Final Project Proposal

Combat Bullying Through Literature

I will be researching how bullying affects students.  Because this has become a prevalent problem in all school systems, it is important to me, as a future educator, to be aware of this issue and to have a game plan to attempt to stop bullying.  According to StopBullying.gov, "Bullying is unwanted, aggressive behavior among school aged children that involves a real or perceived power imbalance. The behavior is repeated, or has the potential to be repeated, over time. Bullying includes actions such as making threats, spreading rumors, attacking someone physically or verbally, and excluding someone from a group on purpose."  I am passionate about this topic because too many children have taken their lives because they were bullied to an extreme.  It is extremely important to educate students about bullying, what it is, the forms of it, and most importantly, how the victim feels about the behavior the bully exhibits.  

As a future English teacher, I have the unique position to be able to educate students through literature.  For this project, I will be researching how introducing students to literature about bullying opens up conversation about their own bullying, and hopefully, encourages students to think twice before bullying another student.  According to the website Kids' Wings, “literature can build a door in the wall. By experiencing problems of fictional characters, these problem kids are better able to understand the consequences of their own actions and look for positive ways to change."  I plan to continue searching for academic articles and news articles about bullying.  To present my research, I will submit lesson plans based on literature that could be implemented into a classroom to educate students about the effects of bullying.  By reading literature with a protagonist that deals with bullies, students will most likely be able to relate and discuss their experiences with classmates and in formal writing assignments.  The key goal for all lesson plans will be to encourage students to think about how their words and actions are affecting their victims when bullying.

Works Cited

Lowe, Danielle F. "Helping Children Cope Through Literature." Forum on Public Policy Online 2009.1 (2009) Web.  Eric.  22 Apr. 2012.

Mosley, Melissa. "'That Really Hit Me Hard': Moving Beyond Passive Anti-Racism to Engage with Critical Race Literacy Pedagogy." Race, Ethnicity & Education 13.4 (2010): 449-71. Web.  Education Research Complete.  22 Apr. 2012.

Sharp, Kelly. "Breaking Down the Barriers: Using Critical Literacy to Improve Educational Outcomes for Students in 21st-Century Australian Classrooms." Literacy Learning: The Middle Years 20.1 (2012): 9-15. Web.  Education Research Complete.  22 Apr. 2012.

“Using Literature to Stop Bullying.” Kids Wings (2006).  22 Apr. 2012. <http://suzyred.com/bullying.html>