Anti-bullying campaigns are beginning to spring up in schools across the U.S. There may be a similar campaign in your nation’s schools. Call them campaigns, initiatives, or programs, the aim is to curb bullying before it digs in its heels and takes root in a school. Usually, students in elementary schools are targeted. The hope is that a heavy dose of anti-bullying at an early age will immunize them against the “disease” as they mature.
There is no one anti-bullying initiative that is being used in all schools. Rather, each works out its own plan, with teachers and other school personnel involved in a rally against this scourge of schools. In some programs, students guilty of the mildest bullying are sent to the principal’s office. In others, there are varying levels of discipline applied to bullying, with the principal’s office the last resort. All adults in the school are on watch to be sure that bullying is spotted as soon as possible.
Anti-bullying activities for students include such things as role playing, making posters, skits, and discussions. Some schools show videos that promote anti-bullying action.
Whatever they use, however, most alert educators and parents eventually realize that anti-bullying initiatives, campaigns, and programs are really a matter of building strong character.
Dave Wellhoefer, principal of Omro and H. B. Patch elementary schools in Omro, Wisconsin learned this. “What we see in our anti-bullying program is developing into character education,” he said. “It really focuses on compassion, commitment, dedication, kindness and caring.”
Anti-bullying programs must, of necessity, involve character building. They must involve the character traits listed by Wellhoefer, as well as a number of other traits. We speak about those other traits in previous blogs on this site: traits such as respect, self-control, and responsibility.
Anti-bullying programs that do not thoroughly involve students and teachers in character building are bound to fail. They do little more than pluck bad fruit off of bad trees. When the plucking ends, the bad tree produces more of the same fruit. Without character building, the root of the tree remains bad, and will never produce other than the same bad fruit. With character building, the roots of young trees can be changed. They can become healthy and strong. Good fruit will then grow naturally, and bullying can be a thing of the past.
Character in an anti-bullying campaign for lower elementary grades can be addressed with books and lesson plans. An example is the free character education lesson plan on bullying found on the Character-in-Action web site. Such lessons can be backed up by character books, and interactive stories on bullying such as “Nobody Likes a Bully” found at the same web site.
Character in an anti-bullying campaign is not a now-and-then matter. It must be a total immersion program. Children must so learn the meanings of vital character traits that they can not only repeat them verbatim, but can also explain them in their own words. Students must be brought to a point where they desire these character traits in their own lives. They must learn to want self-control. They must be eager to reach a point where they can control themselves, rather than be controlled. They must want to respect others, to show compassion, and fulfill their responsibility.
Character in an anti-bullying campaign must result in action. Character traits that are presented, but never learned are of little value. Character traits that are learned still have little value. Character traits that are desired have potential, but have done nothing to change the situation.
Only when students understand character traits, desire them personally, and then exercise them in daily life will the effects of character building be seen. Character in anti-bullying campaigns is vital, and will make a difference when built thoroughly.
That’s the view from my chair. What’s your view?