“My child would never do that,” is the overheard and overused response so many parents have when the subject of bullying is brought up. The fact of the matter is... bullying DOES occur on a daily basis, and both the child being bullied, and the bully are someone’s kin.
I’ve posted a link below to a site that shows MSNBC’s Dateline coverage over what the boys involved believe is an athletic competition, while really it is all a set up, with cameras all around, actor bullies and a victim in place, and parents of the unknowing children in a nearby room watching the footage. The child chosen for the role of the victim is a real-life gay teenager, who has actually witnessed these hate crimes in real time, and still has to deal with the stresses of being himself in daily situations. The whole point of this exercise was to take a closer look at bullying, and how kids in real life would react to watching someone tormented right in front of them. The independent variable was using different scenarios each time – for example the first time the bulling is done when the coach is away, another is when the coach involves himself with the bullying in a supportive way, and another being the coach defaming the act of bullying. The dependent variable was whether the oblivious middle schoolers watching the bullying take place would involve themselves in the bullying- either in a positive or negative light- or if they would simply watch it happen.
I was actually pleasantly surprised at the over-all results. Most of the time, the boys did not get involved, and actually tried to change the subject quite a few times. When the coach chimed in, however, a student involved in his football team at school named Brandon starts to agree with the things that the bullies are saying, and even “fist-bumps” with the bully. His mother, like every other, never thought her child would do that, but things change once adults leave the scene. Adults are the role models of those who are younger around them, whether they know it or even like it. Another occurrence that was actually quite positive with the experiment was one in which the bullying took place when the coach was gone. One kid even goes so far as to separate the two bullies who are ganging up on the “girly” and “sissy” kid by moving himself in-between them to act as a human shield. His mother had actually insisted that her son would cut in once the bullying began. Thankfully, this mother got to stand by her words, and it became visible that there are some children out there who actually will step in when things aren’t how they should be, even if that means there is a risk that they might become the next bullied teen in the group.
Being a college student, I’ve been through the years in middle and high school where people got made fun of all the time. I’ve seen the pack effect that one bully can seem to cause, I’ve ridden the busses where the bus driver- the person who was supposed to keep us feeling safe and protected- simply looked away at what was happening right behind him, heck, I’ve seen first hand what the “popular” girls say and do in the athletic locker rooms when no authority figure is around. Some people are simply cruel, and it’s hard to even think about, but is something, I believe, that needs to be firmly addressed in all schools, no matter how “classy” or “wealthy” they are.
The fact of the matter is, bullying is a problem, and as optimistic as we may be, we have to realize that bad things happen, and sometimes the bullying isn’t stopped. This happens to countless gay teens all over the world, and even some who are just simply figuring out who they are. The caustic words may be finished in ten seconds, but the scars will live with these young boys and girls forever. Why write a blog entry on this? Because I want you to be aware that this does happen. And sometimes, the only thing to do to stop it is to actually step in, even if it may not make you look like the “cool” kid in relation to the bullies at hand. We have the power to do something about bullying when it takes place, the question is will we actually do something about it when the time comes, and hypothetically isn’t so hypothetical anymore. I urge you to speak up. Make yourself heard, and don't tolerate bullying for a second. Be the better person.
Link to experiment vidoes: http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/21134540/vp/41928090#41975656
I’ve posted a link below to a site that shows MSNBC’s Dateline coverage over what the boys involved believe is an athletic competition, while really it is all a set up, with cameras all around, actor bullies and a victim in place, and parents of the unknowing children in a nearby room watching the footage. The child chosen for the role of the victim is a real-life gay teenager, who has actually witnessed these hate crimes in real time, and still has to deal with the stresses of being himself in daily situations. The whole point of this exercise was to take a closer look at bullying, and how kids in real life would react to watching someone tormented right in front of them. The independent variable was using different scenarios each time – for example the first time the bulling is done when the coach is away, another is when the coach involves himself with the bullying in a supportive way, and another being the coach defaming the act of bullying. The dependent variable was whether the oblivious middle schoolers watching the bullying take place would involve themselves in the bullying- either in a positive or negative light- or if they would simply watch it happen.
I was actually pleasantly surprised at the over-all results. Most of the time, the boys did not get involved, and actually tried to change the subject quite a few times. When the coach chimed in, however, a student involved in his football team at school named Brandon starts to agree with the things that the bullies are saying, and even “fist-bumps” with the bully. His mother, like every other, never thought her child would do that, but things change once adults leave the scene. Adults are the role models of those who are younger around them, whether they know it or even like it. Another occurrence that was actually quite positive with the experiment was one in which the bullying took place when the coach was gone. One kid even goes so far as to separate the two bullies who are ganging up on the “girly” and “sissy” kid by moving himself in-between them to act as a human shield. His mother had actually insisted that her son would cut in once the bullying began. Thankfully, this mother got to stand by her words, and it became visible that there are some children out there who actually will step in when things aren’t how they should be, even if that means there is a risk that they might become the next bullied teen in the group.
Being a college student, I’ve been through the years in middle and high school where people got made fun of all the time. I’ve seen the pack effect that one bully can seem to cause, I’ve ridden the busses where the bus driver- the person who was supposed to keep us feeling safe and protected- simply looked away at what was happening right behind him, heck, I’ve seen first hand what the “popular” girls say and do in the athletic locker rooms when no authority figure is around. Some people are simply cruel, and it’s hard to even think about, but is something, I believe, that needs to be firmly addressed in all schools, no matter how “classy” or “wealthy” they are.
The fact of the matter is, bullying is a problem, and as optimistic as we may be, we have to realize that bad things happen, and sometimes the bullying isn’t stopped. This happens to countless gay teens all over the world, and even some who are just simply figuring out who they are. The caustic words may be finished in ten seconds, but the scars will live with these young boys and girls forever. Why write a blog entry on this? Because I want you to be aware that this does happen. And sometimes, the only thing to do to stop it is to actually step in, even if it may not make you look like the “cool” kid in relation to the bullies at hand. We have the power to do something about bullying when it takes place, the question is will we actually do something about it when the time comes, and hypothetically isn’t so hypothetical anymore. I urge you to speak up. Make yourself heard, and don't tolerate bullying for a second. Be the better person.
Link to experiment vidoes: http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/21134540/vp/41928090#41975656
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