Bullying is such a big issue that concerns parents like me and it is a big threat to children and adults alike. That is why when a dear friend of mine invited me to attend the Reedley International School talk on bullying I readily agree. I wanted to know everything I can about this issue and hope that my little man will not be able to experience it or do this to other people when he grows older. I know mums are a tad worrier but who ‘s mum in her right mind wouud like her child to go through this kind of situation, right? The more I know about it, the more I can prevent this from harming my growing son.
No To Bullying
It is quite a relief to know that an international school takes this issue very seriously and painstakingly align their school vision to fight bullying. I do not think I would agree that bullying is something normal and that all students go through it as some sort of “rite of passage.” I’ve seen the news and I read stories of how bad bullying can go and drive young students to quit school, or worse, take their own lives! This is something no one should ever go through and I do hope other schools in our country will follow suit and will grab bullying by it horns and devise ways and measures to eliminate them in their classrooms and campuses.
Anatomy of Bullying
According to Wikipedia bullying is “the use of force or coercion to abuse or intimidate others. The behavior can be habitual and involve an imbalance of social or physical power. It can include verbal harassment or threat, physical assault or coercion and may be directed repeatedly towards particular victims, perhaps on grounds of class, race,religion, gender, sexuality, appearance, behavior, or ability.”
There are several types of bullying:
- Physical ~ which include hitting, punching, pushing, stealing personal items or any kind of physical aggressive contact
- Verbal ~ is when a person is made to feel bad through words, like in name calling or threatening
- Social ~ which can be in the form of making someone feel left out, deliberately ignoring this person or spreading bad things about him/her, or if a person is made to feel like an outsider
- Cyber ~ is when you use the Internet or social media to make someone feel bad. This includes, but not limited to, chatrooms, instant messaging, emails, Facebook and other platforms, as well as mobile phones
There are a number of ways in which a person can cope with bullying and they are divided into two different categories:
- Problem-Focused ~ includes self-defense, standing up to the bully, distancing, seeking social support and tension-reduction {externalizing}
- Emotion-Focused ~ which can range from self-blame, internalizing and/or focusing on the positive
Mums today has a lot to deal with and to put up to in raising their children well, but it is also quite a relief to know that we can be contribute in preventing bullying by doing the following measures:
- Educate the bully, the bullied, as well as the bystanders like ourselves
- Earn our children’s trust by establishing a good relationship with them with open communication line, that way they will see a grown up as someone to be trusted and not as an authority to be feared and shunned
- Let us all help to establish community awareness and let us all be vigilant
- The key to totally prevent bullying is consistency!
- Make it a point to know your child and discover his personality type as well as his interests and preferences
Reedley International School in a nutshell
Reedly Internationa School takes pride in being the first and only school to provide a unique international educational program which enables the students to learn more with less stress and with engaging and challenging experience. It is also the only school in the country with zero bullying incidence. Thanks to their annual Bully Proof program and their anti-bullying campaigns.
The success behind their bullet-proof campus is shared with us with their Headmaster Jerome Castro. They legislate the anti-bullying campaign and sanction students who are caught doing the act. They educate their students about bullying and its prevention and included this in their curriculum. Lastly, they educate their faculty, too, and make them a fitting example of camaraderie and rapport that children will emulate.
Another thing that I find commendable about Reedley School is the inclusion of Life Skills in their curriculum. I totally agree that more than producing students with excellent academic skills, it must also be one of the school’s concern to produce individuals who will only excel in their profession, but will also do good in the society and life in general. I know I would like for my son to be a model citizen more than to be a highly-accomplished professional!
Reedley International School was founded by Mrs. Nellie Aquino-Ong in 1999. The name was a tribute to Reedley College in California, where Mrs. Ong studied and excelled through the help of nurturing teachers and mentors. The same value of nurturing evident among the administrators and teachers in Reedley College is seen today in Reedley International School.
The school started as a review center in 1994, giving personalized teaching to students who aim to enter the country’s top universities. In 2000, Reedly opened as an Upper School with 80 students. It reached a 250% growth rate in 2001, alongside the opening of Grade School and Middle School, Reedley moved to larger premises in Pasig. They moved to their current location in Libis, Quezon City in 2006 and now caters to 565 students from 19 different countries.
Mum’s two cents
Reedley International School sounds like the kind of school I would like to enroll my little man in. Its small class sizes are most ideal for children to learn and fully grasp the lessons taught by the teachers. Their international school standard is also good in my book and their bully-proof campaign is a gem!
Admissions for School Year 2013-2014 for levels K-12 are now open at Reedley and if you might be interested, you can contact them through various ways that I have included at the bottom of this post.
A big thank you to sis Vance and to Reedley International School for inviting me and the little man over! We had a wonderful experience and the little man thoroughly enjoyed himself, except, of course, for the boo boo he had! My little man caused quite a racket, but I am thankful that the Reedley staff was able to handle the situation well and gave Jared an impromptu tour of their campus, too! Thanks to Mommy Armi for sharing the name of the speakers with me, too! :heart:
JOSOL Building, E. Rodriguez Jr. Avenue,
Libis, Quezon City
{02}571-5291 or 0917-507-9306
Website: https://www.reedleyschool.com
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/pages/Reedley-International-School-Philippines/18202406667
Twitter: @ReedleySchool
8 Comments
I really think bullying starts at home so it should be more of a family education too than just in schools
i cannot agree more, that is why it is really a must that the schools work hand-in-hand with parents to make sure the same principles children learn in school about anti-bullying is applied at home, too.
I wish I was able to go listen to that talk.
too bad you were not able to attend. Hopefully they will have another one next time + invite more mommy bloggers to listen
Every parent wishes his/her children to study in a school where bullying doesn’t exist. I would have enrolled my son in Reedley International School if I had the financial resources.
True, if I can afford it, I would also enroll my little man in a school like this.
I just enrolled my son last Monday and I really hope that he will not experience any kind of bullying at school. As a Mom, it would definitely break my heart. Hooray for Reedley for successfully combating bullying!
it is true, bullying is something we do not like our children to go through. it was sad that I heard another teenager, a Filipino at that, hanged herself due to bullying in the States, just recently 🙁