He bullying or bullying It is all that physical or psychological abuse to which a child is subjected to classmates. It is a serious problem that has existed for a long time in schools and institutes that can destroy the self-esteem and, in a way, life, of the child who suffers from it.
Many teachers are doing great things to avoid and control it, but what we are doing has caught our attention a teacher, which after what happened in Columbine in 1999 (two students entered the institute armed and before committing suicide injured 24 people and killed 13 more), he devised a brilliant strategy with which to detect bullying before it happens!
The terrible moment when he realized that he had to do something
As I said, it was in the wake of the Columbine massacre. That day the two students entered their institute to undertake a massacre. One of them had been diagnosed with a psychopathy and the other of a deep depression, and seeing what the objective was, it is clear who they considered guilty of the future of their lives.
This teacher we talked about realized that something like this could be repeated, anywhere in the world, in any institute, if the children and teachers did not do something to avoid bullying and did not do something to help those children who They are isolated and they feel mistreated, so they decided to act.
As we read in Reader's Digest and translated by La Voz del Muro, by chance, one afternoon he stayed talking to a mother about other issues, they ended up telling each other how important it is for communities to be formed by kind people and brave After this, the teacher decided to explain to her student's mother what she used to do to achieve it, and this mother decided to tell the world:
Every Friday afternoon he asks his students to take a sheet of paper and write the names of four children with whom they would like to sit the following week. The boys know that this desire may or may not be fulfilled. He also asks them to name the partner who, in his opinion, had exemplary behavior during that week. The children then deliver the sheets without revealing anything to others.And every Friday afternoon, once the children have gone home, the teacher takes those sheets, sticks them on the board and analyzes them for patterns. What child does no one mention as a desirable seat partner? Which one does not name any one you want to sit with? What student does anyone ever choose? Who had a thousand friends last week and none this week?
The teacher does not really look for a new way to distribute the students in the classes, nor those who show "exemplary behavior." What he seeks is to identify the lonely children, those who have difficulties in linking with their peers. In this way he discovers the boys who have fallen into the cracks of the social life of the group, as well as those whose gifts go unnoticed to their peers and, above all, who are victims of bullying and who are the abusive or stalkers.
As a mother and fervent defender of the children that I am, I think it is the most loving combat strategy I have ever known. It's like taking an x-ray of a classroom to go beyond the surface of things and see the hearts of the students. It's like digging a mine in search of gold, gold being those children who need some help, who need adults to intervene and teach them how to make friends, how to invite others to play, how to join a group or how to share your gifts And it is a way to stop bullying, because every teacher knows that bullying usually occurs outside their eyes, and that often children who suffer from it feel too intimidated to tell. But, as Chase's teacher said, the truth comes out in those confidential pieces of paper.
When the teacher finished explaining her simple but ingenious idea, I admired her:
-And how long have you been using that method?
"Since Columbine," he said. Every Friday afternoon from Columbine.
Discover which children may have problems looking for those who do not have them
The strategy seems great to me. Great because you are looking for children who may have problems without them knowing. She only asks them who are the brightest companions, best friends, and from there, by elimination, she finds those who have less popularity, who are more alone and who more support may need.
The big question is to know what he does next with all that information, although I imagine that working in class the value of friendship, group, respect and give value to all the students that make up the group, whatever your appearance and whatever your way of thinking.
