Twenty-four out of one hundred–almost one in four students: this is the average percent of students that get bullied in their four years of highschool. A lot right? Bullying can come in all shapes and sizes, from upsetting words to physical harm. These actions can have a negative impact on someone’s life and how they perceive themselves. If you or someone you know is experiencing bullying both physical or mental you should seek help from a trusted adult. People joke about bullying but this is a serious issue that can lead to lifelong consequences. This happens in our school everyday and students are too afraid to speak up, and giving students a voice is what this newspaper is about. Understanding others point of view and taking a step back and looking outside of yourself to understand what others are going through on a daily basis.
Untrue rumors, mental manipulation, body shaming, name calling, and harsh inside jokes are just some of the things that these 14 -16 year olds have to deal with almost everyday. Lillian Messer stated, “I think they should take bullying into a bigger consequence.” Many other students agreed with this statement. She has gotten bullied because of her weight and called awful names, she has said that the highschools tolerance on bullying has been a lot lower than the junior high and has greatly appreciated this. Freshman Racheal Conley has expressed some concerns with our schools current way of handling bullying, “Tell the teachers to do something about it when they hear about it the first time “. She says this because when they first hear about the report of bullying they’ll do an investigation to see if anyone else witnessed this and wait for more reports to come in. She states how at this time the bullying is still active or even worse if they hear that they have been reported. Fear is one of the most common reasons why students are afraid to reach out to adults or report bullying.
When students were asked what they think the most common form of bullying is, Katalina Andaverde-Alvarez, Racheal Conley and Lillian Messer all said they believe that verbal bullying is the most frequently used, this contradicts what our Superintendent John C. Hamstra says. He says that most complaints they get are mainly cyberbullying, done outside of school. A main reason for this may be that when people hide behind a screen to make fun of someone, they are less likely to do it in person so the victim feels safer reporting it. Whereas when the bullying is happening in person at school they are less likely to report this due to fear. This is the sad truth about some students’ lives, school should be a safe place for everyone, we are here to learn not make others feel inferior. This is not just up to the staff and administration, students have to take accountability for our schools safety.
All of this comes down to the thing you heard in preschool when you were learning about manners, treating others how you want to be treated. This may sound silly but it still applies now more than ever, think before you speak because what you say can stay with someone for the rest of their life. Our words and actions might seem fun or not serious at the time but when you look at it from their point of view you will begin to see it differently.
