90% of Elementary School Kids Are Bullied -?
http://news.yahoo.com/s/hsn/20070413/hl_hsn/90ofelementaryschoolkidsarebulliedsurvey
So is this the great "socialization" that homeschoolers are missing out on??
http://news.yahoo.com/s/hsn/20070413/hl_hsn/90ofelementaryschoolkidsarebulliedsurvey
So is this the great "socialization" that homeschoolers are missing out on??
answer faerie, V.T., A. M.
Favorite Answer
but...but...but...if all the 80's teen movies and those who come here to disparage home schooling are to be believed, bullying is a character building experience which invariably is overcome. it turns scrawny boys into heroes and plain girls into beauty queens.
surely it NEVER leads to tragedies, destroys its victims' self esteem, interferes with learning, causes further withdrawal in the introspective, or drives anyone to violent retaliation. and it certainly never goes beyond fisticuffs, never anything worse than a blackened eye or bloody nose, right?
(that was sarcasm, for those of you whose sarcasm detectors are on the fritz)
Purdey EP
And 6 in 10 are bullies themselves. A great deal of bullying comes from children who are bullied by their parents, siblings or some other relative at home. They have to learn it somewhere. So while it's not character building and it should not be a part of childhood, it happens. It also happens with adults. What needs to happen is to get to the root cause of it all. Bullying is done because the bully feels powerless. Picking on someone who is weaker gives that person a feeling of power. Until our society as a whole addresses it and admits that it partly comes from home, we will always have the problem. There have been interviews with former bullies who have said as much. There are some examples in the book Odd Girl Out. So, it's not always a public school problem. It's a problem everyone needs to address.
Anonymous
I get the impression that you assume 90% of students are bullied by 10% of students. The truth is that most children are both bullies and victims. Ask a group of kids if they have been bullied and most kids will say yes. Ask that same group of kids if they have ever been a bully and most will say yes. It is easy for a parent to blame other children for their child's problems but the idea that getting rid of bullies will make schools better is silly. That would make schools empty.
Think back to your own childhood. Would you be more apt to tell your parents that you were bullied or that you were the bully? When I read a book about bullying to a class most kids understand that they are both bully and victim over the course of day or week.
Parents need to focus on coping skills and resilience. Home schooling is not the issue. Socialization happens everywhere, even at home. The sad truth is that both the constant bully and the constant victim are BOTH in need of help.
Book list:
http://www.best-childrens-books.com/childrens-books-about-bullying.html
Anonymous
Not entirely. The predatory pack behavior of teenage girls is certainly great training for boardroom manipulation, isn't it?
Anyone doubting the true behavior of children at school (which is anyone saying, "well, not my little angel") needs a reality check, but anyone saying the problem is only in public schools needs a reality check, too. Sociology would say problems are possible any time three or more kids get together, regardless of the location.
I'd advise reading "Queen Bees & Wannabees" by Rosalind Wiseman, for more info on social behavior in schools. It's an unbiased look from an adult's perspective, and also explains how and why "situations" occur.
Anonymous
I have two children and they are both in the public school system. Neither one has ever been bullied. I guess since you say that 90% of elementary school kids are bullied, mine must be quite fortunate. I'm sorry, I don't believe in home schooling. Even if my children had been bullied, this would have prepared them for the world we live in. At some point in life, whether you are home schooled or not, you will be faced with a bully. You must be prepared to face such people and stand up to them. What do these children, who are home schooled do when they are faced with a bully when they are adults. Do they run indoors and hide from them. The answer is no, so why not prepare them when they are young and will have the support of others to help them. Come on, we have to face the world at some point. The best why to tackle our fears is to face them!