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Research Paper
Exploring high school learners’ perceptions of bullying
Abstract
Objective:Learners’ perceptions of aspects of school life that are sufficiently serious to interfere with their schoolwork were investigated. Bullying was a form of behaviour that was singled out for inclusion and further exploration in the study.
Method: Learners from three coeducational Western Cape Education Department schools were surveyed: 414 Grade 8 and 474 Grade 9 learners completed an anonymous, voluntary self-report questionnaire.
Results: Factors identified as most frequently interfering with their schoolwork included classmates not listening in class, feeling overwhelmed by schoolwork, teacher absenteeism, and verbal fighting. When asked specifically about bullying, 40% of learners indicated that they frequently experienced bullying at school – although they ranked it as much lower when compared to other potentially problematic school experiences. Furthermore, although the majority of learners indicated they thought teachers considered bullying a problem, few felt there was anything that school staff could do to counteract bullying effectively.
Conclusions: These findings suggest that learners perceive bullying as an unavoidable part of school experience and have normalised this aggressive behaviour.
Journal of Child and Adolescent Mental Health 2010, 22(2): 111–118
Method: Learners from three coeducational Western Cape Education Department schools were surveyed: 414 Grade 8 and 474 Grade 9 learners completed an anonymous, voluntary self-report questionnaire.
Results: Factors identified as most frequently interfering with their schoolwork included classmates not listening in class, feeling overwhelmed by schoolwork, teacher absenteeism, and verbal fighting. When asked specifically about bullying, 40% of learners indicated that they frequently experienced bullying at school – although they ranked it as much lower when compared to other potentially problematic school experiences. Furthermore, although the majority of learners indicated they thought teachers considered bullying a problem, few felt there was anything that school staff could do to counteract bullying effectively.
Conclusions: These findings suggest that learners perceive bullying as an unavoidable part of school experience and have normalised this aggressive behaviour.
Journal of Child and Adolescent Mental Health 2010, 22(2): 111–118
