The news of the past few days has brought bullying back to the fore, a topic overshadowed by the pandemic for more than two years.
Posted at 9:00 a.m.
It all started with the outcry on social networks concerning the inappropriate behavior of certain candidates for Double occupancy Martinique. Then, several of the show’s partners withdrew their sponsorships in protest, creating a major crisis.
Asked about this by Patrick Masbourian during the show All one morning, the new Minister of Education of Quebec, Bernard Drainville, revealed, sobbing in his voice, having himself been the victim of bullying at school. I salute the courage of the minister; it takes great humility to publicly share traumatic moments in your life.
During this same interview, the minister indicated that the situation has improved in the schools according to him, and if a young person is the victim of bullying, the school workers take action. I am sincerely sorry to disappoint you, Minister, but that is not always the case.
At the Jasmin Roy Sophie Desmarais Foundation, we always receive a large number of complaints from parents who remain dissatisfied with the interventions made in certain schools in Quebec. I would even add that sometimes nothing seems to be done to counter bullying. Last Friday, a crying father approached me to offer advice regarding his son, who was being bullied at school. A crazy amount of time passed before the school finally removed the attacker who was bullying several students. Now her son, who loved school and had an average of over 90%, struggles to get to class due to anxiety issues. Moreover, he does not have access to the support of a psychologist; he is only offered piecemeal interventions with a social worker.
The school administration even had the audacity to say to this loving father: “Your son should come back from this, he was not the only one being bullied and the others don’t have anxiety problems.” As if all cases of bullying are experienced equally by each student and are quickly forgotten.
Even if, before the pandemic, a slight improvement was noticeable in educational settings, we currently have no idea of the impact of health measures on the prosocial skills of young people.
Several researchers are currently looking into the problem and some are concerned about a rise in violence and bullying in schools, because at the base, students learn to regulate certain behaviors within groups, while the pandemic cut young people off from normal socialization for two years.
I hope, Mr. Drainville, that we will have the chance to discuss this in private, because your exit has created expectations. More than ever, educational institutions need to integrate social and emotional learning into the curriculum. Beyond the prevention of violence and bullying at school, this approach will have great benefits on the pandemic of mental health problems among our young people. I think you understand very well how important it is to do so.
A final word on OD
After the wave of denunciations on social networks, we are able to see that the message has been heard by the production and the broadcaster. Now, I urge people to rise above the fray and not insult contestants and production members. Using insults and intimidation to denounce a bullying situation defeats the purpose we want to achieve. If we did not like the behavior of certain candidates, it is counterproductive to act the same way as them. We must also, in all benevolence, give these adults the chance to recover and apologize.