To accompany feature “Bullying hurts — but peer support really helps”

SCIENCE 

Before Reading: 

1.  What kinds of actions do you think count as bullying — and what actions do not?

2.  What do you think would cause a child or teen to bully another person?

During Reading: 

1.  What behaviors do scientists define as bullying?

2.  What are some terms for bullying that teens sometimes use?      

3.  What is a longitudinal study?   

4.  What evidence did Copeland and his colleagues find showing that bullying takes a long-term toll?    

5.   In Copeland’s research, some bullying victims also bullied others. What problems did these people tend to suffer later in life? 

6.   What was the major finding that Copeland and Wolke reported when they studied a large group of young adults who had suffered bullying?  

7.   What does the term self-harm mean?  

8.   What long-term physical effects have been linked to childhood bullying?

9.   Where do most anti-bullying programs take place?  

10. How does the Roots program try to prevent and reduce bullying in schools?

After Reading: 

1.  What are two things that you could do to help if you knew that a classmate or other person your age (or younger) was being bullied?

2.  What steps would you like to see your teachers and other adults at your school take to reduce bullying?