Abstract
Bullying incidents amongst learners are realities that have made, and continue to make news headlines internationally, and South Africa is not immune to such incidents. The phenomenon of bullying not only affects the bully and the victim, but also the school, parents, and communities in general. In this paper, the researcher highlights factors that may be associated with bullying amongst learners in the school setting. The ecosystems perspective is also discussed as the theoretical framework for the paper. The last step describes how the social worker can address the bullying phenomenon using different methods of practice. The researcher relies on the literature review method, and his practical experience as a social worker having previously worked with several learners. This paper concludes with relevant recommendations. Keywords: bullying; learners; parents; school; social work intervention; teachers
Highlights
Introduction and BackgroundBullying incidents amongst learners continue to make news headlines both internationally and locally (Baadjies, 2015; Brandt, 2017; Singh, 2017)
This paper argues that bullying as a phenomenon amongst learners in the school setting is a social issue and concerns the social worker
Observations and Discussion Factors associated with bullying activities Peer pressure Learners spend most of their time in the school environment, and as such, make friends and become part of groups
Summary
Introduction and BackgroundBullying incidents amongst learners continue to make news headlines both internationally and locally (Baadjies, 2015; Brandt, 2017; Singh, 2017). According to Pierson and Thomas (2010:59), “bullying can include name-calling, text-messaging, communication via the internet and social networking sites, racist and sexually motivated abuse, aggression and extortion of money or property, as well as actual violence.”. When the researcher was a learner in high school, he observed that those learners most likely to be victims of bullying were those who were in Grade Eight. This was because they were still new in the school, and as such, became easy targets for bullies. They were mainly bullied for the purpose of stealing their money and/or their lunch boxes
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