IT'S fair to say that when parents send their children to school, the last thing they want to hear is that their kids are being bullied by their teachers or fellow pupils.
Bullying among pupils has become so rife that it requires serious attention. Pupils continue to take their lives after being bullied by their peers. More suicides are recorded at schools after some victims had tried to communicate their concerns to their parents or teachers but to no avail.
Bullying at schools is on the rise and it's time the parents and guardians of bullies help to tackle this problem by reprimanding their children and discouraging them from bullying other kids.
As the saying goes: "Monkey see, Monkey do." There is a behavioural connection between bully pupils and their parents. Parents of bullies need to take responsibility for the ill behaviour of their kids.
According to a study by GoLegal.co.za, titled How to protect your child from being bullied in school, bullying at Mzansi schools is increasing, a worrying trend confirmed by recent studies.
It shows that more than 58% of South African pupils have experienced some form of bullying, which has become increasingly prevalent.
The article states that such occurs when an individual or a group inflict intentional physical, verbal or psychological harm on another person or group, which can lead to severe emotional and physical distress and depression, even years after victimisation. On this note, even death.
An example can be an article published by Daily Sun on 31 January 2023 headlined: “Teen’s ugly suicide: We didn’t know she was bullied"
The story reads that a teen girl took her own life after she was bullied at school. The 17-year-old Andiswa Chiya was even called an ugly horse, and sadly, the grade 9 pupil from Sonyongwana High School in KZN was found hanging by her uncle. They also discovered a suicide note.
The note stated that she killed herself because she was called an ugly horse at school.
The most recent story was published on 7 August, headlined: "Mum: Bullies dragged Brian to etoilet!"
Accordingly, the grade 9 pupil from Queens High School in Gauteng, Brian Ndlovu, was being bullied, but nobody believed him. Just before his death on Monday, 31 July, Brian reportedly told his parents that he had slapped one of the boys at school after they had allegedly been bullying him.
Things took a turn when he revealed that he was then allegedly dragged to the toilets and forced to drink "something". He went home that day and narrated what had happened, but while doing that, he collapsed and died.
Preventing bullying involves the whole community, especially the schools. GoLegal.co.za says that teachers and parents must take measures to prevent bullying, and that schools should have an anti-bullying policy. The study further states that every pupil should recognise the harm of bullying and understand the consequences of this behaviour.
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