31-10-2023 (BANGKOK) The prevalence of school violence, including bullying and online harassment, is a grave issue affecting one in every three young people aged 13 to 15, as revealed in a 2019 global study by UNESCO. This distressing reality underscores the urgent need to address and combat school violence, which is a pervasive problem in many countries worldwide.
School violence can take various forms, including physical, psychological, or sexual, and can occur among students, often in the form of bullying and cyberbullying, or between students and school staff through harsh disciplinary measures and corporal punishment. While the ASEAN’s Regional Plan of Action on the Elimination of Violence against Children mandates its member states to prohibit corporal punishment in all settings, only five of the 11 member states within the Southeast Asian Ministers of Education Organization (SEAMEO) have implemented such a prohibition in schools.
It is crucial to recognize that every act of violence in a school setting constitutes a violation of children’s rights, and a substantial body of evidence underscores the negative impacts of school violence on students. This includes adverse effects on their school attendance, learning achievements, and physical and psychosocial well-being. Research from the Southeast Asia Primary Learning Metrics in 2019 demonstrated that higher scores in reading, writing, and mathematics were linked to students’ positive feelings and attitudes towards school, such as a sense of belonging, the ease of making friends, feeling safe, and acquiring valuable knowledge. Exposure to school violence had the opposite effect, resulting in lower scores in these subjects due to its detrimental impact on psychosocial well-being.
While any student can be a victim of school violence, certain groups are more vulnerable than others. This includes students with disabilities, those from marginalized communities, adolescent girls, and those who do not conform to traditional gender roles. Moreover, in today’s increasingly digitalized world, the emergence of online violence and cyberbullying has added a new dimension to traditional school-based violence. This has far-reaching and harmful effects that extend beyond school boundaries. Girls often face social exclusion, sexual violence, and psychological abuse, while boys are more likely to experience physical bullying and corporal punishment.
While bullying is one of the most recognized forms of school violence, it is essential to understand that there are various other forms of harm affecting students’ well-being in schools and on playgrounds. Society should not tolerate or normalize such unwanted actions as part of growing up, as boys are told to ‘toughen up,’ and girls are expected to ‘take a joke.’
School violence can have severe and long-lasting effects on the mental health of everyone within the school community, including students, teachers, and other school staff. Those directly targeted by violence or witnesses are at risk. UNESCO’s 2019 report, “Behind the Numbers,” emphasized that children who experience bullying are nearly twice as likely to suffer from loneliness, sleep problems, and suicidal thoughts compared to those who have not been subjected to such abuse. With the backdrop of COVID-19-related school closures, the mental health of children and teenagers has become a growing concern in East Asia and the Pacific, with UNICEF estimating that one in seven adolescents now has a diagnosed mental disorder.
Where do we go from here?
Despite the enormity of the issue, there is hope, as we understand effective ways to prevent and respond to school violence and promote and protect the mental health of students.
First and foremost, it is essential to acknowledge the problem. Violence must be recognized for what it is, and efforts should be made to understand when, where, and how it occurs. School should be a place where no one fears bullying, harassment, physical or emotional punishment, humiliation, or social stigmatization.
National governments play a crucial role in establishing health-promoting school policies, examining evidence using comprehensive frameworks, and utilizing measurement tools to better understand school violence and its gender-specific dimensions. This ensures that responses are targeted and responsive to students’ needs. It is important not to label those subjected to school violence as psychologically ‘fragile’ and not to stigmatize bullies as intentionally malicious individuals. Some students may require assistance to address psychosocial issues triggering violent behavior. However, everyone affected by violence, including survivors, witnesses, and perpetrators, can benefit from psychosocial support.
Second, schools and other educational settings are central to fostering young people’s mental health. Teachers are often the first line of response, making an effort to identify students in mental distress. However, education systems and schools cannot address this issue in isolation. Collaboration is essential with health, social welfare, and child protection professionals, along with families and the wider community. Parents should be empowered to encourage children to express their need for psychosocial support. Young people should also be encouraged to assume peer leadership roles in driving positive change within their schools and communities, as they are best positioned to define what a safe school environment means to them.
Lastly, a holistic ‘culture of care’ must be nurtured in schools, where all members of the learning community feel welcome and valued. Promoting help-seeking and destigmatizing poor mental health is vital. All stakeholders must collaborate to prevent school violence from occurring in the first place. This ‘whole-school’ approach encompasses strong school leadership, partnerships between school, home, and community, and curricula, teaching, and learning practices that address the root causes of interpersonal violence and poor mental health.
By working together, transcending traditional boundaries, and involving a diverse range of government, civil society, academic, youth, and other entities, we can create safe and harmonious learning environments for all students. Only then can we truly ensure that schools become ‘no place for fear.’
