Bullying

                                English for Teachers B, Autumn 2024

Warm-up

Discuss the following with your group:

Do you know about any cases of bullying?

How many types of bullying do you know?

How do you describe what bullies do? (physically? emotionally?)

How do you describe what the victims of bullying feel? (physically? emotionally?)


What is bullying?

Bullying is when someone intimidates or causes harm to another person on purpose. The victim of
bullying can be verbally, physically or emotionally assaulted and is often threatened and made to
feel frightened.

Bullying in school can include:

●     verbal harassment: name-calling, cyberbullying

●     hitting, hair-pulling and kicking

●     teasing

●     spreading rumours

●     damaging and taking away possessions

●     frightening and intimidation

●     exclusion at playtime or from social events and networks

[(adapted from][ ][http://www.bbc.co.uk/schools/parents/bullying/], the website no longer exists[)]

Below are the definitions for the highlighted words. Where do the highlighted words fit?
 1. Hitting someone or something with a foot. ____kicking____
 2. Leaving somebody out. ___________________
 3. Insulting someone by addressing them in a rude way. __________________
 4. Frightening or threatening someone, usually in order to persuade that person to do something.
________________
 5. Physical or other injury or damage. _________________
 6. Being attacked violently. ___________________
 7. Unofficial interesting pieces of news (true or invented), which spread from person to person.
________________
 8. Using the internet to harm or frighten another person. __________________
 9. Removing something. _________________

Now look at the words again. How many of them are new for you and how many did you already know?


Listening and vocabulary

Watch the video and answer the following questions:

Questions:
 1. Why can it be difficult to spot bullying?
 2. What are some reasons why people may be bullied?
 3. In what ways can bullying occur?
 4. Why might someone struggle to make bullying stop?
 5. How can you deal with negative emotions that come with being bullied?
 6. What is the best thing to do if you're being bullied?
 7. What advice would you give to someone who is being bullied?

Discuss your answers with the person sitting next to you.


What is cyberbullying?

/ˈsaɪbəˌbʊliɪŋ/

Can you fit the words from the box into the gaps in the paragraph below?

post       harassment      youth       over        likely           social
device            nasty        vote

Cyberbullying is a type of _____________________ involving a communication __________________, such
as a computer, tablet, and/or smartphone. Our research examines three popular types of
cyberbullying that _________________, 13 to 18 years, experience. 24% of teens have posted
embarrassing pictures and/or videos about someone on a social networking site, such as Facebook.
27% admitted they have sent __________________ messages to or about someone - including spreading
rumours, name-calling, and gossiping - via the Internet or text messages, and about 12% of teens
surveyed confessed they’d created a website targeting a peer. For example, a teen may post photos
of children from school on a website, and have peers __________________ for the “fattest” or
“ugliest” at school.



In the hot seat

Watch this video and answer the following questions (write your answers down because you’re going
to work with them later).

●       Who are the main characters in the video?

●       What is the main story of this video?

●       Describe briefly each character’s story and behaviour.

Your teacher will give you instructions for this activity.

New vocabulary