Dealing with aggressive parents generated vigorous discussion among teachers at a roundtable in Canberra held as part of the federal government’s Anti-Bullying Rapid Review.
IEU rep MJ Logan said many participants at the forum agreed parental behaviour was an area that needed to be addressed by the rapid review, co-chaired by Dr Charlotte Keating and Dr Jo Robinson.
MJ and fellow union rep Kathryn MacDonald attended roundtable discussions held in Canberra along with IEU organisers Angela McDonald and Tahlia Bruce.
The IEU’s submission to the review said adequate school resourcing, specialist staffing and sustainable working conditions were crucial for a meaningful and lasting response to bullying.
IEUA Federal Secretary Brad Hayes said bullying, violence, sexual harassment and emotional abuse were serious health and safety issues for school staff as well as students.
Best practice approaches
The meetings are keen to hear from teachers about current procedures and best practice approaches to address bullying in schools.
MJ, the leader of learning at St Clare’s College in Griffith, discussed how her school had changed its pastoral care structure.
“This has seen a rise in mentorship among students and the development of stronger positive relationships with and among students and staff,” she said.
Other participants at the roundtable discussed the merits of students having one teacher for core subjects and pastoral care, MJ said.
Kathryn, a teacher at St John the Apostle Primary School in Florey, said inviting Year 6 students to assist with playground duty had proven helpful at her school.
“They wear vests, check in with us at the start of duty and refer incidences on to us during duty,” she said.
Kathryn also brought to the roundtable her experience as a parent of a child bullied at school and the subsequent psycho-social harm it caused. She said all members of a school community – staff, students and parents – could benefit from training about types of bullying and its impact.
Risks posed by parents
IEU organiser Tahlia Bruce said inconsistent definitions and processes across systems, underreporting due to lack of trust or knowledge, online bullying and student-to-staff bullying were among other issues discussed at the roundtable.
“We highlighted the inconsistent approaches to bullying across Catholic and independent schools, the absence of clear procedural safeguards for staff experiencing bullying and the risks posed when parents become combative,” she said.
The IEU also raised concerns around workload and funding as well as ongoing staffing shortages.
“Our members also had a lot of good stories to tell around programs that were working successfully and positive change they’ve noticed as a result,” she said.