Introduction
Bullying is one of the most significant school problems experienced by children and adolescents that affects in schools. Bullying has been defined as repeated exposure to negative events within the context of an imbalanced poor relationship. Bullying may include verbal or physical injury as well as social isolation or exclusion. It may have deleterious effects for depression, anxiety aggression and hyperactivity, social, emotional, mental health and academic concerns, as well as loss of instructional time. This case study that contributes to the literature by describing an intervention for bullies. Consequences of Isolation Struggling in this stage of life can result in loneliness and isolation. Loneliness and isolation have leaded to a wide range of negative health consequences.
Background of the Case Study
The informants included the mother of the student, a classroom teacher, the school counselor and the student. I used to develop and implement the intervention that included psychoeducational sessions with the student and consultation with the parents.
Ranuk, a 12-year-old student in the seventh grade. He is living with his mother, father and eight-year-old brother. His family history included a recent flooding. However, regular being maintained education and sports. He is studying in a leading National Government College in Colombo. With around 6,000 student’s multi-cultural environment. I have collaborative relationship with this College about fourteen years.
Ranuk was referred for the bullying by me and was described as a “provocative bully” by students. Classmate indicated that Ranuk had a tendency to “annoy” his peers verbally until they “reached their limit” and as a result became physically aggressive with him. The Classmate described Ranuk’s behavior as verbal bullying. The student’s mother, Mrs. Senuli Ariyadasa, was Buddhist woman who worked in the education field. The female graduate -level school counselor was Mrs. Meepawala Arachchi. The class teacher was Mrs. Jeewanthi Abegunawardhana.
The school counsellor expressed concerns about his limited ability to engage in prosocial interactions with peers and school personnel, as Ranuk appeared to “ignore the comments of adults” and seemed unaware of how his actions or remarks were perceived by peers. Ranuk’s mother expressed concern that her son was becoming verbally aggressive in 26 reaction to being bullied at school. She cited school reports of inappropriate comments to teachers and peers as evidence of Ranuk’s verbal aggression and indicated that his bullying behaviors persisted or escalated irrespective of school and home interventions. His mother and the school personnel stated that they were interested in determining the best ways to intervene.
Interviews: (How & why Questions)
Based on my plan all participated as informants by providing data to develop
intervention goals and to assess intervention acceptability, integrity and efficacy.
Pre-intervention- Student: (Written for major themes, took notes during all other
interviews)
• What is the worst thing you ever did? (Or, just name some bad thing you’ve done).
• What is the worst thing that has happened to you?
• What is the best thing that has happened to you?
• What is the best thing you ever did? (Or, just name some good thing you’ve done).
• What things get you upset or mad? Why?
• What do you do when angry?
• What do your parents do when you do things that you shouldn’t?
Post-intervention – Teacher and parent (to enhance outcome data)
Parent: Parent interview questions included a focus on the target student’s behavior at home and school, parent concerns related to his behavior.
• Describe your concerns related to your child’s behavior.
• How long have you been concerned about your child’s behavior?
• How does he interact with peers?
• What are your child’s strengths/interests?
• Describe your parenting style.
• How does your child relate to his sibling and other family members?
• Have there been any recent significant changes in the home environment?
• How he eats, sleep or play?
Class Teacher:
• Describe your child’s classroom behavior.
• How does he interact with adults?
• What kind of behavioral strategies have been implemented?
• What was the outcome?
• Describe his academic performance.
• Describe your classroom behavioral expectations.
• What strategies have been implemented to improve his classroom behavior?
Behavioral observations:
Ranuk was observed in classroom and less structured settings to determine the
frequency and nature of bullying behaviors and to aid in intervention development. I used a narrative approach for conducting behavioral observations to gain information regarding peer and teacher interactions.
Behavior Assessment
• Experiencing: No friendships, Lack of relationships, Weak social support, Fear of
commitment & intimacy, bad dreams and unable to concentrate at school, angry, Feeling
worthless, useless
• Eating a lot less than usual, having a hard time paying attention
• Negative health consequences: Depression, Stress, fatigue, headaches, or stomachaches,
irritable, Inability to open up, guilt,
• Sleeping a lot less than normal, Being tired and sluggish or tense and restless a lot of the
time,
• Class Teacher’s perceptions – Indicated Ranuk engaging in disruptive activities after
completing assignments.
• Mother’s perceptions – Indicated that she viewed the intervention as an important
resource to address her son’s social deficits related to interpersonal relationships with
peers and family members. And she reported there are number of phone calls received
regarding disciplinary concerns from the school.
• The school counselor – Indicated that she made eye contact and acknowledged the
statements or requests of school personnel, which are skills addressed in sessions related
to empathy and perspective taking.
Evaluation
• Evaluation and interventionist feedback to narrative information.
• The student answers should be noted at the end of each intervention session.
• Determine what the student like about the session.
• As well as what he would change about the session.
• The interventionist feedback to decided about modifications, treatment acceptability and self-assessment of the interventionist’s performance.
By interviews, observations, & evaluation feedback I identified information regarding
externalizing, internalizing and bullying behaviors.
Intervention Strategies
One-to-three-month plan according to the challenge identified to support this child to
come out from what he is facing currently.
1st month
Week 1:
• Close relationships with other students.
• Emphasis on sports activity instead of dialog focused activity to allow Ranuk to
disclose information indirectly.
• Enduring connections with family members.
• Before go to sleep do meditation and sleep to your right side. (No speak)
Week 2:
• Administrates before and after the intervention – to determine change in symptoms
related to post-traumatic stress experienced by the student.
• Analyze internalizing and externalizing and determination.
• Occasionally invite family or friends over to play
• Positive relationships with family and friends
Week 3:
• Deep, meaningful connections with neighbors.
• Help him to imagine about the future and about good things happening
• Ask class teacher to respond when Ranuk try to communicate.
• Ask family members to respond when Ranuk try to communicate.
Week 4:
• Ask to have a pet
• Verbal interaction to discuss emotions.
• Allow for choice between various less verbally demanding tasks.
• Allow Ranuk to respond to the curriculum by creating artwork.
• Ask teacher to provide insight into the daily interactions of the Ranuk.
• Be supportive during repairing a cycle
2nd month
Week 1:
• Consult with educators and parents, particularly since educators and parents can have
different views, while also having great potential to influence Ranuk.
• Ask Ranuk to attempt new tasks, join or come up with activities with friends, and use
new skills in play. (He will learn what he can and cannot control. When he does make
mistakes, he doesn’t feel guilty; he understands that he just needs to try again. By
trying things on his own and exploring his own abilities, he can develop ambition and
direction.)
Week 2:
• Ask parents to offer safe outlets where Ranuk and his peers are able to play
independently.
• Coaching
• Ask class teacher to praise and give attention for performing reading, writing,
drawing, and solving problems, with schoolwork.
Week 3:
• Ask to do things independently, such as picking out what he will wear each day,
putting on his own clothes, and deciding what he will eat. While this can often be
frustrating for parents and caregivers, it is an important part of developing a sense of
self-control and personal autonomy.
• Modifying to address the characteristics of other bullies and their unique cultural and
ecological circumstances.
• Ask parents to arrange any family trip
Week 4:
• Allow him to make food and provide reassurance that they have done a good job.
• Ask to do or enjoy doing fun things
• Meeting with members of Ranuk’s peer group, and a focus on behavior.
• Examining the influence of family context on the Ranuk’s behavior.
3rd month
Week 1:
• Ask class teacher to make school environment more familiar with Ranuk.
• Observe changes significantly.
• Fulfill Rank’s any simple need.
• Ask family members keep good communication with Rank.
Week 2:
• Ask parents to holding him closely and securely. This provides both warmth and
physical contact. Feeding plays a pivotal role in the development of trust. By feeding
an infant when Ranuk is hungry, he learns that he can trust his need for nourishment
will be met.
• Noticing and responding to these signals, whether he is crying, body movements,
coos, or even words, help him learn to trust parents and the world around him.
Week 3:
• Discussing his life with a sense of accomplishment and fulfillment.
• Ask Ranuk’s teacher to use reinforcement tools by informing Ranuk of her ongoing
communication with the interventionist to encourage him to behave appropriately in
order to have positive remarks relayed about his behavior.
Week 4:
• Observe is there a reduction in Ranuk’s externalizing (aggression and hyperactivity),
internalizing (depression and anxiety) symptoms & bullying behaviors.
• Find out changes from the at-risk range to normal limits.
• Evaluate by examining both the process and the outcomes of the intervention that
implements’ with Ranuk.
Obtain measures of acceptability from the interventionist after each month.
Food (Note 1) & prohibited to do:
• When wake up from sleep drink plenty of water (2 to 3 cups).
• For early morning take moor or night rice with water.
• For breakfast grains and take fruits too.
• For lunch take vegetables and leaves too.
• Avoid drinking milk tea and can drink fresh juice, or fried coriander (boil and take),
skimmed ginger and lemon juice. Heat leaved mooseed (Rasakinda), Bael (Belimal),
Matura tea (Ranawara) as tea can get from ayurvedic shops.
• For a glass of water add pinch of cinnamon, 2 pinches of black pepper,1/4 tea spoon
turmeric 1/2 spoon coriander and small piece of skimmed ginger boil for 2 minutes if
want filter and add 2 spoon ghee, pure rock honey 1 spoon and 1 spoon lemon juice mix
and drink as tea.
• Types of rice Keelmiraha, Foxtail Millet, Little Millet, Barnyard Millet, Bridegroom’s
rice (don’t take polish rice)
• For lunch 1 cup of any above rice, green leaves, Fruits.
• Take Kollu, chayote, centella, sessile joyweed daily.
• Dinner must be taken before 7.00P.M. For dinner can take string hoppers, pittu (white or red rice, kurakkan flour), mixed fruits salad, porridge or soup and rice.
Prohibited to do
• Sleeping in the evening.
• Drinking anything ½ h before meals and 1 h after (best after 2h)
• Eating broilers chicken and egg, all bakery items, flour-based foods and sanitized drinks.
• Sleeping immediately after any meal.
Conclusion:
This case study may have the potential to create meaningful change in some bullies
and its negative effects within the context of school policies. Further, bullies have been found to have more conduct problems and less favorable views of school than their non-bullying peers, which may lead to academic disengagement. Bullying behavior should address in the college discipline policies, which will distribute to students at all grade levels. The school response to bullying depended on severity and could include: student participation in a conference with school personnel, assignment to alternative lunch area, partial or full day in school suspension, out of school suspension, financial restitution for the repair of any damage, or consideration of an alternative placement for up to 10 school days.
Special Thanks to;
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Mr. Zamreen Zarook – Multi Award-Winning Speaker | Internationally Certified Corporate Trainer | Communication & Public Speaking Coach | Youth Life Coach | Business Strategist
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Mrs. F. N. Malik – Founder of Ash-Shifa / Serving Special Children with Special Needs.
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Mrs. Rimaza Niyaz – Senior Registrar in Community Medicine, Ministry of Health, Sri Lanka.
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Mrs. WGLK Priyadarshika – Development Officer, Accounts Department at Ministry of Health, Sri Lanka (Former Development Officer at Department of Education, Sri Lanka).
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Mr. Vajira Peiris – Retired Physics Teacher.
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Mrs. Amali Perera – Deputy Principal at Dudley Senanayake College, Colombo 05.
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Mr. Nuwan Lakmal Rathnayaka – Science English Medium Teacher at D. S. Senanayake College, Colombo 07.
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Prof. ACM Fazlul Rahmaan – Professor (shared valuable knowledge).
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Class Students – Provided invaluable contribution and help in finalizing the assignment.
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Family Members – Provided encouragement and patience.
