The kids are all write: Ashton Read

Beating bullying

Around the world, people are being bullied this very moment. There are many types of bullying: cyber bullying, physical harm, verbal abuse… Are you or have you ever been bullied at school? Perhaps you have been the bully? Well, it’s time we stop, and work together to beat bullying.

I believe that schools do not do enough to stop bullying: victims have hurt themselves and even committed suicide over the years. 80% of children agree that schools are not doing enough to prevent bullying in or outside the classroom. I want to stop people from suffering from bullying. People not only suffer through bullying, but suffer a system that does not recognise the problem.

Some schools do have assemblies, but these can be easily ignored by bullies. Also, some teachers think they have dealt with bullying with 1:1 and group talks, but in a few weeks’ time they move on and forget about it and the bullying can resurface.

When someone is being the bully, it is most likely that they have a bad life at home and are envious of the victim. They could also just think it is a small joke and do not realise how hurtful it can be.

It may be the bullies need real help and counseling

A way you could try and stop the bully is by showing them how the victim feels when they are being bullied. It may be the bullies need real help and counseling.

Other people could argue that verbal bullying is just like joking around and that people are just over-reacting. People might have this opinion because they just simply do not care about bullying or they have not experienced it and do not know what it feels like.

Even though most schools do their best to stop bullying with talks, assemblies and posters it still is not enough. An easy way to stop cyber bullying is to keep the bullies off the computers and ban them from having phones both at home and school. This is why parents need to be involved what happens in school. More public assemblies, private talks and on-going reminders are ways that bullying could be prevented.

If you are being bullied, you should tell your parents or a teacher who you can trust. And if you are bullying someone, it’s time to stop the cycle and think about how upset they will be and how your hurt is affecting them.

Nine students from Portslade Aldridge Community Academy have been writing their own articles about something that matters to them, as part of Little Green Pig’s weekly after-school Tuesday club. For more info about the projects being set up for young writers across the city, go to littlegreenpig.org.uk