Ambassadors to help students

Amanda Childs Pea Ridge schools social worker
Amanda Childs Pea Ridge schools social worker

As adults, we try to teach our kids to be kind, yet also stand up for themselves when conflict arises with peers. We try to show children the two sides of getting along with people. The hope is that our kids do not become bullies to others and themselves to not be bullied. Nearly one in three students in school reports being bullied, according to statistics by the National Center for Education. Students who are bullied are more likely to skip school, have poor grades, and report an increase in depressive and anxiety related symptoms.

As parents, our challenge can be the limited ability to control such interactions between students; however, there are still several ways to help prevent bullying.

To help students prevent bullying, schools are working to increase strategies such as social skills training for students. For students there is a need to increase social skill trainings and help students learn appropriate ways to respond to bullying assertively. Teaching friendship skills in the primary and intermediate school levels can also help with students to increase social support. Studies have shown that it can also decrease the likelihood of being bullied.

Lastly, students can learn ways to be a responsible bystander. Peers can be a strong sense of support and typically more effective than adults intervening when bullying is occurring.

October is National Bullying Prevention month, and Pea Ridge Schools are working to increase the awareness and improve the quality of student life by developing supportive interventions to support the students. In 2015, three high school students will be selected as Anti-Bullying Ambassadors. These ambassadors will focus on identifying helpful strategies to support peers and work within the school to develop programs and interventions to help stop bullying. The ambassadors will work within the schools and the community to increase awareness of bullying and the negative consequences as well as the hope for change. The ambassadors will be announced Oct. 5.

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Editor's note: Amanda Childs is the social worker for Pea Ridge Schools.

Community on 10/06/2015