all schools should implement bullying awareness programs

Is it recommended that schools and school boards customize policies to match both the unique school environment as well as current research. In many cases, available model policies may not be completely consistent with current anti-bullying best practices and research. In the US, these states include model policies: Alaska, Arkansas, California, Colorado, Idaho, Iowa, Maine, Michigan, Massachusetts, New Jersey, Ohio, Rhode Island, South Carolina, Vermont, Virginia, Washington and West Virginia. Several states and provinces have model school bullying policies available for schools and school boards to adopt. Looking for a kid-friendly definition of bullying? Step 2 : Check if your department or ministry of education has a model anti-bullying policy. Schools and school boards should adopt theirs to avoid inconsistency with province and state law. Most provinces and states have their own definition of what bullying is. Steps to Drafting School Bullying & Harassment Policies Step 1 : Define bullying School bullying policies should also prescribe interventions to change student behaviours and help them learn how to develop healthy social relationships. Worse, they may include policies already known to be ineffective at reducing bullying behaviour such as zero-tolerance. When schools do have anti-bullying policies written, often they’re not well known or too vague. Once drafted, the task then becomes one of communicating the policy to teachers, staff and students. With school policies on bullying in place, everyone in the school can be on the same page.Īnti-bullying policies in schools should include both protection for students and also the adults in the workplace. Having clear school policies on bullying helps to clarify expectations on appropriate behaviour and what the consequences of bullying are.

All schools should implement bullying awareness programs