Stop Bullying in the Classroom

All throughout my childhood, I was picked on, made fun of, and even called hurtful names. A lot of the humiliation that I felt made me act nervous and timid.

This online course, “Bullying- The Golden Rule Approach” teaches an anti-bullying concept of using “the Golden Rule” to decrease bullying and better manage responses to bullying behavior. Essentially, the golden rule says that we need to do to others as we would like others to do to us. If a student responds to a bully with mean insults, it can exacerbate the bullying. Instead, by teaching students  to respond to bullies with friendliness can provide more positive results. While this is a different approach to standard anti-bullying practices,  I’ve seen it deliver results and watched students, victims, bullies and bystanders, all grow in their self-confidence and relationships.

Today, years later, when I stand as a teacher and look back at the bullying I had to endure in school, I have a better understanding of what happened and how I could have, if not prevented, at least redirected it (it’s always easier to see things more clearly in hindsight, right?). Maybe, during my childhood, if I had known and practiced this alternative approach I would have sooner developed a healthy self-esteem and acceptance.

It’s difficult to face the sticky and uncomfortable issues of bullying. We try to ignore it, sometimes laughing it off, sometimes denying it, but it doesn’t easily change and go away. Some simple practiced principles of response, care, honor, and respect can go a long way in reducing bullying behaviors and building more caring communities in the classroom.

Some food for thought:

• Have you ever been a part of childhood bullying, either as the victim or the bully? Looking back at it as an adult, what insights can you learn?
• How might the Golden Rule Approach influence how you handle bullying in your classroom?

Bullying is a complex and multi-faceted issue. You can learn more by enrolling in the online self-paced PD course, “Bullying: Prevention and Policies for Schools.”

About the Author
Ellen Paxton is a respected expert in education and best known as the Chief Learning Officer of Professional Learning Board. As a two-time National Board Certified Teacher, Ellen has successfully published and customized online professional development courses and Learning Management Systems for 20 years to help teachers meet their state continuing education renewal credit requirements. Through ProfessionalLearningBoard.com, RenewaTeachingLicense.com, and ConnectedPD.com, Ellen has established solutions and maintained partnerships with several accredited universities, higher education institutions, teachers’ unions and state Departments of Education while setting strategic direction that makes a difference and overseeing implementation of popular online PD.