Teen/Child Bullies

I have heard a lot lately about teen bullying (Phoebe Prince), and I am a little two sided with how I feel. This article from CNN is about a 14 year old girl who is now hospitalized for emotional distress. This young girls mother said that her daughter was constantly being teased and ridiculed in front of friends and other students. She said that her grades went from honor roll to D's and F's. Her daughter told her that her life was nothing and would never be worth anything. This is when she decided to hospitalize her daughter.

The mother said that she went to school authorities but the situation was not taken care of. All they told her was that her daughter needed to go to a guidance counselor. This is where I get a little perturbed. If the mother is telling the truth, I believe the school did not take enough action. If they really believed that the daughter needed counseling, why didn't they set it up for her to have some sessions. By doing this, some of the problems might have been stopped. I believe that there probably were some things being done, but obviously not enough. I have a hard time believing that it is all of their fault though. Did the mother actually push hard for better control? There are a lot of loose ends that may not be answered, but now this young girl will probably always have some part of her thinking that she will never be good enough, all because of some young girls acting mean.

On the other side of this, I believe that some parents take this bullying excuse too far. Most kids are going to tease or bully, or be teased and bullied a few times in their life. I think that some people use this excuse as a make me feel better attitude, or to just get attention. Most schools and authorities have good control over little bullying, and if you have a problem then you can go to them with it. Most of the time it gets properly taken care of.

I think that this is an issue that needs to be taken care of, especially if a child starts showing signs of being constantly bullied. I know that I don't want my children to go through life being bullied all of the time. Now that it is a national issue, I think that more action will be taken place. I also believe that kids will be kids. A little bullying is going to happen in all of our lives. Lets just not let it get out of control.