There is no one best way to stop bullying. What is needed is a comprehensive approach.
1. We need to set up administrative processes so that they are maximized to extinguish bullying behavior – which they mostly aren’t right now for a variety of reasons.
2. We need to teach kids how to stop bullies through proactive respectful action that will remove the rewards bullies get from bullying and increase the consequences
3. We need to teach kids how to intervene effectively when they witness bullying and actively reward them for doing so – even though this is tricky to do
4. We need to provide mental health and community support services to families and to kids so that if it turns out a kid is bullying maladaptively because of something else going on in their lives, we provide them with the support their families need to fix the problem.
5. We need to teach parents how to stop bullying and harassment so that they know what they need to do to effectively support their child AND intervene on their behalf effectively. This should also include information on what to do if you find out your child is a bully.
For more information on what a comprehensive plan looks like and why – Strategy to combat bullying – https://drive.google.com/file/d/0B0L27xd7NclMVG9vb0dNbXpuUmc/view?usp=sharing