Teen Bullying

Teen Bullying

Bullying is something that happens in close to half of all children. Teen bullying is a problem in every school across the country; at least ten percent of children are bullied in school. Bullying molds the mind to itself in a negative manner and it can cause anxiety, depression, and even suicide.

In order for us to stop it we need to understand what bullying is. Bullying is when someone uses intimidation and domination toward someone else that is believed to be inferior. There are many different types of bullying and bullying does not just consist of physical domination over someone. There are verbal and emotional types of bullying that attack the mental state of the victim. These different types of bullying vary according to the gender of the teens. Males favor the physical domination type of bullying; this has been demonstrated in male behavior since the beginning of time. Females choose to use verbal and emotional abuse that creates havoc in the sufferers mind. Regardless of their sex bullies usually pick on those have less social power or physical power. (Child Bullying) There are lots of cases where the bullies were once bullied. (Stop Bullying) "The ones that are the hardest to love are the ones that need it the most." (Socrates)

There are many signs of teen bullying that give warnings. Increasing signs of depression, showing fear when it is time to go to school, drop in academic performance, evident decline in how the teen view him/herself, and obviously when there are physical bruises or damage of some sort. (Child Bullying) Verbal and emotional bullying is the hardest from to notice. It is important to look for these signs, if one witness bullying and doesn't take the proper steps in resolving the issue it is the same as taking part in the actual bullying.

Taking action against bullying is a very touchy subject with some morally correct and not morally correct solutions. Being a victim of physical harm is bad but, the long term effects to someone's psyche can be even more damaging in the long run. (Dealing with Bullying) With about forty-two percent of teens being victims of some sort of bullying it is crucial that the knowledge of how to deal with it is crucial. The first step is to make sure that there is a friendly environment for the teen to express what is on his/her mind. The first steps have mainly to deal with the parents of the martyr. There are six steps that need to be used to stop bullying.

1. Get your child's input: You need to be a safe place your child can turn for help when dealing with bullying. Be open to your child, and make sure that you are accepting. You should let your child know that being bullied is not his or her fault. Also, you should find out what has been tried to stop the bullying, and what has worked (or hasn't worked) so far.

2. Talk to the school authorities: Discuss the problem with your child's teacher, principal or counselor. A meeting with all three can help everyone know how to help a child who is dealing with bullying. In many cases, bullying takes place in unsupervised areas, such as school buses, bathrooms, playgrounds and other areas that can be hard to monitor. If you know where the bullying is taking place, you can let school authorities know so that they can step up "patrols" in those areas to discourage bullying.

3. Teach your child to avoid the bully: Your child does not need to fight back. Encourage him or her to avoid the bully when possible. Suggest that he or she walk away, and go find a teacher or other trusted adult.

4. Encourage your child to be assertive: It is not necessary to fight back to defeat a bully. You can teach your child to stand up straight and tell the bully, firmly, to leave him or her alone. In some cases, this type of assertiveness will work.

5. Practice with your child: It might be beneficial to have a little bit of role play with your child. This way he or she can practice what to say to a bully, or how to leave a situation that could turn into bullying.

6. Teach your child to move in groups: A good support system can be an effective deterrent against bullies. Have your child go to school and other places with trusted and true friends when dealing with bullying. (Dealing with Bullying)

Number one on this list is the hardest step to utilize because getting a teenager to openly come out and talk about the bullying he/she has been attacked by is hard. This responsibility falls on the shoulders of the parents. Creating a safe environment is hard but if the parent notices signs of bullying then it is their responsibility to be a helping hand. Once the teen comes out and talks about it the parent needs to alert school authorities. School teachers and administrators can play a huge role in resolving the problem. Many times bullying accrues in unsupervised