School bullying is a real problem. That’s why Classcraft recently launched a project to help prevent bullying and discrimination among students.
Roughly 1 in 5 teenagers report experiencing school bullying, according to a recent article on NPR. Those numbers come from a 2013 report from the U.S. Department of Education. According to facts from stopbullying.gov in 2014, overall the statistic could be even higher—about 1 in 4 students.
Bullying most commonly happens in middle school and includes verbal and social abuse. It manifests very differently outside than inside the classroom, according to Shawn Young, who is leading Classcraft’s anti-bullying project in partnership with Fondation Jasmin Roy and research organization CLIPP.
Problems like cyberbullying, which happens through cell phone messaging and websites like social media, are less frequent, affecting about 9 percent of students in grades 6-12 and to about 15 percent of high schoolers (grades 9-12). The numbers are much worse among lesbian, gay, bisexual, and transgender (LGBT) students—roughly 55.2 percent.
Unfortunately, researchers are still working on the best solution to prevent bullying. We know that creating a culture of respect is promising.Bystanders who intervene can also make a huge difference. Zero tolerance and expulsion are much less effective.
Join us for a special online event on Tuesday, November 22 at 8 PM Eastern to learn how you can help prevent school bullying with Classcraft.