What's the best way to handle a bully student?
Bullying has become very common these days in schools and colleges for any class teacher it becomes very challenging. There are a few steps which can be taken which can help you manage such kind of situations, let us take a look:
It becomes a duty to step in when we see such bullying situations happening, but if it is not handled properly then it could become even worse.
Such situations can become highly emotional which means that the class teacher needs to know how to handle it very sensitively and tacitly. Below are some of the steps which can be taken to stop bullying in the classroom:
Understand the whole Story:
First and foremost it is crucial for the teacher to understand the whole picture and listen to the stories of both the students or all the students involved. there is a difference between interrogating a situation and analyzing it with patients. please make sure that you avoid interrogating the child.
Let the Victim Know You are on His side:
Make sure that the child who has reported the situation what is the victim should not feel attacked, because already he is in air stressful situation and took a lot of courage for him to report the situation in first place.
Facing such kind of bullies can really make the child depressed and in extreme situations, kids can take drastic steps. So be polite and gentle when understanding what happened. Let the child know that the school and authorities and you as a teacher are on his side and will take the required actions if needed.
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Address The Bullying Child:
Once you have understood the situation and you are addressing the bully child. Make sure that you are not being overly negative and avoid blaming them for the actions instead listen to their story also and understand why they are behaving in this way.
Give it a Positive Outlook:
When making the bully child understand of what he has been doing is incorrect talk about his positive attributes also. At times a child acts as a Bully because of some emotional reasons and also maybe he is hurt are facing some negative situations at home.
Reinforcing his positive character traits can help him know about his strength and reduce the emphasis on the pain he has been going through. Tell him about how he could deal with such things more positively so that he can refocus on something more positive and creative.
Reinforce the Consequence the Bully Child Can face:
While being gentle and polite it is also your duty as a teacher to reinforce the school policy and let the child know very clearly that strict action should be taken.
Without a doubt, you need to be kind, but at the same time more firm in reinforcing the consequences with the childhood face if such actions I am not controlled.
Finally, I would say that there is always a bully guy being there and we need to understand that fellow well. At times circumstances are not good enough that leads him or her to bully others. Understanding the person and his story and then trying to look at things from his perspective will help in changing the situation. Just adhere to the step given above and see if it proves beneficial and try to change/adapt according to the situation because we as teachers need to be more creative and need to be thinking a step forward for the benefits of all our students. Good Luck!