Comparing Teachers' and Students' Perceptions of Bullying: Frequency, Location, and Intervention

Abstract

Bullying is recognized as a significant problem in children and adolescents, and schools are a place where bullying often occurs. For this reason, schools have used programs, such as the Olweus Bullying Prevention Program (OBPP), to increase awareness of bullying and means of intervening. The purpose of this qualitative study is to gain insight into the perspectives of teachers and students on perceived aspects of the bullying problem within the school building and environment in a school where a new bullying prevention program was being implemented. The study examines differing perspectives between teachers and students regarding the frequency of occurrence, location, and teacher intervention in bullying situations. Data was gathered via survey questions and interviews from a sample of students, teachers trained in the new bullying prevention program, and teachers without such training. The outcomes of this study shed light upon various areas in which teacher perceptions of bullying and student perceptions of bullying differ. More specifically, there are vast differences in the ways that teachers and students perceive the frequency of bullying, the hot spots for bullying, and how often teachers intervene. Knowledge of such differences of opinion could be a valuable component of teacher training in a bullying prevention program.