Thursday, June 21, 2012

Bullying - Unacceptable!!!

Recently there have been several news articles about the bullied bus monitor Karen Klein. I am in shock that this was even allowed to go on in the first place, let alone be placed on youtube by the students who bullied her. The youtube video is about 10 minutes long and very hard to watch.

Bullying is unacceptable! When did we decide that bullying would be an acceptable practice? People are questioning what will happen to the kids who bullied. The answer is, very likely, nothing but a stern warning, and maybe a loss of bus privilege. No apologies, no teaching our kids that bullying is wrong and needs to stop.

Unfortunately, the bully issue is not just restricted to certain areas. Kids bully each other and adults. Where do they learn their behavior? From the ADULTS around them. Bullying has become one of those things we have become desensitized to unless it is an extreme case, and then the punishment for the bully isn't as detrimental as the consequence of the bullied student.

Bullied students are more likely to develop depression, become suicidal, and suffer far worse lasting effects from the bullying then the one doing the act. When will it STOP!

Slamming the Brakes,

The Bus Driver

4 comments:

ChiTown Girl said...

I saw this story this morning. It literally made me sick to my stomach. I couldn't even watch the whole video. The first minute was all I could take. The PARENTS of those children should be beaten! You're right, I'm sure those kids did not face appropriate consequences for these despicable actions.

ToTEachTheirOwn said...

I absolutely love reading your blog! I am hoping you'll provide some input for my blog. It's going to be all about the good, the bag & the ugly of education. (Including what goes on before/after school) I would love for you to share your opinions or bring up questions for the folks who read my blog to answer!

www.toteachtheirown.org

I just posted my FIRST entry!Let me know what you think!!

BreAnnaBabcock said...

I know this is an older post, but I recently just discovered your blog through a Scholastic website. I am a teacher in training, and I want to branch out more. I am really enjoying your posts! :)

I agree 100% that bullying is simply unacceptable. It's very sad to know that not only is it occurring everyday between children, but that there are individuals out there that take it this far. Watching the youtube video of this woman broke my heart! The way she handled it was incredible, remaining strong even as the insults rolled in; though you could see how deeply it was hurting her.

Do we look at the children who were doing this or the parents? It's just very sad.

BreAnnaBabcock said...

I know this is an older post, but I recently just discovered your blog through a Scholastic website. I am a teacher in training, and I want to branch out more. I am really enjoying your posts! :)

I agree 100% that bullying is simply unacceptable. It's very sad to know that not only is it occurring everyday between children, but that there are individuals out there that take it this far. Watching the youtube video of this woman broke my heart! The way she handled it was incredible, remaining strong even as the insults rolled in; though you could see how deeply it was hurting her.

Do we look at the children who were doing this or the parents? It's just very sad.