Tag Archives: bullying

“Sort it out for yourself” – sound advice, or too much to ask?

Posted on November 13, 2012 | 11 Comments

Bold Park studentsHow do schools and other settings help children to deal with arguments and disputes? And are some well-meaning approaches doing more harm than good?  A young Australian who I met on my recent visit there had some interesting answers to these questions.

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Posted in Child development, Education, Risk

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It’s time to take a thoughtful approach to bullying

Posted on April 11, 2012 | 16 Comments

bully movie logoIn a post on her ‘Free Range Kids’ blog last week, Lenore Skenazy questions whether the US is in the midst of a ‘bullying crisis’. She quotes statistics from a piece in the Wall Street Journal that showed dramatic declines in both the fear of attack (down from 12% in 1995 to 4% in 2009) and actual victimisation (where rates have fallen fivefold). Continue reading →

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Posted in Education, Risk

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School playtime bans: a former head speaks out

Posted on February 22, 2012 | 17 Comments

photo of Juliet RobertsonA few days ago former primary school head teacher Juliet Robertson got in touch after reading my blog post on the school that banned children from having best friends. Juliet is now a leading educational consultant; her blog I’m a teacher, get me OUTSIDE here! is for my money one of the most lively, creative outdoor learning sites on the web. She had some fascinating insights on the topic of school bans, and agreed to share them here. I’d love to hear your thoughts on what Juliet has to say – especially if you have worked in schools yourself.

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Posted in Education, play, Risk

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Schoolchildren banned from playing hide-and-seek – and that’s just for starters

Posted on February 16, 2012 | 48 Comments

A school in England has recently banned children from playing hide-and-seek. It has also banned children from writing notes to each other. It has also – and this truly stretches credibility – banned children from having best friends.

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Posted in Education, play, Risk

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