Bullying

The â€Å"peanut gallery† may not directly bully the victim, but by standing on the sidelines giving their attention to the actions they encourage they bully. Even though I am not a bully, I have been part of the â€Å"peanut gallery† that makes bullying an even worse situation. The â€Å"peanut gallery† are students that can make a positive change to stop bullying. As students, we can take action to stop bullying in our schools and I have some ideas to make this happen. I and a group of students would dedicate one week at the beginning of the school year to hold an anti-bullying campaign called â€Å"Bully Beatdown. The â€Å"Bully Beatdown† campaign would raise awareness to the issues of bullying. For the campaign kick-off, I would hold a rally for students to share their personal stories and experience with bullying. I would invite a counselor or a psychologist specializing in anti-social behavior to speak at the rally about the effects of bullying. The person could train students on anti-bullying tactics. During the â€Å"Bully Beatdown† campaign, I would have students perform skits acting out different bullying scenarios and ways they can stop bullying such as befriending a victim of bullying. To promote my campaign, I would pass out information flyers and pamphlets, buttons, and signs to post throughout the school in bathrooms, gyms, lunchrooms, and hallways. Another feature of the campaign will have students sign a social contract agreeing to not participate in bullying of any kind, to stand up for the victims of bullying, to not be a bystander to bullying, and to report bullying to teachers or a responsible adult. I would create an organization called â€Å"Bully Guardians† which is a community of students who act as a support network for students targeted by bullies. The students who were spectators to bullying can become a â€Å"Bully Guardian. † Many students are afraid to report bullying incidents they observe because they might become targets themselves. I would create an â€Å"Anonymous Email System† for those students who don’t want to report an incident in-person to a teacher or the principal. The student could send an email explaining the bullying incident they saw or encountered. After the campaign kick-off, I propose that each month schools devote a day to bully awareness and to report on the progress they’ve made to stop bullying. I believe my plan of action is practical and easy to implement in schools.