Bullying data not of much use

By The Gazette Editorial Board

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Iowa's then-highly acclaimed 2007 antibullying law defines bullying as any “electronic, written, verbal or physical act or conduct toward a student” that makes the student feel unsafe, creates a hostile school environment or makes students reluctant to participate in a school program.

The law also requires schools to track and report incidents of bullying to the state.

Well, the definition may be clear but the reporting process needs some reform.

The first three years of data, on average, shows that less than 2 percent of the state's schoolchildren ever are bullied. That's hardly a believable figure, especially in this era of cyberbullying, and the state's new director of the Iowa Department of Education agrees. The figures are “unbelievably low, really, we can't stand behind those,” Jason Glass told our Des Moines Bureau reporter last week.

“Clearly, we have more work to do in trying to improve understanding on what bullying is.”

OK, making sure all teachers and administrators are adequately trained to recognize bullying and accurately report it could help. And a federal grant the state is getting is aimed at expanded training and community awareness.

But we suspect the bigger problem may be too much built-in disincentive for schools to proactively report all serious bullying incidents. For one, teachers may fear it hurts their effectiveness with students or how they'll be judged. Administrators may be reluctant to cast their school in a negative light.

Bullying is not easy to control. But until we have an accurate understanding of the frequency, trends and types of such behavior, it will be more difficult to recognize and curb bullying tactics.

To get a better handle on this, consider using confidential student surveys, administered by an outside agency. And why not look to the Iowa Youth Survey, a joint project of four state departments, for a model?

Since 1999, it has been administered to the vast majority of students in grades 6, 8 and 11 every third year. Confidential responses are compiled into statewide and jurisdictional reports, with trends identified. The survey reveals reliable data on students' attitudes and experiences with substance abuse, family and school relationships, among other issues - and, yes, even bullying.

And instead of creating a new mechanism to report bullying, how about adapting the Iowa Youth Survey? Most students recognize when they or their peers are being bullied. Their observations would be more useful than the current reporting system's results.

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