Anti-Bullying - Ministry of Education & Training
Let's Prevent Bullying And Promote Inclusivity In Our Schools
In 2022, the Cabinet made significant changes to the Education Act, which now mandates that all schools create an Anti-bullying policy. These updates to the Education Act also led to the formation of Anti-bullying (Schools) Regulations, 2022
Recently, the Education Council approved a new Cayman Islands Anti-bullying (Schools) Policy. This policy outlines the responsibilities of schools in tackling bullying, establishing consistent standards, and fostering an awareness of all matters related to bullying.
Since its introduction, all compulsory educational institutions have utilised the National Anti-bullying Policy as a framework for developing their school anti-bullying policies.
To ensure widespread awareness and understanding, the Ministry of Education has launched an awareness campaign to inform all stakeholders about the revisions to the Education Act concerning bullying. This campaign also highlights the introduction of the Anti-bullying (Schools) Regulations, 2022, to strengthen the National Anti-bullying (Schools) Policy and enhance the safety of the local school environment.
Recognise Bullying
Bullying is a purposeful action intended to harm, involves physical (hitting, pushing, shoving, kicking, etc.) and/or mental components (e.g. verbal humiliation, hurtful, threatening behaviours, gossip, exclusion) and always involves an imbalance of power. Using this acronym, RID, is an easy way to remember the components of bullying. It is Repeated: There is an Imbalance of power, and the conduct is Deliberate. The acronym RID aims to support educational institutions with an understanding of bullying so that proactive and reactive strategies can be implemented to develop a safe learning environment for all stakeholders.
R: “Occurs Repeatedly”- This means simply that the targeting has occurred more than once. NB: A single incident can have the same impact as persistent behaviour over time, as it can be experienced as part of a continuous pattern and can be extremely threatening and intimidating.
I: “Imbalance of power”- occurs when one student or group is more powerful than the other. For example, when one student, Adult and/or group is older, larger, or perceived to be smarter and/or more popular than the other, there is an imbalance of power: the playing field is not level; one student, adult and/or group unfairly takes advantage of this imbalance of power. The student feels victimized and defenceless.
D: “Deliberate action”- the goal and/or the intent are purposeful - an outcome which is meant to harm
Report Bullying
Encourage children to report incidences of bullying to a trusted member of the school community or a volunteer, who will submit a written report to the school leader.
Respond Quickly
Upon receiving the report, the school leader must:
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Immediately investigate and record in writing the circumstances surrounding the conduct and take such measures as are appropriate to protect, during the investigation, the student who is alleged to have been bullied.
- Within twenty-four hours after receiving a report or witnessing conduct, notify the parents of the students involved in the bullying or retaliative conduct if, in the opinion of the school leader, doing so would not result in harm to either the perpetrator of bullying or the target; and any other relevant agency if the school leader believes that the issues identified in the report should be referred to another agency.
Anti-Bullying Campaign
This campaign is focused on the following audiences:
- Parents of children engaged in compulsory education
- Victims of bullying and those who have witnessed bullying in schools
- Educators (Public & Private School)
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The Anti-bullying regulations aim to PREVENT bullying among members of the school community.
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Bullying represents an imbalance of power and involves several repeated, deliberate negative actions against a student.
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Students should REPORT incidence of bullying or retaliation.
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Schools will RESPOND quickly and deliberately to incidence of bullying by reassuring victims, immediate intervention and building a protective network around the victim.
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Bullying hurts.
Useful Links
Ministry Launches Anti-Bullying Campaign
The Ministry of Education has launched a National [Schools] Anti-bullying Campaign to ensure that children learn in a welcoming and safe environment without the fear of being bullied.
