A study into the effectiveness of the Anti-Bullying Procedures on Traveller and Roma pupils' experiences in the school system

An adapted version of the Olweus pupil bullying questionnaire (Olweus, 2006) was used to investigate bullying towards Traveller and Roma pupils. Additional questions (informed in consultation with Traveller and Roma organisations represented on the National Traveller and Roma Inclusion Strategy (NTRIS) Education sub-group) were also included. The survey was mainly quantitative in nature, however one out of the 37 questions allowed for a more open-ended qualitative response. Researchers also added participants’ comments where relevant to assist interpretation of findings. In some cases, the survey was read to participants and the researcher recorded their responses, other respondents opted to complete the survey independently.

The survey included questions about: the participants’ gender and ethnicity; how much they like school; and the number of good friends they have in their class. They were also asked about their experiences of bullying in the previous year. Information was sought about the frequency, nature and duration of bullying. They were also asked about the perpetrator(s) of bullying including; their gender number and ethnicity; whether they were in a different class or grade; and whether or not they had been bullied by teachers. Following concerns that Traveller and Roma pupils do not report bullying, they were asked

a series of questions about reporting bullying and possible reasons they might not have reported incidents of bullying. Their perceptions of teachers’ and peers’ handling of bullying were also sought along with a description of what their school does to help pupils recognise and deal with bullying. Inorder to assist with the interpretation of findings, pupils were asked whether their peers were aware of their ethnic group membership and whether the proportion of fellow ethnic group members in their school influences their perceived risk of being bullied. The survey concluded by seeking pupils’ views on how their experience of bullying affected their participation in school.

Pupils’ experience of bullying

Pupils were given a definition of bullying and asked: how often they had been bullied in the past year; how long the bullying lasted; and in what way they were bullied. Bullying was defined as when another student or several other students say mean and hurtful things or make fun of you or call you mean and hurtful names; completely ignore or exclude you from their group of friends or leave you out of things on purpose; hit, kick, push, shove around or lock you inside a room; tell lies or spread false rumours about you or send mean notes and try to make other students dislike you and other hurtful things like that. It was emphasised that when we talk about bullying these things happen repeatedly and it is difficult for the student being bullied to defend him or herself.

Duration of bullying

For those who were bullied, the most commonly reported duration of bullying was one or two weeks. However, for three Traveller pupils, the bullying persisted for greater than six months and all of these pupils maintained that they were still being bullied. One pupil did not specify how long the bullying lasted but commented “teachers, still happening”. Another respondent who earlier affirmed that they had been bullied in the previous year skipped the question. In addition, the Traveller pupil who experienced multiple types of bullying indicated (in response to how long the bullying lasted) that she had not been bullied in the past year. Perhaps she was confused by the time frame.

Bullying by teachers

All participants were asked whether they had been bullied by teachers and there were reports of being bullied by teachers across two secondary schools and one primary school. Five Travellers (12.2% of Travellers surveyed) indicated that they had been bullied by teachers several times a week at some point in the past year. However, they were not asked how long such bullying lasted. None of the Roma participants reported that they had been bullied by teachers but one Roma pupil perceived that Irish children sometimes received preferential treatment and that she was treated differently.

Four of the Traveller pupils expanded on how they were bullied by teachers and described incidents of verbal abuse and how teachers made them feel unwanted and excluded.

— Use curricular programmes to promote respect, belonging and inclusion

Racist name calling and exclusion should also be addressed through curricular programmes that: foster an attitude of respect; promote belonging and inclusion; address prejudice and stereotyping; provide opportunities to develop a positive sense of self-worth; and highlight the unacceptability of bullying behaviour.

— Raise awareness of what to do about concerns of teacher bullying

All members of the school community should be informed of the procedure for investigating and reporting teacher bullying. This should be clearly outlined in the school’s anti-bullying policy along with options for parents in the event that they are unhappy with the outcome of a school investigation.

— Remove barriers to reporting bullying

Both pupils and parents expressed some reluctance to report bullying. Therefore, schools should provide opportunities for pupils and parents to raise concerns in a comfortable and non-threatening environment. Pupils should be supported and encouraged to disclose bullying behaviour (including teacher bullying) and reporting incidents should be considered responsible behaviour. Providing a bullying awareness day for parents might also give them the confidence to approach the school should they have concerns about their child being bullied.

— Adopt a consistent approach to dealing with bullying

All reports of bullying should be investigated and dealt with so that pupils will gain confidence in telling.

— Follow up, record and report

Reports of bullying behaviour need to be followed up with relevant parties. Follow up meetings
should be arranged within 20 school days after the relevant teacher has determined that bullying has occurred. In so doing the teacher will be in a position to determine whether or not the bullying has been adequately and appropriately addressed. In circumstances where the bullying has not ceased, the teacher must use the recording template in Appendix 3 of the Anti-Bullying procedures and provide a copy to the principal or deputy principal as applicable. These procedures will support the evaluation
of the effectiveness of the school’s anti-bullying policy. Data gathered from bullying reports can be analysed to monitor levels of bullying behaviour and identify trends that warrant further intervention.

— Provide comprehensive supervision and monitoring

Schools should provide comprehensive supervision and monitoring through which all aspects of school activity are kept under observation, for example in the school yard and when pupils are moving between classes. This will help minimise opportunities for bullying. This is particularly important because continuing provocation could lead to a physical fight and ironically in some cases the person being bullied may appear to be the aggressor.

— Raise parents’ awareness of bullying

It is essential that all members of the school community have a clear understanding of the anti-bullying policy aims and content if the policy is to form the basis for developing effective strategies for dealing with the problem. Therefore, parents need to be supported to become familiar with the content of
the anti-bullying policy. This could be facilitated through means such as: bullying awareness days; the provision of summary leaflets; and translating key documents for minority language speakers such as Roma parents.

— Provide support for pupils affected by bullying

Lastly, given the devastating impact of bullying on those affected, a programme of support should
be made available to pupils. Such pupils may need counselling and/or opportunities to participate in activities designed to raise their self-esteem. This is also relevant to pupils who witness ethnicity based bullying, and share that ethnicity, as they can experience anxiety and feel under threat themselves. They may also feel guilt or distress at not being able to help the person being bullied.

Finally, the proposed recommendations must be seen as just one component of a more comprehensive strategic approach which is needed so that access, participation and outcomes for Travellers and Roma in education are equal to those for the majority population.

Download the full report A study into the effectiveness of the Anti-Bullying Procedures on Traveller and Roma pupils' experiences in the school system

Source Dublin University