The Marketplace of Ideas- day 4

Today, I continued my research and found very interesting graphs, tables, and statistics. In addition, I found a case study about Phoebe Prince which I had heard of before. After finishing up my last source for the day, I felt like I had a good understanding of bullying. While there are so many different aspects to bullying, I found the information that was most important and meaningful to me. Furthermore, I plan to start my abstract tomorrow. If I start writing and feel like I am missing something to my research, I will look for my sources to add.

Bullying-- source #10

I thought it would be important for my research to include several different statistics in order to get a feel of how many people are actually victims of bullying.

• 1/3 teens reported being bullied while at school
•  20 percent of teens had been made fun of by a bully
• 18 percent of teens had rumors or gossip spread about them
• 11 percent were physically bullied, such as being shoved, tripped, or spit on, 6 percent were threatened
• 5 percent were excluded from activities they wanted to participate in, 4 percent were coerced into something they did not want to do, and 4 percent had their personal belongings destroyed by bullies
• 8 percent of teens in this study reported being the victims of cyber bullying
• Most bullying occurred inside the school, with smaller numbers of bullying incidents occurring outside on the school grounds, on the school bus, or on the way to school
• Only about a third of bully victims reported the bullying to someone at school
• About 2 of every 3 bully victims were bullied once or twice during the school year, 1 in 5 were bullied once or twice a month, and about 1 in 10 were bullied daily or several times a week

Bullying-- source #9

http://ic.galegroup.com/ic/ovic/ViewpointsDetailsPage/ViewpointsDetailsWindow?displayGroupName=Viewpoints&prodId=OVIC&action=e&windowstate=normal&catId=&documentId=GALE%7CEJ3010153274&mode=view

I'm sure we all remember the phrase, "sticks and stones may break my bones, but words will never hurt me." While it made sense at the first time we learned about it, it has become especially clear how this idea is not true. In this audio, Scott Meech, a computer and technology teacher at Plano Middle School, talks about the rise of cyber-bullying which has been used to bully others. It has become so prevalent in all of America and he asserts that this form of bullying is worse than physical bullying. His explanation is simple.  This form of harassment is worse because the victim is seen by larger audience and are long term. Embarrassing pictures or videos are spread through the school quickly and for people who receive them, they can look at the media as often as they like.  Victims of cyber-bullying have no way to hide from it because it spreads through all of technology which is how teens communicate. There is no refuge from harassment. The long-term impact of this type of bullying is greater than traditional, physical bullying.  In addition to pictures and videos being spread to a large audience in a matter of seconds, the largest long-term effect is the loss of a the home as an escape to bullying. When a person is physically bullied, they know they can go home and the bullying will be done. However, with cyber-bullying it enters into the home and is always with the victim. As USA Today reporter Greg Toppo writes, "Vulnerable children have virtually no refuge from harassment. It's a non-stop type of harassment and it creates a sense of helplessness." Bullies use this to traumatize their victims even more. An important concept to understand is that technology cannot be taken away from kids to avoid bullying. It is a part of their everyday life from school work and research to listening to music. While people may blame social networking sites for the problem, it has to be recognized that the technology is harmless but it is the manner in which students are using it which is such a problem.

Bullying-- source #8

http://ic.galegroup.com/ic/ovic/ReferenceDetailsPage/ReferenceDetailsWindow?displayGroupName=Reference&action=e&windowstate=normal&catId=GALE%7CAAA000030847&documentId=GALE%7CPC3010999030&mode=view

Although bullying has existed for such a long period of time, the results of bullying used to be limited to name-calling and teasing and little fights. However, in the past few years, school bullying has become more prevalent and an issue to be concerned about. Bullied students, instead of standing up for themselves or seeking help, they have turned to violence as a solution. Violence involving suicide or through deadly crimes against their peers.Because of the high-profile cases, children, educators, and law enforcement authorities have become more involved with bullying. They are learning more about the terrible short and long term effects of bullying. Up until researching in the past few days about bullying, I assumed that all victims of bullying were of the same nature. However, this is not necessarily true. In fact, victims can range from students who are not in a well-known social group at school to students who suffer from health or learning disabilities. Furthermore, bullying can begin due to relationship conflict such as jealousy. For instance, Phoebe Prince became the victim of bullying at her new high school ins Massachusetts after moving to the U.S. from Ireland in 2009. Initially, she seemed to be adjusting quite well as she had dated two different boys from her new school. However, this in turn, resulted in other girls bullying her. In addition to one girl who had previously dated one of the boys, her female friends also gained up against Phoebe. Although the school administrators suspended at least one girl for the bullying against her, they did very little to stop it. They did not check in with her or make a big effort to make sure she was okay. In 2010, Phoebe could not stand any more of the suffering and therefore, committed suicide by hanging herself. This is such a tragic story not just because she was so young and a had a great life in front of her, but rather because such a tragedy could have been avoided. If school administrators would have spent more time with Phoebe, even if it was once every week, she would have felt like she had a support system. She lacked people to confide in and felt that the only way the threats and harassment would end was by ending her life.

Bullying-- Source #7

http://library.cqpress.com/cqresearcher/document.php?id=cqresrre2005020400&type=hitlist&num=0



When I first came across this soure, it appeared to be more of the same information that I have been finding. However, when I scrolled to the bottom of the site, I noticed the timeline of bullying. I feel that this shows the progression of bullying; it used to be a non-issue as no one really talked about it. Towards the more recent years of the timeline, there has been more focus on bullying.

Before 1970	Researchers pay little attention to bullying
1970s-1980s	School bullying remains a low-key issue, although a sprinkling of journal articles discuss the problem. Norwegian school and government officials begin addressing the problem of bullying in schools, but officials in England and the United States begin to focus on the issue only late in the decade.
1978	Norwegian psychology Professor Dan Olweus, widely considered the father of social science research on bullying, publishes the English edition of Aggression in the Schools: Bullies and Whipping.
1982	After three unrelated suicides by children in Norway, a Nationwide Campaign Against Bullying is begun in all of the country's 3,500 schools.
1990-2000	A string of schoolyard massacres in the United States — many committed by victims of bullies — prompts scientists, law enforcement and government officials to study the causes and negative effects of bullying.
1993	Olweus publishes his landmark work, Bullying: What We Know and What We Can Do About It.
Feb. 2, 1996	Barry Loukaitis, 14, kills two students and a teacher in Moses Lake, Wash., later telling officials he was tired of being called a “faggot.”
Feb. 19, 1997	Evan Ramsey, 16, kills his principal and another student in Bethel, Alaska, later complaining that school officials had failed to stop the bullying he was encountering at school.
Oct. 1, 1997	Luke Woodham, 16, kills two classmates and wounds seven in Pearl, Miss., after passing a note to friends stating “I killed because people like me are mistreated every day . . . . Push us and we will push back.”
Dec. 1, 1997	Michael Carneal, 14, kills three students and injures five others at his West Paducah, Ky., high school. He later says he felt that going to prison would be better than continuing to endure the bullying he was subjected to in school.
Dec. 15, 1997	Joseph Colt Todd, 14, shoots and wounds two students at his Stamps, Ark., high school, later complaining that he was tired of being bullied.
April 20, 1999	Columbine High School students Dylan Klebold and Eric Harris shoot and kill a teacher and 12 students at their Littleton, Colo., school and then turn their guns on themselves; 23 students are wounded. The 18-year-old shooters had been favorite targets of bullies.
2000-Present	Schools across the United States adopt anti-bullying programs; the number of bullying incidents in some districts reportedly decreases by more than 20 percent. At least 16 state legislatures pass legislation requiring schools to adopt anti-bullying programs.
May 2002	A study of school shooters by the U.S. Secret Service and U. S. Department of Education reveals that in two-thirds of 37 school shootings over the last 25 years the attackers had felt “bullied, persecuted, or injured by others” before the attack.
2004	Parents in Kansas and Connecticut sue their children's schools and school districts for failing to protect students from being bullied despite repeated complaints from the families. Parents in Virginia sue the alleged bullies of their child.
February 2005	Responding to a television report on widespread school bullying, the Indiana Senate is expected to pass a bill calling for statewide anti-bullying programs in schools.

Ninteen Minutes entry 6

The ending of Nineteen Minutes presents a twist. In the final stages of the trial, Josie admits that she was the one who shot Matt the first time after the gun fell out of Peter's bag. While it is not this shot that kills Matt, it is Peter who later fires the deadly second shot. Throughout the novel, Josie never tells the entire story of what she knew from the shooting. She always says "I can't remeber." However, it is clear at the end of the novel, that it was that she did not want to remember.  She is carrying so much emotional guilt and pain that she tries to avoid the topic at all costs. She reflects upon happy and difficult, abusive moments with Matt. Not once, however, does she admit to shooting Matt. Because she finally tells the truth, she recieves a sentence and Peter's sentence is reduced. While she will have this on her record, she is released from keeping a lie that has been tearing her apart.

Nineteen Minutes entry 5

Josie's relationship with her single mother Alex is a really important area of the novel. Flashbacks from before the shooting reveal the tough relationship between Josie and Alex. A large result of their strained relationship is Alex's inability to be both a judge and a mother. Alex recognizes this dilemma she faces between her personal and professional life, but tries to continue living her life and telling herself that it is okay. She reassures herself that she is doing the best she can as a mother when she tries to prepare breakfast or talk to Josie. However, it is clear to both Alex and Josie that there relationship was in no perfect condition. I think that our relationships with our family, our parents, are so important because they allow us to see situations from another perspective. Because Josie and Alex rarely see eye to eye, they find themselves in awkward situations. Before the shooting, this type of relationship seemed to be okay. However, it is when something terrible strikes, that causes them to become closer. It is sad to think that their relationship would have always been this poor if it had not been for a tragedy. However, when we are suffering, the worst type of suffering is when we suffer alone. If they would have stayed their separate paths, Josie would have kept all of her emotions inside. Alex and Josie's relationship was still incomplete, but they tried to make it better. The tragedy allowed Josie to become a stronger person and be able to admit her sadness and fears. I think one of the saddest parts of the novel is that despite their recent coming together as mother and daughter, Josie still feels to lie. Instead of telling her mom that she was going to visit Matt's grave, she tells her that she is tutoring middle and elementary school kids in math. Josie should be able to tell her mother anything, but she does not feel comfortable doing so. However, as I re-read this passage now, I can see that there is a great deal of strength within Josie. The reason she goes to the cemetery is to reflect in silence. She feels no pressure from anyone else, she hears no voices, but her own. While she is not honest with her mom, she is being honest with herself at the grave.