Province to fight bullying in schools

Stephen Lecce, Minister of Education, said today that the province is stepping up its anti-bullying in school efforts.

"We are working to change the culture to one where everyone sees the inherent dignity and the value of a person, irrespective of their faith, heritage or orientation or race or their income, to build a more accepting and inclusive province."

It's not a new issue by any means.

Four years ago the Near North District School Board surveyed parents, teachers, principals and other school staff to find out if bullying was a problem in area schools. 

See: Near North School Board looks for Bullying feedback

The result was the Near North District School Board policy statement on bullying. 

Today's announcement unveiled five new measures to help prevent and combat bullying in Ontario schools.

• The assignment of Christina Mitas, MPP for Scarborough Centre and former teacher, to advise the Minister on education matters with a focus on bullying prevention;
• A province-wide survey to better understand students' experiences with bullying;
• Training for educators in anti-bullying and de-escalation techniques;
• A review of school reporting practices on bullying; and
• A review of the definition of bullying in ministry policies to ensure it reflects the realities of today.

As part of Mitas' new role, she will engage with students, parents, educators, and experts to provide short- and long-term strategies to combat bullying and ensure students have the right tools and supports.

"We want kids impacted by bullying to reach out and for them to know they are not alone," said Mitas. "We all have an obligation to make sure that our schools are safe and inclusive places that foster learning while keeping the nurturing of the whole child in mind."

To complement this work, the province will be launching a student survey to learn about students' experiences with bullying and the reporting of incidents. This information, along with input from the survey, will be used to better understand the issue and find new ways to make schools safer and more inclusive.

Training will be offered to educators to ensure they have the tools and resources needed to address bullying in schools. Educators will learn anti-bullying and de-escalation techniques to reduce instances of bullying, support victims and help students develop feelings of empathy.

"Kids Help Phone hears from young people in Ontario every day that bullying, both in-person and online, continues to pose a significant challenge," said Alisa Simon, Senior Vice President, Kids Help Phone. "We are the only 24/7 service to support young people develop healthy relationships, feel less alone and gain skills for navigating the impacts of bullying.  We want to ensure young people know that support is just a call, chat or text away."

The government has updated the Health and Physical Education curriculum for grades 1 to 8 to now include mandatory learning about online safety in all grades. In addition, learning about cyberbullying, cyber security and privacy has increased. Implementation of the updated curriculum began in September 2019.