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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
What to do if your child is being bullied Pdf document with instructions to parents whose children are being bullied.
What we know about bullying Pdf document with information on bullying.
Research-based articles and books on bullying/peer victimization Pdf document listing articles and books on bullying and peer victimization.
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.
Advice from our "tween" and teen experts Pdf document with advice on bullying from the Youth Expert Panel.
Children who bully Pdf document on children who bully.
Best practices in bullying prevention and intervention Pdf document outlining best practices for bullying prevention and intervention.
Cyber bullying Word document examining bullying in cyberspace, with advice to parents and young people from Aman Batheja.
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.
Community-based bullying prevention: tips for community members Pdf document, geared toward community members, discussing bullying prevention.
Working with young people who are bullied: tips for mental health professionals Pdf document with tips for mental health workers who treat bullied youth.
Research-based books and articles on bullying and peer victimization Pdf document presents list of books and articles on bullying and peer victimization.
Sample newsletter article: bullying among children and youth Pdf document presenting a sample newsletter article on bullying.
Bullying in out-of-school time programs: tips for youth-serving professionals and volunteers Pdf document that examines bullying in extracurricular activities with tips for professionals and volunteers.
Understanding bullying within the camp setting: tips for parents Pdf document for parents about bullying in the camp setting.
SACSC Elementary unit and lesson plans Web site developed by the Society for Safe and Caring Schools and Communities in Edmonton, Alberta, Canada whose mission "is to encourage home, school and community practices that teach, model and reinforce socially responsible and respectful behaviors, so that living and learning can take place in a safe, caring and inclusive environment. Achieving this mission requires the involvement not only of parents, teachers, and children, but of all the important adults in children’s lives." The site houses a number of lesson plans and educational units "focusing on adult modeling, the SACSC programs prevent negative social behavior through character education, conflict management training and building respect for diversity. They promote a problem-solving approach to discipline that encourages positive social behavior by expecting young people to fix the wrong they have caused, thereby learning from their mistakes." They focus on 5 topics: Living Respectfully; Developing Self-Esteem; Respecting Diversity and Preventing Prejudice; Managing Anger and Dealing with Bullying and Harassment; and Resolving Conflicts Peacefully for grades K-6.
Exploring the nature and prevention of bullying: bullying quiz One page true/false quiz on bullying.
Faith-community responses to bullying among children and youth Pdf document which outlines steps that faith communities can take to stop bullying.
Scope and impact of bullying Pdf document which discusses bullying.
GIRC Annotated Bibliography of Conflict Resolution Resources An annotated bibliography from the Global Issues Resource Center on conflict resolution resources covering the topics of bullying prevention, classroom management, and trauma & violence prevention. Includes books, curricula, videotapes, simulations and games.