Teacher bullying, its causes and the ways of overcoming it

Autor: Elena A. Covaliova
Rok vydání: 2019
Předmět:
Zdroj: Psychology in Education. 1:146-157
ISSN: 2686-9527
DOI: 10.33910/2686-9527-2019-1-2-146-157
Popis: Teacher bullying is an undeniable fact within the education system. Teachers’ strife to achieve high academic performance is often coupled with a disregard for students’ personal needs, humiliation, coercion and berating. Teacher bullying, represented by the teacher’s authoritative attitude towards a child, is coupled with psychological and emotional abuse, as well as with teacher aggression. Teacher bullying leads to poor health outcomes in students, as the confrontations between the teacher and the student are both recurring and direct. The teacher bullying syndrome is linked with the teacher’s character traits. It is a low level of self-consciousness and poor skills connected with reflecting upon their Self and their activities that lead teachers to pursue high academic results with the use of bullying in their classroom activities. Teacher’s self-concept defines their personal attitude, which determines whether they control their emotions while managing students’ activities. Low empathy influences the way a teacher communicates with their students as part of their classroom activities. Classroom communication is deformed because of the teacher’s nervousness, mental instability and confrontational stance in their relations with the students. Teacher’s personal anxiety causes conflict in the classroom, eliciting a protective response from the teacher which involves the use of bullying in the classroom. Teacher’s self-attitude influences their professional focus and determines teacher’s strategies and styles in their interactions with the students. Improving teacher pedagogical competences in student interaction and overcoming teacher bullying in the classroom require the development of the teacher’s character. Dedicated psychological and professional assistance would allow teachers to build their professional competences and contribute to overcoming teacher bullying in the classroom. Personal and communication skill development programme is aimed at improving teachers’ reflexive skills, empathy, pedagogical and personal consciousness and adequate self-attitude. The particular focus is on the development of their emotional management skills that help them overcome the mental changes connected with their occupational risks and reign in bullying in the classroom. Classroom environment clearly requires a certain deal of tact, an ability follow proper interaction standards and solve conflict situations in a constructive manner. Current conditions dictate that the strife for high academic performance should concur with a humane attitude towards child’s personality and inclusive types of relations between the participants in the educational process.
Databáze: OpenAIRE