Security

A sense of security is fundamental to emotional well-being. In order to feel connected to others within the school environment and to schooling itself, young people need to feel safe, not just safe from physical harm or threats of physical harm, but also safe to have and express opinions, safe to be themselves, whatever their gender, sexual orientation, ethnicity, family background and interests. They also need to feel that they are able to take part in school and class activities without being left out or isolated.

The Gatehouse Project Adolescent Health Survey of Year 8 students, undertaken in 1997, included a series of questions about victimisation. Students were asked whether they had recently experienced being teased, having rumours spread about them, being left out, being threatened or physically harmed. Fifty-three percent reported that they had recently been victimised in some form at school with 16% reporting that they were experiencing this daily. There is a marked association between a young person's perception of a secure and supportive social environment and emotional well-being. Students who reported any form of victimisation were three times more likely to be at risk of having depressive symptoms when compared with those not reporting such experiences. Furthermore, those who reported being bullied in Year 8 were also more likely to report the onset of depressive symptoms in Year 9. For detailed information about these relationships see the Publications section.

The Gatehouse Project assisted schools to examine their school environment, policies, practices and programs to see how a sense of security for all students could be enhanced. Schools received information about the prevalence and types of bullying and victimisation that students had reported occurring in their school from the Gatehouse Project Adolescent Health Survey. Survey responses in relation to availability of social support and relationships with peers, teachers and learning were also of interest in determining priorities. The student survey data together with information from the audit of policies, programs and practices helped to identify areas for further action that might enhance a sense of security for students and other members of the school community. The critical friend was available to help access information about programs and policy development that might help address concerns.

Starting points

Directly tackling bullying and harassment through policy and programs was often initially a key focus area for many schools. Other starting points included: looking at such things as school and classroom organisation; strengthening relationships between students, and between students and teachers; transition programs; effects of learning programs, assessment and reporting on students' sense of security; and general promotion of a safe environment.

Some strategies adopted by schools at different levels of school activity

1. At the level of the classroom

Classroom agreements or 'operating instructions'

The importance of establishing agreed classroom rules, particularly in relation to holding discussions, is well recognisedⁱ. Schools have found that taking the time to collaboratively establish classroom agreements or operating instructions was useful. This was the case, for example, at Overnewton Anglican Community College:

Student ownership of the class agreement has been central to its success. This was achieved by teachers working with groups of students to brainstorm the necessary rules or guidelines for operating their class in ways that made students feel safe, connected and valued. Eventually, a set of agreed class rules was drawn up, mounted on large sheets of paper and continuously displayed. Classes even took copies with them to specialist classes. The process of arriving at the agreement took some time, but was time well spent. In the long run, it proved to be a very powerful tool for maintaining a positive classroom climate. On the occasions when students breached the agreement, it was easy to take them aside, ask them to read the agreement aloud, reflect on its contents, who wrote it, and why. The need to control their behaviour and adhere to the established code became self-evident. It wasn't a matter of being told by a teacher how to behave; it was a matter of following what your peers had already set down and valued. A very different type of 'peer group pressure.

The above is a teacher's view of negotiating a class agreement and was part of the Year 8 Gatehouse Project classroom program at Overnewton Anglican Community College.

Student working teams or table groups

Having a sense of security in the classroom is partly derived from feeling that you have a place to belong. For some students, it can be a daily challenge to find a place to sit and others who will work with them. The changing patterns of friendships and quarrels can lead to exclusion. Many schools have found that having set work groups can minimise this and also facilitate collaborative learning. Of course, considerable thought and planning needs to go into implementing this. Maryborough Regional College is one school that has adopted Team Small Groups. See their School Story for details. Further reading is available in Creating a Climate for Change and Engagement: The Maryborough Regional College Experience in Team Small Groups: A Whole School Approach to the Middle Years (see our Publications page).

2. At the level of the Whole School

Developing and implementing a policy to address bullying and harassment

It is important for all schools to have strategies to address bullying and harassment, including ones that aim to prevent incidents occurring and ones that provide guidance on responding to incidents. For a discussion of Victorian Department of Education strategies see Safe Schools are Effective Schools. It is crucial to make sure that these strategies are well known within the school community. During its involvement with the Gatehouse Project, Cleeland Secondary College developed and implemented a policy to address these issues. The school's welfare team undertook a step-by-step process to develop the policy in consultation with the school community making sure that staff and students were familiar with the policy and related issues, and that it was constantly referred to and reinforced.

Subsequently, the anti-bullying policy is now an accepted part of the school environment and members of the welfare team were invited to present their development of the anti-bullying policy to other schools on several occasions. Cleeland Secondary College acknowledges that addressing these issues is an ongoing process, with constant reinforcement "empowering students to feel there are options for them to feel confident to report incidents of bullying to those in charge. If students feel no action will be taken they are reluctant to say or do anything, other than to put up with the situation. For some, the fear is great. Schools need to be aware that they must be vigilant on this issue. They cannot implement a policy and feel that is sufficient. It is a constant process, especially as new students arrive and need to become aware of the school culture. All students should feel safe at school."

Reviewing a bullying policy

As part of the ongoing work of preventing and dealing with bullying, students at Overnewton Anglican Community College undertook the task of reviewing an existing policy. Alicia Rawlins, College Captain in 2000, described this in the College's yearbook for 2000

At the beginning of 2000 Ben, Chris, Naomi, Lena, Gareth, Steven and I decided that it was time to review the Bullying Policy, as it seemed a little outdated, having been written 4 years ago. We started a Bullying Policy Review team in Term One and had meetings on a weekly basis to discuss relevant qualities of the Policy. These included refining the definition of bullying, re-arranging the steps to follow if you are a victim of bullying and much more.

The Bullying Policy was originally designed to be a guide and tool for students who knew of someone being bullied, or who were being bullied themselves. The new version of the Policy focuses on gaining support and advice from family and friends, while at the same time confronting the problem and solving it before the situation gets out of hand. It enables students to follow simple and logical steps to solving bullying situations, and enhances students' awareness that they are entitled to an environment free from harassment.

The new Bullying Policy has been made available to all students and teachers, and will appear in the 2001 student diaries. Two versions have been written: one for Junior School and one for older students.

Promoting safe school environments

Many schools have developed charters of rights and responsibilities for members of their school communities, to promote a sense of security within the school environment. At Camberwell Grammar School, a Supporting Safe Environments policy has been written by students in close consultation with staff. This document builds on a previous Community Relations Charter and its title links with the school motto Spectemur Agendo (By our deeds may we be known). The policy emphasises the importance of a safe, secure and enjoyable environment for the school community. Importantly, networks of support within the school community are emphasised, including other students, parents and a range of staff within the school. Specifically, harassment is discussed and responses outlined, ranging from individual action to disciplinary action at the school level.

Linking an anti-bullying policy to existing school ethos and programs

A policy to address bullying need not involve a whole range of new processes and strategies. At Brimbank College,  the development of an anti-bullying policy involved the production of a simple, accessible pamphlet that located prevention of and responses to bullying within the mission statement and general student management processes of the college. It acknowledged the contributions of all individuals to a positive school environment, and explained how bullying and harassment undermined such an environment. Awareness within the school community of the effects of and responses to bullying was raised by publicly launching the policy, distributing the pamphlet to all families and actively using the contents of the pamphlet in discussions with students about behavioural issues.

ⁱ Lewis, R. 1997, The Discipline Dilemma, ACER, Melbourne; Rogers, B. 1997, Cracking the Hard Class; Strategies for Managing the Harder than Average Class, Scholastic, Gosford, NSW; Canfield, J. & Siccone, F. 1995, 101 Ways to Develop Student Self-Esteem and Responsibility, Allyn and Bacon, MA.

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