Anti-Bullying Policy

Anti – Bullying and Prevention Against Child Abuse Policy of BTIS

Statement of Intent

The aim of the anti-bullying policy of Brainworks Taunggyi International School is to ensure that pupils learn in a supportive, caring, and safe environment without fear of being bullied. Bullying is anti-social behavior and affects everyone; it is unacceptable. We are committed to providing a caring, friendly, and safe environment for all our students so they can learn in a relaxed and secure atmosphere. If bullying does occur, all students should be able to tell and know that incidents will be dealt with promptly and effectively.

The Need for an Anti-Bullying Policy

Persistent bullying can severely inhibit a child’s ability to learn effectively. The negative effects of bullying can have an impact on a person for their entire life. The school wishes to promote a secure and happy environment free from threat, harassment, and any type of bullying behavior. Therefore, this policy promotes practices within the school to reinforce our vision, and to remove or discourage practices that negate them.

Bullying occurs when an individual or a group uses strength or power to hurt, either physically or emotionally, by intimidating or demeaning others. Bullying can be emotional, physical, verbal, or cyber. It is usually persistent and is often covert, and is a conscious attempt to hurt, threaten or frighten someone. Pupils who are being bullied, may show changes in behavior, such as becoming shy and nervous, taking unusual absences, or clinging to adults.

There may be evidence of changes in work patterns, lacking concentration from school.

Bullying can take many forms including:

• Physical bullying which can include kicking, hitting, pushing, and taking away belongings.
• Verbal bullying which includes name calling, mocking, and making offensive comments.
• Emotional bullying which includes isolating an individual or spreading rumors about them.
• Cyber- bullying where technology is used to hurt an individual – for instance text messaging or posting messages/images on the internet or any form of social media.
• Sexual bullying is where someone makes unwanted physical contact or makes sexually abusive comments.
• Disablist bullying occurs when bullying is motivated by a prejudice against people with any form of disability.
• Sexist bullying occurs when bullying is motivated by a prejudice against someone because of their gender.
• With the advancement in new technologies, the school is aware there is an increased risk of cyber bullying using e-mails, instant messenger, social networking sites, and public websites inappropriately. Therefore, our school has an ICT user’s policy which all students and parents sign, along with a separate E- Safety policy.

Some warning signs that a student is being bullied in the campus

• Changes in academic performance
• Appears anxious
• Regularly feeling sick or unwell.
• Clothes/bags torn or damaged.
• Money/possessions going missing.
• Unexplained cuts and bruises.
• Unexplained behavior changes, e.g., moody, bad-tempered, tearful. Unhappiness.
• Loss of appetite.  Not sleeping. Loss of weight
• Seen alone a lot
• Not very talkative

Some reasons why students bully in the school

• Desire to appear powerful
• Unhappiness
• Feelings of inadequacy
• Difficulties at home.

Guiding students to approach the school members

Students can talk to if they have any concerns about bullying to the following members of the school:

• Homeroom teacher
• Subject teacher
• Counselor
• School Nurse
• HOD/ HOA/Principal

Students can feel confident that any of the above people will listen to their problem. Students who have been bullied will be supported by:

1.   Offering an immediate opportunity to discuss the experience with a member of staff of their choice.

2.   Reassuring the student.
3.   Offering continuous support.
4.   Restoring self-esteem and confidence.

Students who have been bullied will be helped by:

1. Discussing what happened
2. Discovering why the student became involved
3. Establishing the wrongdoing and need to change
4. Informing parents or guardians to help change the attitude of the student.

Responses will vary depending on the nature of the incident which may include:

1. Counseling
2. Use of a report card
3. Monitoring by Teacher/ academic Coordinator
4. Formal recording
5. Use of Behavior Agreement Contract
6. Liaison with parents/guardian

Anti-Bullying Procedures in BTIS

It is made clear that bullying in any form is unacceptable. It will be taken seriously and dealt with promptly.

Staff Responsibilities

To implement procedures to confront bullying in any form

• To listen to all parties involved in incidents
• To investigate incidents promptly and as fully as possible
• To take appropriate action or to refer to the CAIE Coordinator at the earliest
• To record in the appropriate students’ files.
• To share with parents of the victim and bully, incidents of persistent and/or serious bullying
• To implement appropriate procedures for a member of staff
• To promote the use of a range of learning styles and strategies which  challenge bullying behavior

Anti-Bullying Strategies in BTIS

• Regular promotion of anti-bullying in assemblies.
• Use of CCTV within the school grounds to help with the prevention of bullying.
• Self-esteem and circle time work in the school’s inclusion facilities
• Strong teacher-student relationships so students feel comfortable in reporting any issues

We seek to achieve Anti -bullying by:

Preventing the occurrence of bullying. We do this by educating the students on establishing positive relationships and reinforcing the rights and responsibilities of all school members. All our lessons are values reinforced.

• Developing individual self-esteem and respect for others through activities in Sports & Health and Community Service.
• Combating bullying by processes of reconciliation, and support (which may include involvement by the school counselor and parents). We do not support suspensions and dismissals as they are counter-productive to the bully and do not really provide a solution to the problem. However, if the school is of the opinion that a certain individual or a group’s behavior has been threatening to any other individual or a group to a large degree then a suspension or dismissal is not ruled out.
• Our vigilant staff, our digital assistance through CCTVs’ and our in-house counselor will ensure that both the victim and the bully get the required help.

Anti-bullying Advice to Parents from BTIS

• A great deal of bullying is CYBER-BULLYING.  Please regularly monitor your child’s use of texting, Facebook, Twitter, and other social media sites. Access to these is out of the school’s control when your child is not in school.
• TALK to your child on a regular basis, so any problem is easier to understand.
• LISTEN to what they say.
• ENCOURAGE your child to feel good about themselves, realizing that we are all different and equally important.
• Requesting parents to be realistic in your expectations, sometimes on-going problems can take time to resolve.
• TRY to be cooperative with our school and not be aggressive. Without a good working relationship between parents and the school, the situation could deteriorate, which won’t help the students.
• ALWAYS remember that children can’t solve bullying on their own. They NEED the support of parents/teachers and our school’s SLT.

School Community’s Response

Brainworks Taunggyi International group of schools has a deep conviction that bullying is absent in any of its schools. Our students are well-informed and educated to live a life of dignity. However, we are prepared with measures to counter anything that remotely signifies any form of Bullying.

Monitoring, evaluation, and review of the Policy – BTIS

The school will review this policy annually and assess its implementation and effectiveness. The policy will be promoted and implemented throughout the school. At, we have agreed upon an Anti-Bullying Policy to ensure a safe and supportive environment where all members of our school community have the right to be respected and have a responsibility to respect each other. We have a zero-tolerance policy towards any behavior that dehumanizes or infringes upon the right to dignity of an individual.

Procedure

• If any form of bullying is suspected or reported, then the incident will be dealt with immediately by the member of staff who has been approached. It is preferable that the Class Teacher deals with the incident initially and if deemed serious it should go straight to the Department Head or Head of School.
• A clear and detailed account of the incident will be recorded in a log book. The class teacher and Subject Teachers will be informed and be asked to keep an eye out for the individual/s.
• Parents will be informed of the incident and counseled over the appropriate responses needed at home. Parents will also be educated/informed about the psychological and legal implications that might surface.
• The school may also ask the concerned individual/s to seek counseling from the School Counselor and schedule an appropriate timetable until such time as deemed necessary by the School Counselor.

At Brainworks Taunggyi International School, we do not believe in dismissals as a solution. However, we have zero tolerance for any form of bullying. The school cannot risk its social fabric for an individual. Even milder or initial signs of bullying will result in certain student privileges being taken away from the individual. If an individual does not refrain from bullying behavior despite repeated warnings, then the school will have no other choice but to dismiss the individual.