Guest Author - Kathy J. McCleaf, Ed.D.

Well it looks like the summer is behind us and school is back in session. I recently spent time with my nephew as he prepared to move on to middle school. Middle school, that place where I have memories of learning how to make friends, deciding who really was my friend and the beginning of changes in my body and my young psyche. Any discussion of something about sex was taboo, but it was always not far off in the recesses of our minds.

My nephew is a wonderfully bright and engaged, budding teenager who has like most, struggled with learning how to make sense of his tween year old self and how he fits into this world. Do you remember how mean some kids can be in middle school? Some say middle school is the toughest place on earth; if you make it through those few years you are going to manage the rest reasonably unscathed.

This essay is about bullying, the madness in middle school; a seemingly temperate word for the legal language of harassment. How much is to be tolerated as adolescence boys and girls pit themselves against socially constructed norms, those which every one of us can recall not completely fitting just right. Did you know that schools are required by law to provide safe learning environments? Classrooms must reflect children feeling free to learn and ask questions without ridicule, able to express who they are in ways that are not harmful to others and most important establish the foundations for understanding human respect.

One of my most fretful memories occurred in junior high (yesteryears middle school). Ever inquisitive, I raised my hand to ask about a custom that was being discussed as a rite of passage in my social studies class. The mysterious ritual was a part of my classmate’s report. The question asked; what exactly was circumcision? I barely could articulate the word correctly. It was the late sixties, I was thirteen and while the sexual revolution was happening in universities and in cities across the country, it wasn’t happening in my junior high school social studies classroom. Everyone, including my teacher, either looked horrified, clueless or snickered at my question.

No one responded to me appropriately, the uncomfortable looking male teacher laughed and mumbled that I find the information elsewhere. I felt embarrassed, stupid and all those other not in the know things that middle school kids feel. It wasn’t until I got home that I asked my parents about the word; some trepidation at what the answer might be, but I was fairly certain that they would at least give me an answer.

I did get my answer and chuckle at the memory. Now as an educator I recognize each time a child asks a question, they are taking a risk; a risk that they will expose themselves to ridicule. An adolescent perceived gaping void; open to vulnerability from both peers and teachers that one may be uninformed. Exactly when did it become a necessity that we know everything? What innate process is there that we shut down wanting to learn because we might be afraid to ask questions?

If your son or daughter comes home after school this fall and shares a question about a taboo topic be prepared to encourage the dialogue. Ask the context in which the question came up so as to best respond. These are the times they will remember, don’t you; I most certainly did and it has constructed itself into a positive memory because of the parental support and response that I received. Adolescence is a time of risk taking each morning your teen awakens. The more confidence you can provide them; the more solid a home plate to round each day, the easier it will be for them to manage the journey to high school and beyond.

Was the experience in my social studies classroom a kin to harassment? Probably not, although recognizing that repeated incidents that occur over time where students feel ridiculed could be considered an unwelcoming (conceivably harassing) learning environment. Regardless, the teacher didn’t respond appropriately; maybe because he didn’t know how or maybe because he felt further discussion about circumcision and genitalia might jeopardize his job. Regardless, it did not encourage my inquisitiveness to learn.

Wood’s (2001), American Association of University Women’s past-executive director, reviewed the 2001 Hostile Hallways report commissioned by the AAUW and identified several reasons for students feeling unsafe. Among the most prominent is sexual harassment (AAUW, 2001). The AAUW website offers a fifty page, free downloadable PDF for better understanding and combating sexual harassment. The AAUW website is also useful for examining other research regarding your child’s success relative to other socio cultural factors and shares sample anti-harassment policies that can be tailored to each school. Evidence to support a lack of action on the part of teachers and administrators to support students being bullied is clear.

It was not until the 90s that court cases demonstrate support and demand that school environments be free from harassment and offer students welcoming environments where human interactions in schools are expected to be respectful. Nabozny v Podlesny 1996 and Davis v Monroe 1999 have set precedence for enforcing Title IX and the Fourteenth Amendment of the US Constitution. Title IX works to establish gender equity and the Fourteenth Amendment declares equal protection for individuals (Garner & Black, 1999). Court victory awarded Jamie Nabozny a settlement after he endured countless attacks of hate ridden words and actions that were orientation-based. LaShonda Davis, the harassed 5th grader, whose mother pressed charges when no one listened to their complaints about the sexual harassment, led the courts to recognize that schools must eliminate the harassment when identified or be held accountable.

Be proactive in anti-bully efforts at your child’s school. Listening and knowing what goes on during your teen’s school day is the beginning of recognizing any problems. Read guidelines and website materials from the Department of Education’s Office of Civil Rights and the AAUW that help schools create anti-bully policies. Annually request reviews and make public at PTA meetings current anti- bully policies in your child’s school. Form parent teams to help better understand the syndrome of bullying and manage child and family support. Both the victim of harassment and the one doing the bullying need assistance. Identify counselors and school professionals that your child can seek out during the school day if bullying persists.

The numbers have not been significantly reduced since the first AAUW report in the early 90s. The following bullets cited from AAUW (2002, p.6) note the staggering statistics from the 2001 research:
~ Most students (81%) will experience some form of sexual harassment during
their school lives, with 27% experiencing it often.
~ Nearly nine in 10 students (85%) report that students harass other students
at their schools.
~ Almost 40% of students report that teachers and other school employees
sexually harass students in their schools.

The odds suggest that your child will experience some form of harassment during their school lives. Opening conversation, pro-actively getting involved in setting school policies and remaining vigilant in demanding that all children and educators work in a safe learning and teaching environment will reduce the risks of absenteeism, self esteem damage, fear, and loss of life; both figuratively and literally. Take action, as a parent you have a right to counter the madness in middle school.

References and Hyperlinks:

American Association of University Women.(2001) AAUW Educational Foundation Research Report - Hostile hallways: Bullying, teasing, and sexual harassment in school (pp. 1-60) Retrieved July 14, 2008 from http://www.aauw.org/research/hostile.cfm

American Association of University Women. (2002). AAUW Guideline Report - Harassment free hallways: How to stop sexual harassment in schools (pp. 1-50). Retrieve July 14, 2008 from http://www.aauw.org/research/harassmentFreeHallways.cfm

Davis v. Monroe County Board of Education, 526 U.S. 629 (1999)
Garner, B. A., & Black, H. C. (Eds.). (1999). Black's law dictionary (7th ed.). St. Paul: West Publishing Company

Nabozny v. Podlesny, 92 F.3d 446, 458-59 (7th Cir. 1996)

U.S. Department of Education (2008) Office of Civil Rights webpage. Retrieved on July 14, 2008 from http://www.ed.gov/about/offices/list/ocr/know.html

U.S. Department of Education (2001) Revised Sexual Harassment Guidance: Harassment of Students by School Employees, other students or third parties-Title IX. Retrieved on July 14, 2008 from http://www.ed.gov/about/offices/list/ocr/docs/shguide.pdf

Woods, J. (2001). Hostile hallways. Educational Leadership, 59(4), 20.

About the Guest Author:

Kathy McCleaf, Ed.D serves Mary Baldwin College in Staunton, Virginia as a faculty member in the Department of Sociology/Social Work. She holds a BS and a MS from James Madison University in Harrisonburg, Virginia and an Ed D from University of Phoenix, Phoenix, Arizona . Dr. McCleaf’s research examines sexual minority youth, their identity development and how they acquire success and manage challenges across the lifespan. Studies in health and the interdisciplinary field of human sexuality are the focus of her undergraduate course offerings. In the off hours during the academic year she spends her time writing, researching, fly fishing, and enjoying the company of family, friends, and her big yellow lab, Ringo. During the fall and spring, the height of trout season, you can find her at the nearest coldwater fishing spot throughout the beautiful state of Virginia .