Teacher and Administrator Perceptions of Bullying in Schools

Abstract

The primary aim of this study was to explore the differences between teacher and administrator perceptions of bullying. Data was collected from 139 practicing educators and administrators who completed a survey regarding their perceptions of bullying in schools. Mann Whitney U tests were conducted in order to determine if perceptions of bullying varied with occupation and gender. Bonferroni adjustments were made for the multiple pairwise comparisons. There were statistically significant differences between teacher and administrator perceptions regarding their role in bullying prevention. Teachers felt more strongly that educators played an important role in bullying prevention; however, administrators felt more comfortable dealing with the parents of bullying victims. Interestingly, teachers were significantly more likely than administrators to perceive a need for bullying prevention training. Significant gender differences concerning the inclusion of bullying prevention in school curriculum were also found.

Evaluation of the Impact of Harmony-Meter as a Global Strategy to Reverse Bullying

“…The analysis of the phenomenon of school violence already has a long history in other parts of the world. Countries such as France, Spain, Norway, England, United States (Kennedy, Russom, & Kevorkian, 2012), Among others, they have conducted research and have strategies and programs to improve the conditions of school life and curb violence.…”

“…60% of 13-year-olds had carried out acts of violence against their peers. In the United States they refer up to 70% (Kennedy, Russom, & Kevorkian, 2012). The Ombudsman (2002) in Spain mentions that 30% of the students suffer violence.…”

“…Studies have shown that aggressive behavior is associated with other criminal behaviors such as vandalism, drug abuse (Kennedy, Russom, & Kevorkian, 2012) and continues even in the adulthood to and many of them become potential criminals. Other studies describe the aggressive personality model of aggressors with low levels of empathy (Menesini & Salmivalli, 2017) and very low levels of development of socio-emotional skills.…”

“…However, teachers are not considered to be the culprits of school violence. And even in spite of the social devaluation with which they count they are seen as the main actors in the solution of this social problem (Kennedy, Russom, & Kevorkian, 2012). Teachers are not social workers, they are not psychologists, they do not have the tools and knowledge necessary to stop a social problem so strong and rooted in our society (Rigby, 2011).…”

“…The motivation of the academic plant, as a key element for the adoption of intervention programs and their effective implementation (Bradshaw, Pas, & Debnam, 2015), increased. A change of attitude was identified when teachers dimensioned the problem of school violence by accounting for violent behaviors by category during the pre-test, and they took awareness of the severity of the problem and realizing what they had the tools to prevent violent behavior (Kennedy, Russom, & Kevorkian, 2012).…”