August 31, 2007
Media Contacts:
NSU Office of Public Affairs
Lourdes Rodriguez-Barrera
954-262-5309
954-445-1287 (mobile)
Educators Surveyed: Professional Development Imminent
To Adequately Address Bullying Prevention
FT. LAUDERDALE, FL - Research has indicated that bullying in schools is prevalent, unmanaged and has a direct impact on student quality of life and academic experiences.
The latest research findings conducted by professors at Nova Southeastern University suggests that training is vital to successfully prepare educators in understanding and reducing bullying in our schools today.
Meline Kevorkian, Ed.D at NSU surveyed educators worldwide in 2007 regarding their knowledge and perception on bullying and bullying prevention. The survey sampled teachers and school administrators at various size schools ranging from elementary through high school.
A summary of the results follows:
- 70% of educators were interested in receiving more professional development on bullying prevention.
- 88% agreed that educators play a large role in bullying prevention;
- 92% agreed that bullying is linked to school violence;
- 45% of educators had a Bullying Prevention Plan;
- 50% of educators were aware of a bullying prevention policy at their school;
- 44% agreed that bullying occurs regularly in their school;
- 25% of teachers felt that cyber bullying was a problem;
- 93% felt that bullying prevention should be provided for pre-service teachers;
- 64% agreed that bullying in their school negatively impacted academic achievement.
Bullying is a purposeful action that is intended to injure, involves both physical and mental component and imbalance of power and has the potential to cause long term damage. The American Justice Department has stated that 1 out of 4 kids are bullied and that this month 1 out of every 4 kids will be abused by another youth.
Final findings will be published in the fall of 2007. For more information on the survey or to contact Meline Kevorkian, please email Lourdes Rodriguez-Barrera at rodrlour@nova.edu or call 954-262-5309.
About Principle Investigator …
Meline Kevorkian, Ed.D., is the author of Preventing Bullying and Six Secrets for Parents to Help Their Kids Achieve in School. She is a columnist at The Miami Herald (Broward) and has been writing about school issues in both public and private schools for 18 years. Meline presents regularly on best practices in bullying prevention, cyber bullying, as well as, numerous topics facing educators, parents and students in today’s schools. She is a board member of the International Bullying Prevention Association. She has been featured on NBC 6, Mom Talk Radio, WLRN Public Television, BlueSuitMom.com, and the National PTA. Currently; she is the Associate Dean for Master’s and Educational Specialist Programs in the Fischler School of Education and Human Services at Nova Southeastern University and a Board Member of the International Bullying Prevention Association. She was recently recognized by the South Florida Business Journal as a Heavy Hitter in Education.
About Nova Southeastern University:
Situated on 300 beautiful acres in Davie, Florida, Nova Southeastern University is a dynamic fully accredited institution dedicated to providing high-quality educational programs of distinction from preschool through the professional and doctorial levels. NSU has more than 25,000 students and is the 6th largest not-for-profit independent institution nationally. The university awards associate’s, bachelor’s, master’s, specialist, doctorial, and first-professional degrees in a wide range of fields, including business, counseling, computer and information sciences, education, medicine, optometry, pharmacy, dentistry, various health professions, law, marine sciences, psychology and other social sciences. For more information visit www.nova.edu.
