I was watching CNN the other night and heard a story about a boy who was bullied in school so much that he committed suicide. On April 3rd CNN reported about an Ohio couple filed suit against their son's school almost 2 years to the day that their son committed suicide. The parents are claiming that teachers and officials failed to stop bullying that drove the Eric Mohat to suicide. The one thing that stood out to me about this story was that parents William and Janis Mohat want no money from Mentor High School. The federal suit asks for an order that the school put in an anti-bullying program in place. Eric Mohat was only 17 years old when he took his own life. Eric had been bullied at school for a long period of time, and even had asked the staff and teachers for help but nothing was done to protect him. A bully allegedly suggested to him that day that he go home and shoot himself - and that is what he did. Eric was being bullied mostly by the jocks of the school and it most often happened in Math class which was taught by the sports coach. The suit filed March 27 names the sports coach and two administrators as defendants. The Mohat's say three members of Eric's class killed themselves in 2007 and that bullying was a factor in those deaths as well.
First, I believe that teachers should protect children at school. No matter who the student is they need to be protected in the school environment. Parents are trusting us to do this for them. To even read that this student was bullied in Math class, which was taught by the sports coach, by the jocks...is just amazing. How could a teacher allow this to happen in the classroom. I am amazed that the parents are suing not for money but for the school to implement a Anti-Bullying program. Kudos to them...really. I really believe that all schools, elementary, middle and high school should have Anti-Bullying programs. Bullying has become such a problem in schools and to read stories like Eric's is heart-breaking that nobody was willing to help him.
I also came across another story about a boy named Jacob. This young guy was only 13 when he committed suicide..13!!! Breaks my heart to know that children or young adults feel the need to end their life because they are being bullied. Like I said before I think its our job as teachers and future teachers to protect our students no matter the age of the child.
To read more of Jacobs story: www.jaredstory.com
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4 comments:
I agree with you, Janna. My child was a silent one often not speaking to anyone. She was bullied throughout. In the fourth grade she asked me to take her to the YOrk library, because a girl told her she would beat her up if she did not return the book she was reading to the school library. I spoke with the teacher, and she had no idea. I think our schools have gotten so big, and the staff is focused on meeting standards. Most of the time I spoke with teachers they had no idea what was going on. It will be a challenge to stay in touch with our students. Somehow teachers have gotten out of the loop.
I agree with Janna that it is the teacher's job to protect her students. Children spend so much of their day in the classroom, that their teacher becomes a mother/father figure. In the same way a parent wants to protect their children, a teacher needs to protect their students. I remember when I was younger their were two girls in my class that were really mean to me. I will never forget one day they were so mean to me that I cried on the playground. I did not want to tell my teacher because I did not want the girls to be even meanier to me. Someone else told the teacher what happened, and she snatched the girls up and took them inside. I do not know what she said to them, but they definately stopped saying mean things to me. I know compared to the story of the boy who committed suicide this is minor, but if the teacher would have stopped the bullying in the begginning, this may have never happened. I realize as children get older they become a little less afraid of authority. We will be teaching young children so we need to remember that we are in charge and can help stop bullying before it gets worse. We would not want our own children to get bullied at school, therefor it is important to protect our students in the same way.
I agree with Cindy. I believe that teachers are so stressed now over standards and other things that they tend to overlook what is really going on in front of them. I do believe that it is the teacher's responsibility to protect these young students. It does not matter what kind of teacher, a PE teacher, music, or classroom teacher. We need to make sure our children feel safe and know they are safe while they are in school.
Not to add to the already sad stories of these two students but I was just watching a video on CNN about another boy who took his life because he was being bullied at school. This boy was only 11 year old and in the 5th grade. I know that as a teacher it is hard to always see or hear what is going on with your students. I do however feel that teachers need to make this a priority, speak with their students and take the extra time to get "in the loop" about situations like these. If it saves one life, the time and effort is well worth the outcome.
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