National Bullying Prevention Month | A YAC Student Blog

Madeline Liston is a junior at Dublin Scioto High School. Learn more about the YAC here.

October is national bullying prevention month. Every day, thousands of young people are bullied at school and online. According to a study done in 2019, one out of every five young people has been bullied in their lifetime. That’s over 20%. In a school of 200 kids, that’s 40 people being bullied. Of the 74 million kids living in the US right now, that’s 14.8 million.

Why does bullying happen? Many people have tried to answer this question. Most people think it has less to do with the person who’s being bullied; it has more to do with the bully trying to feel better about themselves by putting others down. But why do so many young people feel bad about themselves in the first place? Why does this only seem to happen with kids, even though adults appear to have more stressors in their life? The answer is that we simply don’t know. However, there are still things that we can do to help prevent bullying, both as an adult and as a student.

Adults can:

Help kids understand bullying. Talk about what bullying is and how to stand up to it safely. Make sure kids know what bullying looks like and how to spot it. Tell them bullying is unacceptable. Make sure kids know how to get help.
Keep the lines of communication open. Check in with kids often. Listen to them. Know their friends, ask about school, and understand their concerns.
Encourage kids to do what they love. Special activities, interests, and hobbies can boost confidence, help kids make friends, and protect them from bullying.
Model how to treat others with kindness. Most kids’ behavior is copied from the adults in their life, whether they know it or not. I personally can track most of my own behavior back to the behavior of my role models. Make sure what you’re showing your kids is kindness.

Students can:

Treat everyone with kindness. Stop and think before you say or do something that could hurt someone. Keep in mind that everyone is different, and reflect on your actions and feelings of prejudice towards others.
Protect yourself from cyberbullying. Always keep your passwords secret and be aware of your privacy settings. Don’t post something you wouldn’t want a stranger seeing or forwarding to someone else.
Stand up for others. When you see bullying, there are safe things you can do to help stop it. Talk to a parent or adult you trust. Be kind to the kid being bullied, and find ways to make them feel included.
Get involved. Find out more about when and where bullying happens at your school, and share your ideas with the adults at your school. Talk to your teachers and peers about bullying awareness and how to spread it where you are.