by students taking action to stop bullying were associated with less victimisation and less reported bullying among students. In contrast, in schools where students reported teachers take action to stop bullying, there was no decline in victimisation or bullying. Overall, these findings support whole-school approaches that aid students to take action to stop bullying.

Incidence of bullying and victimisation among adolescents in New Zealand

Kljakovic, M., Hunt, C., & Jose, P.E. (2015, September). New Zealand Journal of Psychology, 44(2), 57-67.

The overall rates of bullying and victimisation appeared elevated relative to international samples but traditional school-based bullying was more frequent than text or internet bullying. No gender differences were found. Differences for ethnic group differences were found only for specific types of bullying, with Māori students reporting more traditional school and text bullying, and more text-based victimisation than other ethnic groups.

PISA 2018 results (volume III): What school life means for students’ lives

OECD. (2019). OECD. 

The OECD Programme for International Student Assessment (PISA) examines what students know in reading, mathematics and science, and what they can do with what they know. It provides the most comprehensive and rigorous international assessment of student learning outcomes to date. Results from PISA indicate the quality and equity of learning outcomes attained around the world, and allow educators and policy makers to learn from the policies and practices applied in other countries.

Programme for International Student Assessment (PISA) results for PISA 2018: Country note: New Zealand

Avvisati, F., Echazarra, A., Givord, P., & Schwabe, M. (2019). OECD. 

PISA is a triennial survey of 15-year-old students that assesses the extent to which they have acquired the key knowledge and skills essential for full participation in society. The assessment focuses on proficiency in reading, mathematics, science and an innovative domain (in 2018, the innovative domain was global competence), and on students’ wellbeing. This report presents the data for New Zealand, and includes several wellbeing indicators. “In New Zealand, 32% of students reported being bullied at least a few times a month, compared to 23% on average across OECD countries. At the same time, 93% of students in New Zealand (and 88% of students on average across OECD countries) agreed or strongly agreed that it is a good thing to help students who cannot defend themselves.” (p. 7).

Promoting upstander behavior to address bullying in schools

Hart Barnett, J. E., Fisher, K. W., O’Connell, N., & Franco, K. (2019). Middle School Journal, 50(1), 6–11. 

The impact of childhood bullying can be substantial and include lowered self-esteem, heightened anxiety, greater levels of depression, fear, school refusal, isolation, and even suicide. While there is growing research on programs to address bullying, few interventions target the bystander, yet most that do are successful in decreasing bullying. Research suggests that targeting the bystander and giving them the tools and encouragement to intervene as “upstanders” should be an integral component of bullying interventions. This article provides practical, research-based steps for teachers to model and encourage upstander behavior, particularly with students as they approach middle school.

Youth and cyberbullying: Another look

Hasse, A., Cortesi, S., Lombana, A., & Gasser, U. (2019). (SSRN Scholarly Paper ID 3477297). Social Science Research Network. 

This spotlight presents Youth and Media’s overview of recent, primarily academic literature on youth (ages 12-18) and cyberbullying and seeks to translate scholarly work for a public audience — including parents and caregivers, schools and educators, iternet companies, and governmental entities. This paper is meant to help shape these stakeholders’ current and future endeavors that aim to address cyberbullying and provide practical, impactful guidance on preventing and responding to cyberbullying among young people.

Measuring the effects of limited and persistent school bullying victimization: Repeat victimization, fear, and adaptive behaviors

Randa, R., Reyns, B. W., & Nobles, M. R. (2019). Journal of Interpersonal Violence, 34(2), 392–415. 

This study looks at different types of bullying - limited and persistent, and their impacts.

School bullying, subjective well‐being, and resilience

Andreou, E., Roussi‐Vergou, C., Didaskalou, E., & Skrzypiec, G. (2020). Psychology in the Schools, 57(8), 1193–1207.

The aim of this study was to examine the role of resilience in the victimisation experiences of students and their subjective well‐being as well as to explore gender and age‐related effects.   

Behind the numbers: Ending school violence and bullying. United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organisation

Attawell, K. (2019).

This international study presents the most up-to-date and comprehensive evidence on school violence and bullying, analysing global and regional prevalence and trends, the nature and impact of the issue, and successful national responses. It brings together quantitative and qualitative data from a range of global and regional surveys, covering 144 countries and territories in all regions. It shows physical bullying is the most frequent type of bullying in many regions, with the exception of North America and Europe, where psychological bullying is most common. Physical bullying is more common among boys, while psychological bullying is more prevalent among girls. Online and mobile phone bullying is also shown to be increasing. Children who are perceived as different in any way are more likely to be bullied, and physical appearance is the most common cause of bullying. The second most frequent reasons reported by students relate to race, nationality or colour. 

Wellbeing@School: Building a safe and caring school climate that deters bullying

Boyd, S., & Barwick, H. (2011). New Zealand Council for Educational Research. 

This booklet, aimed at school leaders, is a summary of an extensive review of research and other literature undertaken to guide the development of the Wellbeing@School website self-review process, survey tools and content. This website is being developed by the New Zealand Council for Educational Research (NZCER). The “Wellbeing@School” website is one component of the Ministry of Education’s “Positive Behaviour for Learning: Action Plan 2010-2014”, developed in response to concerns about student behaviour and school bullying. It could also be of interest to those working with schools such as Resource Teachers of Learning and Behaviour (RTLBs), educational psychologists or Police Education Officers.

Parents’ responses to relational bullying in New Zealand

Brown, T. (2020).

Relational bullying is a significant and widespread issue that is experienced by many young people in New Zealand. To implement effective and consistent prevention and intervention strategies, it is crucial to understand the perspectives of everyone involved. While research in the field of bullying prevention is increasingly focused on the perspectives and responsibility of multiple parties, a significant gap in the literature remains: the perspectives of the parents of children who are involved as perpetrators of bullying, as well as those parents of children who are both bullies as well as victims. The present doctoral research yielded findings describing parents’ responses to their child’s involvement in relational bullying, including those involved in bullying perpetration.    

Verbal abuse the biggest bullying problem at school: Students

CensusAtSchool. (2015).

The CensusAtSchool survey found that school students think verbal mistreatment is the biggest bullying issue in schools – higher than cyberbullying, social or relational bullying such as social exclusion and spreading gossip, or physical bullying. 

Developing resources to address homophobic and transphobic bullying

Fenaughty, J. (2019). A framework incorporating co-design, critical pedagogies, and bullying research. 

In 2016, UNESCO developed recommendations to address homophobic and transphobic violence and bullying, including guidance for the development of classroom resources. According to UNESCO, the effectiveness of interventions depends on inclusive, if not affirming, representations of sexual and gender diversity in learning materials, as well as age-appropriate, culturally sensitive, evidenced-based resources. UNESCO advocates that such resources be produced in partnerships with key stakeholders, including civil society and youth and student organisations. The high-level scope of the document however limits detail on how these elements may practically be realised. The purpose of this article is to critique and build on this guidance to extend its scope and offer further recommendations to achieve the changes it seeks. 

Factors associated with young people’s successful resolution of distressing electronic harassment

Fenaughty, J., & Harré, N. (2013a). Computers & Education, 61, 242–250. 

Electronic harassment is a pervasive phenomenon among young people, however relatively little is known about actions that targets of harassment may undertake to manage such abuse, and whether particular actions and personal characteristics are associated with successful resolution of such harassment. This mixed methods research identified whether particular actions or characteristics are associated with the resolution of distressing electronic harassment situations. 

Factors associated with distressing electronic harassment and cyberbullying

Fenaughty, J., & Harré, N. (2013b). Computers in Human Behavior, 29(3), 803–811. 

Electronic harassment and cyberbullying can take various forms and involve a range of perpetrators. This study utilised survey results from 1673 New Zealand students aged 12–19 years to explore electronic harassment on the internet and mobile phones and the distress associated with it. Overall, a third of participants reported electronic harassment in the prior year, with half (53.7%) rating it as distressing. The findings point to the need to explicitly consider mobile phone harassment, as well as better ways to tailor interventions to address distressing harassment. Schools are well placed to address electronic harassment alongside other bullying interventions. 

PISA 2015 New Zealand students’ wellbeing report

Ministry of Education. (2017). Ministry of Education. 

The PISA results help grow our understanding of students’ experiences of bullying behaviours. The majority of New Zealand students reported they ‘only occasionally or never’ experienced any form of bullying at school. However, just over a quarter experienced at least one type of bullying a ‘few times a month’ or more. On the OECD ‘Exposure to Bullying’ index, New Zealand had the second highest level of students’ reports of bullying across countries taking part in PISA 2015. 

Bullying prevention and response in New Zealand schools

New Zealand Education Review Office. (2019). ERO. 

ERO say they recognise the vision of a bullying-free New Zealand is aspirational, and no approach is likely to be 100 percent effective. In this evaluation, they looked at the extent to which schools were effectively working towards an environment in which students feel safe and free from bullying.

PISA 2015 results (Volume III)—Students’ wellbeing

OECD. (2017). PISA & OECD.   

Fifteen-year-olds in New Zealand reported the second-highest rate of bullying out of 51 countries – a finding from the OECD’s latest three-yearly survey as part of the Programme for International Student Assessment (PISA) carried out in 2015. Survey answers from New Zealand showed just over a quarter of students reported being subject to some type of bullying at least a few times a month. 

Tackling bullying from the inside out: Shifting paradigms in bullying research and interventions

O’Higgins Norman, J. (2020). International Journal of Bullying Prevention, 2(3), 161–169. 

The discussion includes a look at definitions, insights into cultural and geopolitical influences on bullying trends, as well as recommendations for research. In particular, the need to include and incorporate the voice and agency of the child in research. The characteristics of successful interventions are also outlined. 

A rapid review of resilience in schools: Working paper

Whatman, J., Harvey, K., Boyd, S., Eyre, J., Hunia, M., Alansari, M., Fisher, J., & Lawes, E. (2020). NZCER. 

This document is a working paper drafted to inform the decision process about possible additional items for Wellbeing@School survey tools. It is a rapid review of recent key literature including meta-analyses and relevant New Zealand Aotearoa literature. Using a rapid review methodology means that some sections rely on secondary sources. 

A health promoting schools approach to bullying

Cushman, P., & Clelland, T. (2011). NZCER. 

Key points:   

  • Schools use a wide range of strategies to address bullying behaviour and relationship issues, but only a few schools in the survey reported in this article had a comprehensive approach to being health promoting schools.  

  • A proactive approach would involve schools providing all students with opportunities to develop the skills and understandings necessary to build strong relationships and resilience.  

  • The three-pronged approach of curriculum teaching and learning, school organisation and ethos, and community links and partnerships are the essential components for success as a health promoting school. 

Kōrero Mai, Kōrero Atu, Mauri Tū, Mauri Ora
Speak Up, Stand Together, Stop Bullying!
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