BEHAVIOUR MANAGEMENT UPDATE

As part of the update to our Behaviour management policies, which were presented and discussed last year at P&F meetings, as a school community, we have decided to implement PBL across the school. We worked on this during the back end of 2021, but were disrupted by COVID and the At Home Learning that was required. When we came back, we had to concentrate on cohorting across the school and socially distanced meetings, so no more work was done on this. However, a new year brings a fresh start, despite the restrictions we still have in place. Our goal is to implement PBL, slowly and explicitly, to ensure greater understanding and embed the concepts and practices.

A discussion was had about the best way to start, and it was decided to define, or in some cases re-define, the term ‘bullying’. In this way, we can help the students understand the term and be able to correct their use of the term, give them alternatives to the word, and help remove the 'bullying' label from behaviour for which it does not fit. It's an easy word to use, and has lost its meaning over the years so we decided that we needed to stop and redefine it, so that when it is used in the PBL program, we have a shared understanding of what it is and what it is not.

To do this, we are beginning with lessons from the Bullying. No Way! website (Bullying No Way) which was discussed last year with Craig Moore (Behaviour Support) from the CSO. It is a wonderful site and by using one source, we will have consistency of message across the school.

The definition of bullying from this site is:

“Bullying is an ongoing and deliberate misuse of power in relationships through repeated verbal, physical and/or social behaviour that intends to cause physical, social and/or psychological harm. It can involve an individual or a group misusing their power, or perceived power, over one or more persons who feel unable to stop it from happening.  Bullying can happen in person or online, via various digital platforms and devices and it can be obvious (overt) or hidden (covert).  Bullying behaviour is repeated, or has the potential to be repeated, over time (for example, through sharing of digital records).  Bullying of any form or for any reason can have immediate, medium and long-term effects on those involved, including bystanders. Single incidents and conflict or fights between equals, whether in person or online, are not defined as bullying.”

This definition will be unpacked for the students according to their age and stage of development, without losing any of its meaning, through use of the resources and using the language around the school and within classrooms during lessons. All classes will begin these lessons this week, and as we move slowly and carefully, embedding the concepts well, we will be able to build upon this with our PBL, later in the term.