1. Bullying and Cyber Bullying in America’s
Middle Schools:
The Perspectives of Teachers and Intervention
Processes
Monica Lee
CI 583
2. INTRODUCTION
Alters opportunities to
learn
Problems with school Disrupts the collective
connections among
bullying students
Detracts from the
constructive value of
classroom experiences
(Frey, Hirschstein, Edstrom,
& Snell, 2009).
3. INTRODUCTION
Observations show an average of more than two
bullying episodes occurring every hour within
classrooms (Craig, Pepler, & Atlas, 2000).
It has been proven that bullying can effect class
participation and academics along with social and
psychological issues of students and middle-
school aged children.
4. STATEMENT OF PROBLEM
This research project was conducted to
determine and examine the current state of
bullying in schools and on the internet, the
psychological effects, and intervention
programs and this study classifies students
and focuses on middle-school grade levels.
5. RESEARCH GOALS
The goal of this research is to:
• Determine how often bullying occur in the classroom on a
daily basis
• Determine how teachers react to the bullying to prevent it
• Discover intervention programs that are currently in place
and their effectiveness
• Understand the short- and long-term effects of bullying in
sixth, seventh, and eighth grade
– Social and psychological
6. RESEARCH DATA CONSISTS OF…
• Foundational Research
• Bullies and Targets
• Intervention and Prevention
• Effects of Bullying
Click here to view a CBS video on Cyberbullying
7. Foundational Research
What is bullying?
• A widespread problem
– Alters opportunities to learn
– Disrupts collective connections among students
– Eliminates constructive value in the classroom
• Definition
– Intentional aggressive process that involves using
unequal power to cause harm
– The need to gain control over
another, (Milsom, A., & Gallo, L., 2006).
8. Foundational Research
What is bullying?
Cont’d
• Bullying can begin in many different places
with many different resources
– Internet, classroom, social settings outside of
school
• Bullies develop and emerge within groups of
students
– Starts with teasing and issues many see as
“harmless”
9. Foundational Research
Types of Bullying
Cyber Bullying Verbal abuse
Gender differences Teasing/Harassment
10. Bullies and Targets
• Perception of bullies
from students and staff
members (Bradshaw,
Sawyer, and O’Brennan,
2007).
– Popular with other
students
– Feared by other students
– Disliked by other
students
11. Bullies and Targets
Cont’d
• Why are some students
targeted?
– Race, grades, gifted
students, and quieter
students tend to be
more vulnerable
(Milsom & Gallo, 2006).
13. Intervention Processes
• What are school districts doing to eliminate bullying?
– Environmental Intervention: bullying policies and
procedures set up by the school to protect students
• Prepare instruction to develop strategies to deal
with bullying
– Professional development on bullying intervention
for all staff members
Click here to read an article regarding the parent's support in
preventing bullying!
14. Intervention Processes
Cont’d
• Focus on bystanders (Davis & Davis, 2007)
– Awareness, empathy, action
– Supporters for the bully and the bullied
– Implications for bystanders
• Change requires action from teachers, school
officials, and bystanders (Hazler, et. al., 2000).
15. Effects of Bullying
• Psychological Effects
– Long-term effects
• Social Effects
– Misunderstanding of social
environments
– Lack of knowledge of how to
interact with others
– Sensitivity
– Perceptions of safety in
school, (
• Physical Effects
– Body dismorphia
16. Effects of Bullying
Cont’d
• Psychological Distress
– Feelings that can occur from bullying:
• Isolation from poor peer relationships and detachment
from family
– Bullies isolate victims in order to keep bystanders from
intervening
• Dehumanization
– Slanderous, impersonal nicknames to enemies
– Creates lower self-esteem
• Exclusion is like isolation
– Exclusion is caused by others, where as isolation is a reaction
of the victim
17. Effects of Bullying
Cont’d
• Social Effects
– Isolation
– Exclusion
– Lack of social skills
– Paranoia
18. Effects of Bullying
Cont’d
• Physical Effects
– Weight gain
– Weight loss
– Damage to one’s self
– Suicide
• Cyberbullying effects
– Invasion of privacy
– Reputation damage
20. CONCLUSION
• Bullying is a major problem.
• Bullying must be addressed.
• There are short- and long-term negative
effects of bullying.
• Teacher training must be done to create
intervention processes within schools.
21. BIBLIOGRAPHY
Bradshaw, C.P., Sawyer, A.L., & O’Brenna, L.M., (2007). Bullying and peer victimization at school:
Perceptual differences between students and school staff. School Psychology
Review, 36(3), 361-382.
Craig, W.M., Pepler, D.J., & Atlas, R. (2000). Observations of bullying on the playground and in the
classroom. School Psychology International, 21, 22-36.
Davis, S. & Davis, J. (2007). Empowering bystanders in bullying prevention. Illinios: Research Press
Frey, K.S., Hirschstein, M.K, Edstrom, L.V., & Snell, J.L. (2009). Observed reductions in school
bullying, nonbullying aggression, and destructive bystander behavior: A longitudinal
evaluation. Journal of Educational Psychology, 101(2), 446-481.
Hazler, R.J., & Carney, J.V., (2000). When victims turn aggressors: Factors in the development of
deadly school violence. Professional School Counseling, 4(2), 105-112
Milsom, A., & Gallo, L. (2006). Bullying in middle schools: prevention and intervention. Middle
School Journal. Retrieved from
www.nmsa.org/publications/middleschooljournal/articles/january2006/article2/tabid/693
Swearer, S.M., & Espelage D.L. (2004). A social-ecological framework of bullying among youth. In
D.L. Espelage & S.M. Swearer (Eds.), Bullying in American schools: A social-ecological
perspective on prevention and intervention, 1-12. New Jersey: Erlbaum.
Willard, N. (2007). Cyberbullying and cyberthreats: Responding to the challenge of online social
aggression, threats, and distress. Illinois: Research Press.
White, N., & Loeber, R. (n.d.). Bullying and special education as predictors of serious delinquency.
Journal of Research in Crime and Delinquency. Retrieved from
http://jrc.sagepub.com/content/45/4/380.full.pdf+html
