Students Feel Safe From Bullying

Region 9 students feel safe and happy in school overall, according to a recent survey on bullying. The questionnaire was distributed to students at Easton's Helen Keller Middle School, Redding's John Read Middle School and Joel Barlow High School for the second year.

The results, similar to last year's, were reported by the Easton Courier. They show high scores for students' sense of closeness with their school communities. The 10 percent to 12 percent of students who noted any degree of distress were referred to an online video resource for advice on how to deal with bullying.

The survey, administered as part of the School Climate Project, revealed that students prefer to deal with bullies on their own rather than get help from an adult, but many said they did not have the skills to do so. Forty-one percent to 57 percent reported that they make an effort to intervene when they see someone being picked on.

Although 60 percent to 78 percent said they feel they are treated fairly by teachers in bullying situations, this was the lowest score for the region. Some noted that they feel some teachers did not understand who started the incidents.

The climate project is planning to create a bystander intervention program to help students learn how to intervene if they see something happening in the hallways, playgrounds and classrooms.

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