Fiona O'Loughlin (Fianna Fail) | Oireachtas source

I appreciate the opportunity to speak second because I have to go the Seanad for the Order of Business. The witnesses are very welcome. This is a very emotional but very interesting topic. It is one of the biggest challenges of our times in education when we consider some of the research that has been carried out show the levels of anxiety among young people, to show that one in three is being bullied in school and that one in ten is being bullied through social media. The huge increase we have seen in the past few months in the number of young people being bullied through social media is quite frightening, to say the least, particularly those who are bullied because of their identity, sexuality or race or colour. That really opens up what a difficult world we are living in and shows the tools and resources we need to give our young people. Life is difficult enough, but when they have to deal with this on top of everything else, it makes life very difficult for the individual, his or her family members and the members of the school. In all this we have to think about the perpetrator as well. While the victim is at the heart of what we want to do, the problem is that there is somebody who is perpetrating this behaviour who may not understand the impact it is having. This may be for myriad different reasons in their own lives. Examining such behaviour is every bit as important because if we deal with a case of bullying in which one child or student is rescued, there is the absolute likelihood that if the behaviour is not addressed by the person perpetrating the bullying behaviour, he or she will go on to do it again.

I have spoken to a number of principals and teachers about bullying and how they handle it. I completely agree with the view that we need to invest more funding in longitudinal studies to examine the types of interventions that are there. I have come across three different areas that seem to have made a positive difference, and I would be very interested to hear the witnesses' views on them. One principal spoke to me about a restorative justice practice that she has introduced in her school. She has found it incredibly effective, particularly in dealing with ongoing behaviour from a child bullying others. I would certainly like to see that rolled out. I would like to hear the witnesses' views on it.

The Joint Committee on Education and Skills of the previous Oireachtas looked at the area of positive mental health and the potential and positive possibilities of introducing mindfulness in schools. I spoke to some of the schools in my area in Kildare. A local drama teacher, Paula Conlan, introduced mindfulness sessions. She did them online during Covid, which was fantastic, and the schools disseminated them. They found that a positive tool in bringing harmony and serenity to the classroom.

The other area is drama and the creative arts, specifically improvisation and role play, with young people playing the role of a victim or bully and exploring the feelings that brought out. Peter Hussey of Kildare Youth Theatre has done incredible work. I have attended some of the workshops. That type of initiative is happening outside schools, which is important because we are looking at this as a whole-school community and as a society in the context of how we can deal with bullying in and outside schools. One can lead to the other. I am interested in the witnesses' views on that.

Looking at some of the submissions, it is shocking to see peer bullying going on even at preschool and early childhood centres. That is obviously a situation where early intervention is important, to help both the victim and the bully.