Simcoe County students will be donning pink shirts this week to promote their anti-bullying message.
The nation-wide initiative encourages people to wear pink to symbolize that bullying should not be tolerated.
Paula Murphy SCDSB Superintendent of Area 4 Schools says the students have done an excellent job putting on this event over the years and applauds the grassroots efforts to bring the issue of bullying to the forefront.
Murphy says the board has a zero-bullying policy and tries to always deal with the issue head-on. But admits it’s often up to the victim to come forward to an adult.
She says once an adult knows about the situation they can work on resolving and healing.
Signs parents and teachers can look for in a child who is being bullied include; personality changes, the child becomes quiet, stays in their room, you may notice a loss of appetite or sleep, and a general withdrawal from family and friends.
Many schools within the SCDSM now participate in something called a “healing circle” where the bully is encouraged to make amends with their victim.
Murphy says often times the bully doesn’t really understand how their actions can effect their victim and needs support too.
The SCDSB conducts a school climate survey each year where students from grades 4 through 12 can anonymously talk about how they feel about their overall school climate. That data then goes back to the school to be studied.
Reports show that close to 160 thousand children miss school everyday due to the fear of bullying by other students.
The Canadian Council of Learning reports that in 2007 Canada had the 9th highest rate of bullying among 13 year olds around the world.
