Mr. Seamus Mulconry:

It is even more fundamental than that. One of the key roles of primary schools is the socialising of children, that is, providing children with an opportunity to learn how to get on with other people, including people they do not particularly like at times. That has been a core role of schools for some time. Where it has become more important is that children now have a great deal less time for or experience of unstructured play outside the school. When many of us were growing up, we would have spent a great deal of time out on the street or out in the countryside interfacing with other children of all ages and having the corners rubbed off us, as it were. That does not happen to the same extent any more. Schools have a greater focus on trying to manage those interpersonal relationships and giving children the skills to get on with one another. It is something that schools are doing constantly.

Bullying is an indication that something is not working. When it is identified, we need to crack down on it as quickly as possible. That is difficult, however, because the word "bullying" is now used for many behaviours that are not necessarily bullying. If a child calls a teacher down to a yard, the first thing the teacher is told is, "He is bullying me", but it may have just been a push or shove. Sometimes, this stems from different expectations because young people from different backgrounds who are starting school are rubbing up against one another for the first time. There are many things happening that are quite normal and need to be managed, but not overly so. At the same time, we need to be able to identify bullying and deal with it quickly when it occurs.