Week 10.2
The Bully Project
This project highlights the immediate need in our schools as well as the crucial systemic changes that need to be addressed where bullying is concerned.
Is is a film that follows 5 kids and families over the course of a school year, stories include 2 families who have lost children to suicide and a mother awaiting the fate of her 14-year-old daughter who has been incarcerated after bringing a gun on her school bus. With an intimate glimpse into their personal lives, we are given the opportunity to learn from and be inspired to make change happen for our children and students.
Check out the trailor.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=XwZIGnaSuJY
PLEASE visit this website and make these next few items a priority on your to-do list.
http://www.thebullyproject.com/
1. Sign the petition to give Bully a PG-13 rating. If they don't change the rating of this movie then we are really missing the point. The kids who need to receive this message will not be old enough to view it. I'm POSITIVE that our kids are watching far more violent, crude and inapporopriate films with a much less important message.
2. "Bring Bully to your city." Norwalk, CT is currently within the top 10 cities to "win" the showing of this movie...as it will only be shown in select movie theatres. Feel free to add your city as well!
3. Take the Pledge to "Help Stop Bullying".
Can't wait to hear what you think!
and
Please spread the word!
I just finished watching the trailer and I cannot wait to see the movie myself. I really hope that everyone signs the petition so that teenagers (the target audience) can actually see it. I had the students in my class sign the petition too.
ReplyDeleteThis documentary seems it will have a very positive effect on people. I like how they get different peoples perspectives. Not just the ones being bullied are affect but so are the parents ect family and friends.
I know people say it won't change, but things do change with the right motivation and maybe having our teens exposed to such a documentary will have a very big impact on where they stand. If this movie is made pg-13 I believe schools should show this movie to the students frequently, not just once. Students should be shown this or something similar more times than once because for example you get pulled over so you will drive slowly in that area for a little while ,then a few months go by and your back to doing the same thing you were before. Same with the students, at first they will be thinking about the movie and the effect they have on other classmates but as time goes on they will eventually go back to their old ways. One way of preventing this is counseling, but another way would be to remind them by showing them a movie like this one to help remind them that their actions really do have consequences.
I have to agree Danielle. Allchildren shouldbe expose to positive ideas and real life examples of what negativity can effect you. It will open thier eyes to preventing negativity toward eachother, and create safety in play ground, in school and in society.
DeleteI also feel that it starts at home. but I realize that some parents do not have the ability to each to thier children becuacse they themselves do not know how to. So not only children need to be need to have the skills to prevent bullying bue parents as well.
(Lbunker. This is a response to a student}
Bullying should not be a problem that is only addressed in school. EVERYONE needs to be aware of the issue and work together to combat bullying. I hate to say it but the television shows for kids today are only making bullying worse. I don't let my daughter's watch icarly anymore because I think it was sending them bad messages. As an adult, when I watch the characters on the show behaving badly or making fun of other characters, I KNOW that the behavior is wrong-as an adult. Unfortunately, kids do not always understand this. Many will think it is "cool" to make fun of others because they saw the characters on their favorite T.V. show doing it. Obviously the producers do not intend for this message to be the one sent (hopefully), but it IS the message being sent. Children's media professionals also need to be AWARE of bullying and not glorify it in their shows for children.
DeleteJen, that is one of the issues I think about a lot, will I allow my children to watch TV (when I have children). I watch my frieds children for her frequently and they do not have tv, so therefore their children do not watch it. At first I thought this was weird, but over the past 6 years I have found it to be quite normal. Their children are well behaved, have a great imagination, are respectful, and they love to read books. At first I thought you are depriving these children of cartoons. Well not exactly they get to watch movies on the computer, they watch TV at friends houses and that is enough. These boys have grown up to be such respectful and well mannered boys. Is this due to not watching TV all the time or playing video games, not entirely but I do think it has had an influence in a positive way.
Delete-Danielle
This comment has been removed by the author.
DeleteSchools may very well be the best place to share this documentary because teachers can debrief students at its conclusion. I can only imagine the conversation that will ensue, so why not channel students' reactions as a means of spreading awareness and change?
DeleteI agree, I do believe schools are the best place to share this, I think students will think about their actions while at school and hopefully outside of school. On a different note, could someone please fill me in on what we discussed about the project due tomorrow. I can't seem to get a hold of our professor. I am confused about the peer reviewed article and what type of lesson plan we need to bring. Any info at this point would be helpful. Thank you.
DeleteAndrea,
DeleteYou made such good points. We really need to teach our children how to be compassionate and to have tolerance for others. There is one student that I have that I am constantly talking to because she says such negative things and I try to get her to see how hurtful it is and how others have a right to their opinions. She actually stopped herself the other day, after I had spoken to her 3x because she realized that she was about to say something negative again within 30 seconds of me speaking to her before that. I keep thinking that if I stick with it, it might help. I plan on looking for that book "One" thank you for mentioning it. I have been debating teaching a lesson on bullying as part of this project and this is a poem that I have thought about using.
The Nobody
The brown-eyed girl in hand-me
downs
Got on and took a seat.
Ahead of us, with cast down eyes
that never left the street.
Her hair was crushed against her
head
Where her hat had been,
her glove, clamped tight
between her palms,
she sat alone, again.
The laughter of the other girls
rang loudly in her ears
As they, delighted, tripled up
to whisper pointed jeers.
Their burning stares, and taunting
cries
moved her to silent tears.
After the bus had slowed to a stop,
they began to roam.
While she alone,
hunched into her coat
began the long walk home.
Nobody should be made to feel badly about who they are as a person so others feel good about themselves. Hopefully this project will be shown in all schools.
Tina
As I watched the trailer, the following 3 statements really stuck out:
ReplyDelete1) "Tyree hates me...Erica hates me...Skyler hates me...Josh hates me."
Hatred is such a raw, absolute, all-consuming emotion, that it's frightening to imagine a child carrying around an assumption of this magnitude. After all, it's not hatred that his classmates have for him -- it's a lack of compassion and tolerance, an expectation that those who differ in appearance, demeanor, or personal preference, must be somehow inferior.
2) "I feel like I belong somewhere else."
The school yard and the Internet can become a child's personal hell, leaving him/her alone in every sense of the word. Physical or emotional escape is so rarely an option without the right support measures in place. The most saddening part is wondering whether there actually is a place - a school or community - where this child would feel welcomed.
3) "I never had real friends that would stick around and help me."
If you haven't done so already, please read the children's book, "One." It's a beautiful and powerful story that sets the stage for a discussion about the way in which we treat others. Sometimes it takes just one person to speak up in the face of injustice.
It's one thing to read stories about the repercussions that the bully and the bullied face, but it's much more tangible when we see, hear, and experience these emotions through the voices of real children. This documentary is one that has the potential to "awaken" our children to the harsh realities of bullying: the unintended consequences and the very raw, emotional response. We already know that media has a widespread impact on our youth, so imagine how powerful this documentary could be if given a PG-13 rating.
That is EXACTLY what stuck out to me. Blank Hates me, Blank Hates me, Blank Hates me...It's so sad. I honestly don't think real hate is involved, though. Even though the kids are cruel, I don't think they really hate who they are bullying. But that doesn't really matter because it's all about perception. The child being bullied really feels that they are hated whether that is true or not. There cannot be a feeling worse than feeling as though so many people hate you. These poor kids probably feel so alone. I cried when I watched the trailer so I can only imagine what I mess I would be during the movie. This IS such a HUGE problem. I signed the petition because I think it'[s important bullies can see the outcome of their harsh actions and words. I can only hope this would make a difference.
DeleteIt really stinks being bullied. My father forced me into Tae Kwon Do to learn to fight back. I was lucky that he paid for this. It took a while, but I finally punched someone out and I was finally left alone.
DeleteViolence to counter violence is not the answer in a school setting, but in my case, I had to other choice. The school administrators were asleep at the wheel and the home room teachers didn't care enough to stop it.
I hated gym class so much until 11th grade.
No parent should ever bury their child, especially from suicide.
Society is failing all of us to allow this to continue.
If a town has zero tolerance, then by God, it should be zero!
Mike
Just as we need to feel safe when we go to work or to run errands, students need to feel safe when they go to school. This documentary should be used in schools to facilitate discussions. As we have heard people in class talk about districts developing positive school climate policies and develop ways to educate students, there will be gap between those who will be receiving explicit instruction from the first years of school to those who now are in the middle and high school grades. This documentary can be used to facilitate conversations so that students and adults can work together to identify areas of concern in their own communities and work together to make a change.
DeleteAnna Grabowski
It's interesting because I was JUST watching the Ellen show and she interviewed the parents that are part of this documentary. They lost their son Tyler who committed suicide in 2009 as a result of bullying.
ReplyDeleteThis interview is very powerful, I think everyone should take a minute to watch it.
http://www.bing.com/videos/watch/video/ellen-talks-to-parents-from-bully/17w0s4b5o
I signed the petition a few weeks ago, and as far as I know the rating has not changed from "R" to "PG-13." I agree with Nicole that kids are exposed to far more violent and/or inappropriate language than they will see in this movie. Students need to see this movie. They are the audience that would most benefit from its message.
Diana, thank you for posting this clip; it left me in tears. To see the agony that these parents are going through, knowing that they will never get another day with their son, is absolutely heartbreaking. How do you overcome that sense of failure? Ellen, per the usual, summed it up beautifully, "Everyone, everything has value." And, that is the most important, most powerful, lesson we can teach our students.
Deletechildren that grow up in low-income neighborhoods, where they are exposed to gang violence, poverty and broken families is their reality, because they have not been exposed to other views. Therefore their reality becomes the norm, and they may follow in the same path. However, it is our jobs, the teachers jobs to educated these children so that they can make informed decisions about their own futures. At the same time when children are dealing with these environmental factors it interferes with their education. For example, children that have to worry if they are going to be safe walking to school will interfere on getting to school. Children that worry if they will have enough food to eat may be weaken and have no energy to be focused in school. Children that did not get a good night rest because of the gang activity in the neighborhood may fall asleep in class. This is why I find it so important for teachers, and educator take into account the cultural factors that all students are faced with. Teachers need to be understanding, and understand that children have different factors that will play into who they shape up to be. Encouraging students that they have choices will teach children responsibility.
DeleteI just posted a response however I forgot to put my name.(LBunker}
DeleteThank you so much for posting this video. It brought me to tears as well. I had to post this for everyone to see on my Facebook and twitter as well. I honestly can never imagine this happening. I could never imagine the feeling of I never did enough or I didn’t do the right thing no matter what I did.
DeleteI felt as if these two people were being so strong, I believe I could never be this strong. I was glad that this couple said that they were able to heal a bit better from doing this documentary. They said they have a long way to go but it definitely helped. I commend them for speaking out and telling their story. I look forward to watching the documentary.
Melissa R
Lorena,
DeleteI so agree with you. Our students come to school with so much backage that I often wonder how they can foucs on school work. For some it is their safe haven and for others a living nightmare. It is so sad that children have so much to face and I know that we did to when we were growing up but it seems that technology has pulled families apart even more. I can't tell you the number of students that I have who tell me that they don't even eat dinner together because everyone wants to watch "their" program on t.v. or "talk" on facebook etc. What are we teaching our children when we do this and suggest that time spent in front of a piece of technology is more important than time spent with them?? They discuss the fact that everyone has and is using their technology at the dinner table as well.
I agree with you that we need to listen to our students and be understanding about deadlines, work etc. when some of them are coming to school without the basic necessities being taken care of.
Tina
Diana thanks for sharing this. Lorena, I agree, individuals working with students need to be aware of cultural and environmental factors and the impact/effects they have on those students. Tyler's parents were aware of the struggles he was having with peers at school and they spoke up. It is heart breaking to hear that they reached out to the school and matters did not change. This makes me think about the children who come home and don't have anyone to talk to or adults who do not intervene to try and change things. Not only students should view the documentary, administrators, teachers, support staff, and parents should participate watching the film and working on ways to strengthen the community together.
DeleteAnna Grabowski
The above is a comment not a reponse to student
ReplyDeleteLbunkrt
After watching this trailer I really hope it is shown in CT. I posted the link both on my twitter and my Facebook for others to see. I had a few people comment on it and say that they wish to see it as well. I am thrilled that other people want to share this video. I truly feel like all teenagers should watch this movie to get a real life understanding of what they are doing to other students. I feel as if many of the videos of bullying out there are scripted and students may think that this is not truly what happens when someone is bullied beyond belief. I think seeing something real and seeing how the whole community is affected when something terrible happens.
ReplyDeleteI think this is such a strong movie that all children can benefit from. I was very shocked and disappointed to see that the video is not rated pg-13. A few minutes later I was surfing the internet and I was reading up on my celebrity gossip. One of the headlines was something about Justin Beiber and bullying and it was a video. TMZ had an interview with Justin Beiber and one of the questions was whether or not he believes that the new bullying movie should be rated R or PG-13. I could tell he was caught a bit off guard but he did say that a few F words should not stop children, mainly teenagers from seeing this video. They are the ones that could possibly benefit most from this movie.
I remember in high school there was some video my English teacher wanted us to watch but it had a few bad words in it. Our parents had to sign a permission slip stated that it was ok if we watched the video in class. I do not remember the rating but I wonder if it would be possible for some schools to get permission slips so the students can watch the movie or even their parents will have them watch it at home. Of course, you are always going to have the students who are going to find a way to watch R rated videos anyway.
Melissa R
From what I recall, the permission slips you're referring to typically only apply to high school students. Several of the students featured in this documentary appear to be in middle school, so I can only imagine how powerful this piece would be for younger demographics. I realize that the content may be challenging to view, yet if this is the behavior occurring in our middle schools, we have the obligation to address it. What better way to show the unintended consequences of bullying than to provide several real-life examples for students to reflect upon.
DeleteI'm really excited to see when this movie will will come out! I do believe that the rating should be PG-13 in order for students to actually view it. I agree that children are watching worse things on T.V now. This movie will hopefully inspire and bring awareness to bullying. I've signed the petition and have posted it on FB and other friends have also signed the petition.
ReplyDeleteI feel the same way! I hope more people sign the petition and become more aware of bullying and antibullying movements!
Delete-Chelsea
Dear Class. This is a tough subject for me. I was actually crying watching the video clip. It brought back too many bad memories from 4-8 grades in Wethersfield.
ReplyDeleteI have to patience for this. I really don't. My questions will probably never be answered: Why? Why does this happen to so many of us? What does zero tolerance actually mean? Manchester Police cannot do anything for cyber bullying. How pathetic.
How come is this movie such an issue to make it PG13. I think it should be PG, shown in all theaters, and moreover, shown in all schools immediately after.
My priest said that the kids who are bullied are done so because the bully is missing something in his or her life and sees it in that person being bullied. That may be true; I am unsure. However, it does not make it right and certainly it does not make it right that nothing gets done.
The bully's parents have to be arrested for murder and the bully should be locked up until 18 years old if a student commits suicide. That is a failure of society to allow this. No, boys will be boys is not an acceptable answer.
If our Congress is going to protect rated XXX movies and pictures, then they have to protect the innocent as well. If this movie helps spread the word, then it has to be avaiable for all to see immediately!
Mike Hatzikostantis
I can only imagine how moving the movie itself is if the trailer already had me mesmerized. One boy in the trailer was talking to his school after another boy killed himself after being bullied and he noted how horrible it is that someone had to go to such fatal feats just to have his voice heard.
ReplyDeleteMovements such as the Bullying Project and the films they sponsor are a good way to enlighten people of the issues victims of bullying are facing. These programs in a sense stand in as a voice by proxy; unfortunately the rated R label limits how many of these victims know they have help and support, and simultaneously the bullies themselves will not be able to see the effect their bullying has on others.
While I understand the reasons behind such ratings, I also know that most students have heard such language behind the rated r rating before; I happen to hear them myself from 7, 8, and 9 year olds on an almost daily basis.
On the other hand, while this film is very much a mirror image of reality, I think that its message is important enough and loud enough that it can still be heard if the film was censored, using bleeps or alternative words in place of those deemed inappropriate.
Alternatively, I remember in middle school watching rated r movies in history class and being able to do so with parental consent via a permission slip-just another possibility.
Also, I was exploring and found this link that is great for anyone interested in the dynamics of bullying and the role of educators and the government in taking action against bullying. It also has a link for a kid-friendly version of the site:
http://www.stopbullying.gov/index.html
-Chelsea