Bullying is one of the biggest problems amongst young people. Adults sometimes don’t pay attention to it, and they often dismiss children with a simple “they have to learn how to cope”. Unfortunately, bullying can drive a young soul to suicide.
With this in mind, psychologist Jolanta Špakova gathered a group of student volunteers from the Anykščiai Antanas Vienuolis high school in Lithuania in May 2006. The organisation Save the Children encouraged her to start an anti-bullying programme.
“The collaboration between our school and the organisation is continuing. We also have a close relationship with The Youth Line,” says Jolanta Špakova.
Students help students
The volunteer group Against Bullying at School currently has 12 members. After undergoing two years of training the student volunteers can start helping out in the psychologist’s office, becoming counsellors for other students. The volunteers listen to pupils who want to report bullying cases or who just want to talk about things that are important to them.
On the right track
In addition to the volunteer group, the month of May has been dedicated A Month Without Violence. Jolanta Špakova also launched a programme called Secret Friend in which students watch films about bullying which they then discuss with their teachers. Two years of work has paid off, and the number of bullying cases has fallen.
“To make sure that we are on the right track, we are going to rerun a statistical survey from 2005,” explains Špakova.
Search for a partner
“We are hoping to find Nordic partners to share and exchange experiences with within the Nordplus framework,” says the psychologist.
The Anykščiai Antanas Vienuolis high school is planning workshops, seminars and possibly a public website against bullying.
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