Ten ways to tackle bullying identified in new education sector report
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Some 10 key recommendations in a new report on tackling bullying – including a national database of incidents – should be acted upon "without delay" and "could have a transformative impact on the whole school community".
That's according to the Oireachtas Education Committee, which formulated the report after extensive engagement with young people, as well as teaching unions, school patrons, parent and management bodies.
The committee, made up of nine TDs and five senators, also sought out opinions from clinical psychologists and child and adolescent mental health experts, the Ombudsman for Children, the Department of Education, and organisations dealing with cyber safety for children and young people.
In all, it made 28 recommendations but said 10 key recommendations could be introduced immediately.
They include the department's bullying plan and related anti-bullying procedures to be "urgently audited and updated in line with current policies on child protection, wellbeing, and relationships and sexuality education".
It should be benchmarked against Unesco’s recently published recommendations on tackling bullying and cyberbullying in schools, the report said.
A national system should be established for the reporting of data on individual bullying cases, their causes, the steps taken to address them, and the outcomes of interventions, it added.
Other measures include providing emotional counselling and therapeutic supports on-site in all primary and post-primary schools through a reconstituted and expanded National Educational Psychological and Counselling Service (NEPCS).
The report called for an online safety commissioner to be appointed, with both investigative powers and an educational mandate.
The commissioner should have the power to receive and investigate complaints from individuals, it said.
A mandatory online cyberbullying and internet safety training programme should be provided for all teaching staff, according to the committee.
The report said separate mandatory modules should be provided in all Initial Teacher Education (ITE) courses, and to all primary and secondary school teachers, on school bullying, wellbeing, autism and neurodiversity, disability, racism and inclusivity.