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Bullying is when someone repeatedly hurts another person on purpose. It happens when there is an imbalance of power - the person doing the bullying has more power than the person being hurt. This power can come from being bigger, stronger, more popular, or knowing something embarrassing about someone else. Research shows that bullying is a common problem for Canadian young people. Many students experience bullying, and some students both bully others and are bullied themselves.
Bullying can be:
Physical: hitting, kicking, pushing
Verbal: name-calling, threats, mean comments
Social: leaving someone out, spreading rumors, embarrassing someone
Cyberbullying: using technology to hurt someone
Bullying can be connected to many forms of discrimination and harm. It may be a sign of racism, Islamophobia, antisemitism, ableism, classism, homophobia, or sexism. Bullying can also connect with sexual exploitation and puts children at higher risk for sex trafficking. If your child's bullying involves any of these factors, it's especially important to report it right away.
Research shows that many students who bully others are also victims themselves. Students who are both bullies and victims (called "bully-victims") experience the highest levels of psychological distress, including depression, anxiety, and suicidal thoughts. These students often have experienced trauma or bullying in other settings.
Bullying prevention strategies: What works?
Bullying prevention strategies: What works?
For Students Who May Be Bullied:
Build social skills: Teach assertiveness, how to ask for help confidently, use a strong voice, walk away safely, and stay near adults and friends
Develop self-esteem: Help children recognize strengths through success in activities, positive relationships with caring adults, and learning new skills
Foster friendships: Support children in joining clubs, learning friendship skills, and finding peers with similar interests
For Students Who Bully:
Social skills training: Teach caring about others, anger management, and positive ways to get respect
Clear consequences: Use healing approaches rather than harsh punishments
Positive leadership chances: Give students ways to use their influence in good ways
Why is it important to teach students to help others?
Why is it important to teach students to help others?
When students step in to help, bullying stops within 10 seconds 57% of the time (Espelage et al. (2012). However, Canadian studies show only a small number of students try to stop bullying. Students need to learn how to recognize bullying, understand when to take action, feel they should help others, know safe ways to help, and have the confidence to act.
How can students help?
How can students help?
Teach students these four ways to intervene and stop bullying:
Stealing the Show: Change the subject or create a distraction
Turning It Over: Get help from an adult
Accompanying Others: Be a friend to the person being bullied
Coaching Compassion: Privately talk to the person doing the bullying
What are school or classroom wide ways to stop bullying?
What are school or classroom wide ways to stop bullying?
A positive school climate reduces bullying. Important things to consider include:
Strong relationships: Build caring teacher-student and peer relationships
Clear rules: Make anti-bullying policies, teach respectful behavior, use fair consequences
Safe physical spaces: Watch "hot spots" more closely, design spaces for positive interaction
Classroom ideas: Hold regular meetings about respect, use group learning, celebrate differences, and teach social-emotional skills
What types of system-wide approaches help?
What types of system-wide approaches help?
The best approaches work at three levels:
Universal prevention (all students): School-wide policies, staff training, social-emotional learning
Targeted prevention (at-risk students): Small group training, peer mentoring, extra supervision
Intensive help (serious concerns): Individual counseling, family involvement, mental health connections
Programs should be evidence-based, long-lasting, and implemented properly for best results.
What should you do if your child is being bullied?
What should you do if your child is being bullied?
Stay calm and listen to your child
Tell them it's not their fault and praise them for telling you
Write down what happened with dates, times, places, and witnesses
Document any injuries or damaged belongings
Contact your child's teacher or principal right away
Follow up in writing
Work with the school to make a plan
Don't ignore it - reporting is important for long-term help
Think about counseling if needed (every school has a psychological service provider and a social worker)
How can students report bullying?
How can students report bullying?
If your child is being bullied or sees bullying:
Tell an adult right away - teacher, principal, vice-principal, guidance counselor, or any trusted adult at school including the psychological service provider or social worker
“Telling" to get someone help is not "tattling"
Give as much detail as possible: Who, what, where, when, why, and how the bullying happened
Keep information private - only share with those who need to know (caregivers, school staff)
What should schools do to help?
What should schools do to help?
To stop bullying, schools need to work at many levels: with individual students, in classrooms, across the whole school, and with the community. By using strategies that research shows work, making schools welcoming for everyone, and giving extra help to students with complex needs, schools can reduce bullying and make schools safer and more supportive for all students. The most important thing is to use many different strategies at the same time, keep training staff, and regularly check that programs are working for all students. Here are some things that schools should do:
Have Caring, Safe and Accepting Schools teams
Make school-wide bullying prevention plans
Take action right away and look into the problem carefully
Help both students involved
Let students report bullying safely and without giving their name
Keep parents informed about what is happening
Use approaches that understand trauma, especially for marginalized groups
Anti-Bullying Community Resources
Anti-Bullying Community Resources
They provide 24/7 one-on-one assistance, a Lifeline: Bullied Youth Support Network (phone, text, email), and Empowering Youth Workshops in schools and communities.
PREVNet (Promoting Relationships and Eliminating Violence Network)
A national network of Canadian researchers, non-governmental organizations, and governments who provide evidence-based resources, information, and training for students, parents, and teachers including resources for preventing dating violence in adolescents and particularly for marginalized groups.
Contact: Call 1-800-668-6868 or text CONNECT to 686868.
Provides information on how to recognize and prevent bullying for various age groups, as well as an overview of bullying prevention programs at community and school levels.
Ontario Ministry of Education's Safe and Accepting Schools
Sets the provincial policies and guidelines for schools regarding bullying prevention and intervention, such as Policy/Program Memorandum (PPM) 144. Their website offers resources for parents and schools on how to identify, prevent, and support children affected by bullying.
Toronto Police Service - Bullying
Provides information on what constitutes bullying, its various forms, and advice for victims and witnesses. They also outline when to contact police (e.g., if bullying involves criminal behaviour like assault, hate-motivated incidents, or threats).
Toronto District School Board policies:
Resources
Resources
Bullying Handout
An accessible text only version of the bullying handout can be found here:
References:
References:
Bradshaw, C. P., O'Brennan, L. M., & Sawyer, A. L. (2008). Examining variation in attitudes toward aggressive retaliation and associations with bullying among early adolescents. School Psychology Review, 37(4), 540-554.
Cappadocia, M. C., Weiss, J. A., & Pepler, D. (2012). Bullying experiences among children and youth with autism spectrum disorders. Journal of Autism and Developmental Disorders, 42(2), 266-277.
Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. (2020). Preventing bullying. National Center for Injury Prevention and Control.
Cornell, D., & Huang, F. (2016). Authoritative school climate and high school student risk behavior: A cross-sectional multi-level analysis of student self-reports. Journal of Youth and Adolescence, 45(11), 2246-2259.
Espelage, D., Pigott, T., & Polanin, J. (2012). A meta‐analysis of school‐based bullying prevention programs' effects on bystander intervention behavior. School Psychology Review, 41(1), 47-65.
Gaffney, H., Ttofi, M. M., & Farrington, D. P. (2019). Examining the effectiveness of school-bullying intervention programs globally: A meta-analysis. International Journal of Bullying Prevention, 1(1), 14-31.
Jenkins, L. N., & Nickerson, A. B. (2017). Bystander intervention in bullying: Role of social skills and gender. The Journal of Early Adolescence, 37(9), 1289-1314.
Konishi, C., Miyazaki, Y., Hymel, S., & Waterhouse, T. (2017). Investigating associations between school climate and bullying in secondary schools: Multilevel contextual effects modeling. School Psychology International, 38(3), 240-263.
Lin, J. C., & Shih, Y. H. (2024). Strategies for preventing school bullying—A life education perspective. Frontiers in Psychology, 15, 1429215.
Midgett, A., Doumas, D., & Johnston, A. D. (2018). Establishing school counselors as leaders in bullying curriculum delivery: Evaluation of a brief, bystander bullying intervention. Professional School Counseling, 21(1), 1-9.
Nansel, T. R., Overpeck, M., Pilla, R. S., Ruan, W. J., Simons-Morton, B., & Scheidt, P. (2001). Bullying behaviors among US youth: Prevalence and association with psychosocial adjustment. JAMA, 285(16), 2094-2100.
Nickerson, A. B. (2019). Preventing and intervening with bullying in schools: A framework for evidence-based practice. School Mental Health, 11(1), 15-28.
O'Brennan, L. M., Bradshaw, C. P., & Sawyer, A. L. (2009). Examining developmental differences in the social-emotional problems among frequent bullies, victims, and bully/victims. Psychology in the Schools, 46(2), 100-115.
Ontario Ministry of Education. (n.d.). Policy/Program Memorandum 144: Bullying Prevention and Intervention. Retrieved January 15, 2025, from https://www.ontario.ca/document/education-ontario-policy-and-program-direction/policyprogram-memorandum-144
Swearer, S. M., Wang, C., Maag, J. W., Siebecker, A. B., & Frerichs, L. J. (2012). Understanding the bullying dynamic among students in special and general education. Journal of School Psychology, 50(4), 503-520.
Tobin, T., Schwartz, D., Gorman, A. H., & Abou-ezzeddine, T. (2005). Social-cognitive and behavioral attributes of aggressive victims of bullying. Applied Developmental Psychology, 26(3), 329-346.
Toronto District School Board. (2022, September 28). Caring and Safe Schools Policy (P051). Retrieved January 15, 2025, from https://www.tdsb.on.ca/About-Us/Policies-Procedures-Forms/Detail/docId/220
Toronto District School Board. (2022, September 6). Procedure PR703 - Bullying Prevention and Intervention. Retrieved January 15, 2025, from https://www.tdsb.on.ca/About-Us/Policies-Procedures-Forms/Detail/docid/1800
Toronto District School Board. (n.d.). Bullying. Retrieved July 31, 2025, from https://www.tdsb.on.ca/Elementary-School/Supporting-You/Bullying
Ttofi, M. M., & Farrington, D. P. (2019). Effectiveness of school‐based programs to reduce bullying perpetration and victimization: An updated systematic review and meta‐analysis. Campbell Systematic Reviews, 15(2), e1033.
Waasdorp, T. E., Pas, E. T., Zablotsky, B., & Bradshaw, C. P. (2017). Ten-year trends in bullying and related attitudes among 4th-to 12th-graders. Pediatrics, 139(6), e20162615.
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