Overcoming Bullying?

Bullying is a dominant issue arising in schools. This issue relates to tolerance. Should bullying be tolerated within schools? Many students education has been affected by bullying as it lowers their self-esteem causing them to dislike coming to school. According to a newspaper article have read, “up to half of all students in Year 9 were either being bullied or bullying others needed to be addressed”. This clearly shows that bullying affects many students. Bullying will need to be stopped in order for students to gain a better education. In the article opposition leader Barry O’Farrell said “new counseling and students support positions would be provided as a response to the recent increase in incidents involving violence and bullying”.  Bullying not only affects the students but also affects the community. The government will need to come up with legislation that everyone agrees on in order to counter bullying.

The main cause of bullying is ethnicity, this is because people have different cultures and there is lack of understanding of each cultures leading to bullying. Society has placed a major emphasis on whiteness. The idea of whiteness is part of critical scholarship that is not meant as an attack on ‘White people’ but rather: “an assault on the socially constructed and constantly reinforced power of White identifications and interests” (Gillborn, 2008: 33). The white culture is the dominant culture within society. Many students who are from minority groups are discriminated against due to them not fitting in society. Within the article Mr O’Farrell has stated “parents have made it clear that they are alarmed about the spate of school yard incidents in recent weeks”. To overcome this alarm the government has announced a supporting student plan, which will trial 50 new student support officers in NSW schools which will cost $13 million over four years.

With the growth of technology bullying has become easier than ever before. Children are not only bullied at school but outside of school also. As stated in Griffith article “the alarming number of teenage suicides associated with cyber bullying on Facebook, together with Facebook’s apparent failure in some cases to remove harmful posts, has fuelled concern it is incapable of self regulation. This demonstrates that Facebook and Twitter are too lenient in removing harmful post making it easier for people to bully other people. The government has fallen behind with legislation in regards to cyber bullying.  Bullying has occurred for many years but there has been little change in putting a stop to it.

References:

• Gillborn, D. (2008). Racism and education: Coincidence or conspiracy? New York and London: Routledge.
• Griffith, C. (2013). Tony Abbott urged to tackle cyber bullies. The Australian retrieved on 17/09/13

http://www.theaustralian.com.au/technology/tony-abbott-urged-to-tackle-the-cyber-bullies/story-e6frgakx-1226720437201

• ·       NSW Liberals Announce School Bullying Plan. The Age retrieved on the 18/09/13(2013) http://news.theage.com.au/breaking-news-national/nsw-liberals-announce-school-bullying-plan-20110306-1bj95.html

Multicultural issues in relation to education

For many years, there has been a growing attention to issues of race and ethnicity in relation to various ‘minority’ groups. Efforts have been to understand why some groups have been struggling to assimilate to the norms of migrant receiving nations, such as Australia and America. Indigenous communities are an example of a struggling minority group in Australia.  Fozdar, Wilding and Hawkins have outlined those who ‘lack’ English language skills, or who ‘lack’ a particular educational experience, or who ‘lack’ strong local employment networks tend to face great difficulties in becoming successful.

Racism in education is a key factor affecting indigenous students. Even though we live in a multicultural society many people do not abide to this resulting in many problems.  Australian being the multicultural country one of the key goals of the educational system is the cultivating respect for cultural diversity, social cohesion and cultural understanding.  In teaching students about the importance of understanding different cultures we learn to live with each other in harmony.

Apple talks about ‘the sphere of education is on in which the Right has been ascendant’. The social democratic goal of expanding equality of opportunity has been a limiting reform. In the article; Raise expectations for Indigenous Children, senator Scullion stated that problems in remote indigenous communities were caused by poverty rather than Aboriginality.  Indigenous students face many hardships in gaining an education due to their cultural differences. Disadvantages faced by indigenous students include; low income, low socio-economic background and language spoken other than English. Tony Abbott has promised "a new engagement" with the First Australians, pledging to be a "Prime Minister for Indigenous Affairs," by bringing indigenous policy into his department and having Scullion in cabinet solely focused on indigenous affairs.

A number of strategies will need to be put in place in order to encourage indigenous students to gain an education. Firstly schools will need to have more respect for differences in order to have a more adequate learning environment.  Also there need to be more funding’s for multicultural issues in relation to education. Once these issues have been overcome there will effective communication between the teacher and students. With education, there will need more adaptations of the curriculum to suit the variety of cultures in each classroom with this the quality of teaching will need to improved in order for an effective learning environment. Also for students in need their needs to be adequate ESL support to improve their learning. For instance with Indigenous students they might have language difficulties this will effect there education need. Teachers will need to provide extra support to improve their English while maintaining their own language. With this there will be an effective teaching environment improving their education and maintaining their school environment.

 References:

Dan Harrison (2013). Raise Expectations for Indigenous children: Senator. Retrieved on the 15/09/13 from http://www.theage.com.au/federal-politics/political-news/raise-expectations-for-indigenous-children-senator-20130918-2txs5.html

Fozdar, F. Wilding, R. Hawkins, M. (2009) Race and Ethnic Relations, Oxford University Press

Apple, M (1996). Cultural Politics and Education. New York, NY: Teachers College Press.