MESSAGES

The Program for International Student Assessment (PISA) stated that in 2018, 6 out of 10 Filipinos said they were bullied. Bullying in schools can be physical, social, emotional, verbal and cyber. The National Center for Educational Statistics (2019), reported that one out of five students were bullied and over 10% of students who dropped-out of school were being bullied repeatedly, This Handbook on Handling Bullying in Schools is therefore very timely, to deter, if not totally eradicate the incidence of bulling in schools.

While it is true that the Department of Education (DepEd) has already released issuance to provide policies in handling cases, this handbool provides a more elaborate, step by step processes how to deal with the matter at hand, including simplified form to be used in monitoring and reporting.

Allow me to express my appreciation and warm felicitaitions to the team who worked on this handbook. Truly, the school system in this Division does not only promote conducive learning environment physically through  our beautiful classrooms and schools, but we are also building a school climate that nurtures safety and respect among our learners.

Let this handbook be an instrument of protecting the rights of every learner in schools and a compass for the teachers and school officials in handling bullying when the need arises.

A school is the home away from home among young hopefuls. It does not need to be grand and regal. It only requires to be conducive, loving, and motivating throughout its existence.   

Year after year, learners from all walks of life come to school not only to develop and gain communicative competence and numerical expertise but also to seek comfort, guidance, and protection from their mentors whom they consider as their second parents. Teachers, as stewards of God’s children on Earth, do treat these learners with utmost consideration in all aspects of human development. Being fragile and delicate, these young individuals who have been entrusted to the teachers are placed at the center of every endeavor so that they can fairly spread their wings and reach their full potential. Like a soaring eagle, a child who is well-supported and loved would most likely arrive successfully at a certain destination.

With the development of the Handbook on Handling Bullying in Schools, I would like to congratulate the team spearheaded by Nancy Panistante, EdD,  Education Program Supervisor (EPS) in Edukasyon sa Pagpapakatao, for conceptualizing and putting into paper the procedures and mechanisms on handling cases of bullying in schools. Designed purposively to eliminate such occurrences, this endeavor also projects the courage of the team to put the learner at the heart of government service so that no child would be left behind. 

Dreaming of a better tomorrow, let us support one another in instilling love and values to our learners. Let us make every school in the Division of Bukidnon a haven for all children from today and beyond.

Congratulations!

There has been a lot of discussions regarding bullying in schools, and how it is being addressed by our school authorities. Our schools offer variety of programs in addressing bullying. Throughout the school year, programs and activities such as assemblies, orientation and the like are held to disseminate information, and advocate for a friendly school environment. Students learn best when schools are accessible, safe, hygienic, reasonably comfortable, cognitively stimulating, and free from bullying.

The crafting of this handbook is very timely as a tool in minimizing the act of bullying in our school environment. This will pave the way to a conducive learning environment for our students, and for effective learning to happen.

With gratitude, I would like to convey my sincere appreciation to the team for having this initiative as an intervention in making our school environment a better place for learning. 

This is a milestone of the division in its endeavor to address bullying in schools. The handbook was  made possible through a  collective hardwork, dedication, and passion of individuals,  private organizations and public agencies.  

The  effort of the Division for Good Education in Beautiful Schools (GEBS)  made way for the  entire support  of Schools Division Superintendent Randolph B. Tortola, Assistant Schools Division Superintendent Shambaeh A. Abantas-Usman, CID Chief Elbert R. Francisco, and  SGOD Chief Artemio Rey S. Adajar. This project was anchored on the belief that beautiful schools means absence of bullying. 

We are so grateful for World Vision through Mark Joseph Alejo and G Jeff Lomigo in providing us the people who have the expertise in terms of the content and in the development of the audio-video materials. The participation of the staff of the World Vision in the entire journey gave so much inspiration to the group.

The bright ideas of the school heads and district supervisors  paired with their passion to address bullying issues happening in their respective schools from their real life experiences made the content of this handbook anchored on reality, and guided the team to make sure that the handbook is responsive to the needs of the schools.

The presence of the representatives from different agencies and offices such as the Philippine National Police, Sangguniang Panlalawigan, Office of the Provincial Indigenous Peoples Mandatory Representative, Provincial Social Welfare and Development deepened our perspectives in the crafting of the procedures and mechanisms in addressing bullying.

The participation of the students representing the Federation of Student Government both in the elementary and secondary levels together with their advisers, as well as the officers representing the Division Federated Parents Teachers Association enabled us to make sure that the material is responsive to their needs and context.

This project gave opportunity for strong collaboration among the Division personnel who are the Project Development Officers, the GAD Focal Person, the Legal Section Staff, the Senior Education Program Specialist for Social Mobilization, the Learning Resource Management Development System (LRMDS) personnel, the IT Officer, and Mr. Jonre L. Bone-ALS Education Program Specialist who designed the cover page of the handbook.

 The battle against bullying is believed to be somber, yet it is our fervent hope that this handbook will become a powerful tool of our schools to promote peace, justice, and fairness among other values.