So, this may seem like it is a bit odd to see on my blog (I love lady gaga by the way, I'm wierd that way [along with spelling the word wierd incorrectly just to show that I am wierd] anyways), but I have a quick comment on this idea of anti-bullying.
Read on if you read this line, or not, it's up to you. But I think that the push for anti-bullying is stupid, flawed and doesn't work. It might work a little bit, and definitely probably helps more than not doing anything and burying (That's wierdly spelled) our heads in the sand.
And like I always try my best to do on this blog, I want to propose an alternative to anti-bullying campaigns. There is such a thing as behavior covariation. Behavior covariation just means that if you take some behavior away and don't replace it, another one, possibly better, but most likely just the same or even worse will come up later. Because of this phenomenon, we need to teach what we want students to do. Instead of yelling at them, "Don't bully" (or even kindly telling them that), we need to teach them how to interact with each other without bullying.
Teach tolerance, acceptance, and embracing others. Don't teach "Don't bully" because a lot of kids who bully don't know what not bullying is like and what it looks like. By teaching students to embrace others, and if they truly do, it is possible that the students' behavior of bullying will go down without even teaching "No bullying." The reason behind this is that why would we bully if we embrace others personalities and cultures?
So, I would suggest to teach students to embrace others differences first, and if bullying is still an issue, then issue the statement, "No bullying" and then go on with that particular student and give teach them to embrace others in a different way.
Albert Einstein said, "The true mark of insanity is doing the same thing over and over and over again and expect to see different results." Change the teaching style, if it seems that the teaching style is working for 98% of the class, keep it, but teach that last 2% in a different way. Find their strengths and utilize them while you teach.
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