Criminalizing School Bullying: Do New Laws Go Too Far?
When it comes to school bullies, are they misunderstood kids who
just need to pointed on a better path? Or are they criminals who
will only be curbed by the full weight of the law?
Earlier this week,
USA Today’s Greg Toppo looked at the sharp increase in states
enacting anti-bullying initiative despite questions as to their
effectiveness. And for anyone wondering if bullying takes a
summer vacation, Toppo notes that students “might leave behind
the face-to-face bullying that includes everything from simple
taunts to brutal beatings, but too often they can’t escape the
digital world that gives the predators access to their prey day
and night and well beyond the schoolyard gates.”
There’s no doubt that states are pushing through legislation that
not only criminalizes bullying but also sets new accountability
standards for educators who fail to take action to stop it. In
some instances the onus is being put on the students themselves,
although it’s unclear how effective it will be to make them take
an anti-bullying pledge as
states like Maryland are now requiring.
Much of the push toward anti-bullying legislation comes in the
wake of several high-profile cases of students committing
suicide. There have been some significant questions raised about
the Phoebe Prince case, a girl in South Hadley, Mass. who killed
herself allegedly after being bullied by classmates. The
most aggressive pushback has come from Emily Bazelon of
Slate.com, who has
written extensively about the case and is at work on a book
about bullying.
New Jersey swiftly passed anti-bullying laws in the wake of
the
much-publicized suicide of Rutgers University student Tyler
Clementi. His roommate at Rutgers, Dharun Ravi, allegedly used a
dorm room webcam to view Clementi kissing another man. (Ravi was
convicted of spying on Clementi, and
sentenced to 30 days in jail.)
The New Jersey law is both comprehensive and demanding.
Anti-bullying lessons will be incorporated into instruction for
students as young as kindergarten. High schools will be required
to have anti-bullying coordinators and these efforts will be
monitored by the state. Schools that fall short of the
requirements face serious sanctions. New Jersey educators have
argued the law is both unrealistic and unfair, and that teachers
have enough to do in the day without adding another
obligation.
I agree that teachers can’t be responsible for the behavior of
every single student. But they certainly can influence it.
My middle school years which were a cauldron of adolescent
politics, cliques and cruelty — some at my expense, some by me
at the much-regretted expense of others. It took the direct
action of my eighth-grade science teacher to change my behavior.
One afternoon she pulled me into her office, and told me how
disappointed she was to see me engaging in such unnecessary
drama. That conversation was the first of many, and along the way
she helped me realize how my actions were affecting others. She
forced me to consider the kind of person I wanted to be.
While my change in behavior cost me dearly in the popularity
department at the time, I can look back with gratitude for my
teacher’s timely intervention. I am sure my parents would have
given me a similar lecture if she had the benefit of my teacher’s
vantage point. Perhaps that’s why so much of the burden to
prevent bullying, fairly or unfairly, rests with educators.
*Portions of this blog were previously published.
Have a question, comment or concern for the Educated Reporter? Contact Emily Richmond. Follow her on Twitter @EWAEmily.
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