Back-to-School: Books and Bullies

Sept. 18, 2006 — -- For many kids, returning to school is an exciting time, but for some, going back to school means returning to a dreaded ritual: Facing school bullies again.

A new study shows just how big a problem bullying is and how helpless teachers can be to stop it.

The National School Boards Association's Council of Urban Boards of Education (CUBE) reported that many students commonly witnessed other children being bullied, physically or psychologically intimidated or belittled.

The CUBE study was the result of a nationwide survey of 32,000 students to gauge their feelings on safety and bullying in their school environments.

The students who participated in the study ranged in grades 4 to 12 and were from 15 urban school districts.

Brian Perkins, the chair of CUBE and the principal investigator of the study, says two of the most worrisome findings were that more than half of the students surveyed said they saw children being bullied at least once a month, and that almost 40 percent said teachers and schools could not stop the bullying.

The study indicated that as students got older, their confidence in their school's ability to stop the bullying declined.

The study showed younger students reported the most bullying: The number of students in grades 4 to 6 who said they were bullied regularly was more than double the number of similar reports from students in grades 9 to 12.

The study showed gender did not seem to matter, as boys and girls seemed to think and feel similarly about bullying.

However, Perkins said that bullying was a significant concern because of its great influence on student academic performance.

In recent years, schools have focused more attention on bullying, and many states have tried addressing the issue through legislation.

However, according to the students in this survey, bullying is still a frequent occurrence in schools.

A child's feeling of safety, or lack thereof, is linked to his or her academic performance, the study shows.