E-sceal 533 - Professional Conversations: ‘What if ‘ - Bullying allegation
- Published: 18 October 2018
Scenario: What if a parent makes an allegation that his son in fourth class is being bullied and the school is doing nothing about it….
Having a professional conversation with staff is the first step in developing an understanding of how such a situation is managed. Thereafter, it needs to be communicated/discussed with the Board of Management (BoM) and the parent body. It is necessary to acknowledge also that often issues like this arise, because there may be conflict between families outside of the school environment. It can lead to entrenched attitudes among adults in seeking to resolve the matter.
As this is an allegation of bullying, it needs to be investigated under the school’s Policy on Bullying. This is an opportunity for all staff to re-visit the policy and be clear on the steps involved in it.
‘Have you spoken to the class teacher?’ is the starting point. Discuss the Bullying Policy in conjunction with the Code of Behaviour, which may need to be implemented at some point. The outcome of this conversation may possibly be a one-pager of the steps involved, which would aid in communicating to all, exactly how the school engages with the process of seeking resolution. At times, how the school has dealt with the situation, becomes a complaint, at which point it moves into the Parental Complaints Procedure (previous What if scenario). The original bullying allegation can often become secondary to the new issue of how the school has dealt with it. Adherence to the procedures becomes all the more important at this stage.
The importance of having this conversation at a time when no issue exists, to ensure clarity, consistency of approach and giving staff confidence in the procedures, is essential preparation for an issue that can be complex and require difficult conversations.
Possible language to be used in the course of conversations:
‘Let us find ways of working together to do what is best for your son’.
‘We need to work together on this’.
It is necessary to continuously use this kind of language in order to keep the focus on the child, who often gets lost in the process.
As always, the Professional Guidance Panel is available to discuss issues of this kind and help in preparing you for those difficult conversations. Contact 021 4824070 or email advice@ippn.ie to arrange a callback from a member of the team.
