Police and school safety experts have been called into Princeton Secondary School following a disturbing spike in incidents of bullying.
91裸聊视频淚t91裸聊视频檚 a pattern behaviour of name calling, pushing and shoving in the hallways, taking possessions and hiding them 91裸聊视频� little things to try to disempower somebody that through the pattern becomes a big deal,91裸聊视频� said principal Patrick Kaiser.
91裸聊视频淭here were elements of cyberbullying, slash conflict, as well.91裸聊视频�
The problems are occurring mostly with grade nine students, and have been brewing for several months.
91裸聊视频淲e probably got a sense in mid to late October that this was unusual and we started implementing things right then. We increased our school awareness, increased our presence in the hallway and adjusted classes for our grades eight and nine91裸聊视频o try to minimize the power of some of these individuals.91裸聊视频�
There have been minor injuries reported related to physical conflicts, he said.
91裸聊视频淭here are a number of things that we have gone through 91裸聊视频� parent conversations, student conversations; lots and lots of student conversations.91裸聊视频�
In February 91裸聊视频� and following the dictates of the school91裸聊视频檚 bullying policy - the RCMP were called in to help address the situation.
Constable Ryan Henley told The Spotlight there was no official complaint about any incident.
91裸聊视频淢ultiple kids came forward and expressed [about] some bullying types of behaviour,91裸聊视频� he said.
Henley gave presentations about bullying to small groups.
91裸聊视频淚 felt that they went pretty good. I was a school liaison in one of my previous jobs so I have some experience91裸聊视频t was an opportunity for discussion and information.91裸聊视频�
He declined to specify details of the incidents that were shared.
91裸聊视频淭he last thing I want to do is to single out a child or make it clear what parties are involved.91裸聊视频�
When asked how the recent incidents compare to other complaints of bullying he has dealt with, Kaiser said 91裸聊视频渢his year has certainly been an anomaly91裸聊视频e struggle to come up with reasons for what is going on because if I could put my finger on it I think I would be able to stop it.91裸聊视频�
He has noticed an evolution in how bullies operate.
91裸聊视频淩arely do you see the typical bully [saying] 91裸聊视频楪imme your lunch money.91裸聊视频� It91裸聊视频檚 way more psychological and social.91裸聊视频�
Anti-bullying campaigns may actually play a role in the current situation, he added.
91裸聊视频淲ith social media now and the growing awareness and all of that, [it] has partially educated our bullies on how to be creative.91裸聊视频�
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In February, nine PSS staff members attended a professional development session on bullying, and came away with new techniques for teachers to head off bullying in the classroom, said Kaiser.
Those ideas 91裸聊视频� including getting bullies to work constructively with other students to foster empathy and responsibility 91裸聊视频� are already being implemented.
Last week the school hosted a social media session to educate parents and a group from Safe Teen, which runs an international violence prevention strategy, will visit the school in April to speak to kids.
Kaiser said while students have been disciplined for bullying incidents 91裸聊视频渢hat is just a small piece of what is going to result in change. We have to hold students accountable through consequence but we also have to work with them through conversation to help them understand the significance of what they have done. Without that change won91裸聊视频檛 happen.91裸聊视频�
In some cases the school has employed restorative justice methods to bring bullies and victims together.
91裸聊视频淭hat has been used on occasion [after] determining with the victim as to where they are at. I don91裸聊视频檛 want to put the victim in a situation where they are going to feel powerless again91裸聊视频n a number of cases I wouldn91裸聊视频檛 put the victim in that situation with that person yet.91裸聊视频�
Kaiser said it is also important to not stigmatize a child who has bullied.
91裸聊视频淚 don91裸聊视频檛 believe the kids who are doing this are bad kids,91裸聊视频� he said. 91裸聊视频淚 don91裸聊视频檛 believe we have any bad kids here at PSS, just kids who make mistakes.91裸聊视频�
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