The life experiences of children in middle childhood who continue to be bullied
- Authors: Macdonald, Helen Margaret
- Date: 2015
- Subjects: Bullying , Bullying in schools
- Language: English
- Type: Doctoral (Thesis)
- Identifier: http://ujcontent.uj.ac.za8080/10210/365792 , http://hdl.handle.net/10210/233846 , uj:23884
- Description: D.Ed. , Abstract: Bullying continues to be a complex international problem that has the potential to debilitate some individuals more than others, leaving those who are bullied with unpleasant memories, feelings of frustration and anger, and diminished self- esteem. There are several meta analyses of bullying interventions that indicate minimal or no change (Merrell, Gueldner, Ross, & Isava, 2008). The question thus arises, “What are the life experiences of children in middle childhood, who continue to be bullied?” This research study was conducted to more thoroughly investigate bullying in middle childhood and to determine more effective prevention efforts. A phenomenological design with a bioecological and social constructionist perspective was used to guide this research study. This qualitative approach was employed to investigate the significant life experiences of three middle childhood children who have been bullied consistently since early childhood. The data were collected through creative expressive arts, in-depth interviews with the participants and their parents, observations and conversations with the relevant teachers and peers. This study was conducted over four phases. In the first phase, planning and preparation took place, including the development and acceptance of the research proposal and a critical review of the literature. Phase 2 and 3 occurred simultaneously because as the data were collected the analysis of the data commenced. Interpretive phenomenological analysis was employed to interpret the data. Four themes emerged from the data analysis: the experiences of maternal stress; the experiences of trauma; the experiences of innocent versus wicked1; and the experiences of supportive relationships. The findings indicated that the experiences of maternal stress commenced in utero, also when the participants all first experienced trauma. All the participants found bullying to be traumatic, and insight into their various experiences of being bullied emerged. Lastly, the experiences of supportive relationships, including positive and negative experiences are discussed. In order to extend this study's findings to practical application, the fourth phase of this study highlight two important missing theoretical links, namely, the element of trauma is one of the criteria for the definition of bullying, and the importance of the mother’s womb for human development is lacking in Bronfenbrenner’s bioecological model. The fourth phase...
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The development of an anti-bullying intervention process at a primary school in Gauteng
- Authors: Adam, Fatima
- Date: 2008-08-18T07:39:14Z
- Subjects: Bullying , Bullying in schools , Gauteng (South Africa)
- Type: Thesis
- Identifier: uj:7939 , http://hdl.handle.net/10210/883
- Description: Whole-school development was introduced in South Africa by the Department of Education (DoE) after 1994 as a method of effectively addressing barriers to learning. Whole-school development is an effort that requires the combined contribution of all stakeholders to manage and facilitate effective change at schools. In this respect the school is recognised as an organisation with various interdependent systems, of which all contribute to the functioning of the school. In South Africa it is evident that schools are faced with many and various barriers to learning. One such barrier, and the topic of this study, is bullying. In primary and high schools alike, bullying is rife, occurring not only on the playground but also in the classroom. Bullying is an external barrier that contributes to internal trauma, such as fear and anxiety amongst victims. These consequences then filter through to the various systems at the school, like the parents, teachers, and the school system which are negatively influenced by bullying. The result of bullying then impacts on every system at the school thus enhancing the negative consequences associated with bullying. The trauma associated to bullying has been recognised. South African researchers recommend that bullying should be addressed in order to facilitate an inclusive learning environment. In this respect whole-school development has been suggested to effectively address bullying from a systemic perspective. Although the trauma of bullying has been recognised, these researchers have all concluded that limited information is available with regard to addressing bullying in South Africa. Vorster (2002) has researched the development of anti-bullying guidelines using a whole-school approach; however these guidelines have not been applied to discuss the effectiveness of it. In this study, Vorster’s guidelines are implemented with the aim of understanding the educators’ experiences of using whole-school development during the process of drawing up the anti-bullying guidelines at the school. A subsidiary aim of this research is to make recommendations for future development of anti-bullying guidelines. Action research has been selected as the research design with the motivation that participatory research is aimed at providing those who experience the problem to engage in the research process with the purpose of seeking suitable solutions to the problems. It allows such people to take ownership of the process of finding appropriate solutions and thus empowering them. Whole-school development originated from the need to allow stakeholders to participate in decisions that influence their schools. It further emanated from the need to facilitate effective change in schools in an attempt to build an inclusive learning environment. Vorster’s (2002) guidelines include the process of creating an awareness of bullying at the school, suggesting feedback sessions with both learners and teachers on the findings and the development of an anti-bullying committee who would be responsible for the development of the anti-bullying guidelines. In conclusion, these guidelines allowed the teachers to explore various strategies that can be implemented at the school. The research process in turn allowed the teachers to take charge of the process thus empowering them. It is apparent that each school needs to experience this approach in an attempt to contextualise and understand the school and thereafter explore feasible and realistic guidelines that are appropriate to their context. In this manner South African schools will be actively taking charge of addressing barriers to learning. , Mrs. H. Krige
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