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Week against bullying

 In Belgium, we have something called "The Week Against Bullying" (De Week Tegen Pesten).  This is mainly addressed in primary schools, where children are informed about the effects of bullying and learn how to recognize and prevent it during the Week Against Bullying. A major event during this week is a large concert organized by Ketnet, a children's TV channel. Everyone dances the "Move Against Bullying" and shows their support in the fight against bullying. To symbolize this, people put four dots on their hands, representing a kind of "antivirus" against bullying, signaling that they stand against it. Schools take several initiatives during this week to combat bullying and can win a prize that they can use to support their anti-bullying policies. 

I remember when I was younger this week was very fun, at that time for me it was not only about bullying but mostely about the big concert at the end of the week. My uncle, who is a school principal, says that during this Anti-Bullying Week, bullying decreases, but after this week, there is a clear increase in bullying. That's why I doubt the effectiveness of this week, because it mainly focuses on the fun activities that take place at school during that week. In my opinion, there should be more effort put into finding ways to spread this awareness, and that cannot be achieved in just one week. 

- Hannah Nys

Comments

  1. AinaMarch 4, 2025 at 11:23 AM

    Hi! I'm not sure if we have something similar in Catalonia. Honestly, this is the first time that I have heard about it, but I think it's a great initiative. However, considering that, as you mentioned, bullying increases after that week, I think it would be interesting to find a way to keep the “fight” against bullying present the entire year. It's important that thus awareness is not limited to just one week but is continuously integrated into daily life of schools (we have to see how). In addition, I think it would be beneficial to continue dedicating a specific week to bullying, but as a reinforcement within a broader and more long-term plan.

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    Replies
    1. hannah nysMarch 10, 2025 at 1:57 AM

      I agree that their should indeed be a way to spread awarness the entire year. It's interessting to think about how you could do that. thinking about spreading quotes around the school, hang papers with the consequenes of bullying, what you can do when you see bullying... I don't know if it would work but it's worth the try :)

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  2. AnonymousMarch 9, 2025 at 9:50 AM

    Hi, while reading this, I thought it might be a bit off-topic if the main event was a concert. Although it is nice to combine this serious topic with a fun approach to teaching, perhaps the focus should be different? The knowledge transfer itself could also be made more playful. I could imagine that when children hear something about bullying in a frontal lecture, they quickly switch off. I would also find it interesting to find out exactly which factor contributes to bullying occurring more frequently again after this week

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  3. SophiaMarch 9, 2025 at 9:52 AM

    The comment above was mine:)

    ReplyDelete

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