Dan Neville (Limerick, Fine Gael) | Oireachtas source

School can be a difficult place for many. Add a culture of bullying and it becomes intolerable. School should be a place where people feel safe and have the opportunity to grow and develop, but bullying sets growth and development back.

Ask any student about bullying and he or she will have a story. Each story is unique and tells us a great deal about bullying and the pain it causes. When a child's self esteem is destroyed and he or she takes an overdose to get away from the pain, one can clearly see that the issue of bullying is not to be taken lightly. Bullying is a negative and, often, aggressive manipulation by one or more people of another person or people, usually over a period. It is abusive and based on an imbalance of power. It is also described as a pattern of behaviour in which one person who has a great deal of internal anger, resentment and aggression and who lacks interpersonal skills chooses to displace his or her aggression onto another person. This person is chosen for his or her vulnerability to the bully. The tactics used include constant criticism, exclusion, nitpicking, teasing and verbal, psychological, emotional and physical violence.

Victims of bullying are reluctant to tell others for various reasons, including their fear of further bullying if they tell.

They think they will be singled out even more and, deep down, they hope if they stay quiet that the bully might like them. They do not believe teachers can do anything to make the bullying stop. They do not want to worry their parents or guardians. They are afraid if their parents or guardians tell the school authorities, the bullying will get worse. Telling on peers is regarded as a bad thing to do. Victims feel they are somehow to blame and 30% of them do not tell anybody.

It is important to recognise signs of bullying. A person might be a victim of bullying if he or she refuses to go to school, suffers from depression or mood swings, asks for money or begins stealing it, becomes withdrawn, has unexpected cuts and bruises or has possessions that go missing and he or she attempts suicide.

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