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Bullying Prevention

Conflict resolution and bullying prevention are natural partners. A comprehensive violence prevention plan should include both. Schools that have a solid conflict resolution program in place are ideally positioned to engage in bullying prevention as a next step. Conflict resolution teaches students how to solve problems when power is fairly equal and when both parties have some interest in resolving the conflict. Bullying, on the other hand, occurs when one party has more power, that party has no interest in resolving the problem, and he is primarily interested in hurting the other. In these circumstances, conflict resolution techniques are not likely to be effective, so other methods must be in place. (To learning more about bullying prevention, please visit our online learning module.)

Olweus Bullying Prevention Program training session at Arizona State UniversityA bullying prevention program should teach students how to distinguish normal peer conflict, which responds well to conflict resolution strategies, from bullying violence, which warrants a different set of strategies. Once students understand which type of conflict they are dealing with, they can decide which strategies to use. There are several factors (for example, contextual factors and personality traits) that determine when some strategies are more appropriate than others.

Rethinking the deeper impacts that bullying has on our school culture is important for existing conflict resolution programs. While many such programs have a long history of creating safe and caring youth cultures and providing students and staff with specific skills to confront injustice, the recent attention to bullying has expanded the importance of this work and has provided language and additional strategies for surfacing and handling this more serious form of conflict and violence. Likewise, bullying prevention programs can benefit from the comprehensive experience that conflict resolution programs offer.

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Sample Catalog Resources

Below you'll find a randomized listing of up to 20 related items (we may have more...) drawn from our Resource Catalog.

Resource Title Description Links
Bullying prevention: CRETE training day 3 Powerpoint presentation for educators on bullying and ways to prevent bullying behavior.
Involvement of law enforcement officers in bullying prevention Pdf document examining ways in which law enforcement personnel can be involved in the prevention of bullying.
Kids Working It Out Resource Appendix A listing of books, publications and websites provided in the appendix to Tricia S. Jones and Randy O. Compton (Eds.) 2003 book Kids Working It Out: Stories and Strategies for Making Peace in Our Schools.
Assessing the status of your school's comprehensive bullying prevention plan Pdf document which presents a series of questions to help educators determine the status of bullying programs, based on Dan Olweus's, "Bullying prevention program."
Exploring the nature and prevention of bullying: Significant identifying characteristics for victims Word document that lists 21 characteristics of victims of bullying.
Community-based bullying prevention: tips for community members Pdf document, geared toward community members, discussing bullying prevention.
2010-2011 Playworks Playbook Playworks is a non-profit organization whose mission is to improve the health and well-being of children by increasing opportunities for physical activity and safe, meaningful play. The Playbook, a 390-page pdf, provides full descriptions of games and activities appropriate for K-5 school children. They are organized in the following categories: Ice Breakers; Readiness Games; Tag Games; Cooperative Games; Core Playground Games and Sports; Core Games Modifications; and Health and Fitness - FitKid Program. Also included is structured curriculum in Violence Prevention and Peace Promotion. The Violence Prevention materials focus on providing students with a set of foundation skills for preventing violence using a framework called the Five Fingers of Safety. The Peace Promotion materials focus on proactive measures to encourage and foster a healthy community, and can be used with a variety of student groups.
Bully Prevention in Positive Behavior Support for Middle Schools This 45-page handbook focuses on school-wide positive behavior support, explicit instruction, and a redefinition of the bullying construct in a middle school.
Research-based books and articles on bullying and peer victimization Pdf document presents list of books and articles on bullying and peer victimization.
Bullying among children and youth with disabilities and special needs Pdf document discussing bullying of children with disabilities and special needs.
Olweus intervention suggestions Powerpoint presentation providing guidelines for combating bullying in schools, from the Olweus Bullying Prevention Group.
Physical and verbal bullying Web-based interative scenario which explores bullying.
Being an ally Pdf document for students outlining steps and sample phrases to help diffuse bullying incidents.
How to intervene to stop bullying: tips for on-the-spot intervention at school Pdf document with instruction on dealing with bullying at school, how to intervene and follow-up procedures.
Bullying in our schools: protecting GLBT youth Powerpoint presentation which discusses bullying in schools particularly involving gay, lesbian, bi-sexual and transgendered youth in schools.
Intervention tips for law enforcement officers Pdf document examining the role of law enforcement in bullying.
Children who bully Pdf document on children who bully.
Don't Laugh at Me Teachers Guide: Grades 2-5 Creating a Ridicule-Free Classroom Don't Laugh At Me provides an effective tool for establishing a caring climate in which the emotional and physical abuse children suffer because of peer ridicule, bullying and other asocial behaviors is far less likely to occur. Operation Respect developed the Don't Laugh at Me (DLAM) programs, one for grades 2-5, another for grades 6-8 and a third for summer camps and after-school programs. All of the programs utilize inspiring music and video along with curriculum guides such as this one based on the well-tested, highly regarded conflict resolution curricula developed by the Resolving Conflict Creatively Program (RCCP) of Educators for Social Responsibility (ESR). Visit http://www.operationrespect.org to sign up for the full free curriculum kit which includes evaluations, CD and Video along with the curriculum guides.
Bullying in cyberspace Word document examining bullying in cyberspace.
Documenting bullying at your school: tips for school administrators Pdf document which introduces the idea of assessing and tracking bullying behavior at school for administrators.