More information
Description
Bullying continues to be a serious problem in Estonian schools. Bullying violates children’s right to safe education. There is a vast amount of scientific knowledge about what works in bullying reduction and implementing this knowledge would help to improve anti-bulling work in schools significantly. According to applicant’s 8 years of experience in anti-bullying work with schools and local governments, the schools seldom lack clear understanding about what they really do to reduce bullying, how effective they are and what more could be done to increase the effectiveness. The purpose of the project is more efficient bullying prevention in Estonian schools, for that the mapping tool for the anti-bullying work in schools and a consultation model is developed. The mapping tool allows schools to obtain systematic overview about their current anti-bullying work in the framework of science based recommendations. During following consultations Applicant’s consultants support the development processes at schools. The mapping tool and consultation model are tested in 5 schools, involving their teachers (about 100), students (about 500), and their parents (about 100). By the end of this project Kiusamisvaba Kool is able to sustainably provide the mapping tool and consultations to schools and local governments interested in improving their anti-bullying work. By that the spreading of science-based anti-bullying practices and more elaborated policies is supported. Also efficient cooperation in anti-bullying work between NGOs and educational institutions is pursued.
Summary of project results
Bullying remains a significant problem in Estonian schools, violating children’s rights to a safe and healthy educational environment. Despite a wealth of scientific knowledge on effective anti-bullying measures, schools often struggle to implement evidence-based approaches. According to the Bullying-Free School Foundation’s decade of experience, many schools lack a clear understanding of their current efforts, their effectiveness, and the steps necessary to enhance their anti-bullying initiatives. This gap in awareness and implementation has hindered schools’ ability to address bullying comprehensively.
The project aimed to improve bullying prevention in Estonian schools through an innovative solution called the Roadmap to Bullying-Free School. A key element of the Roadmap is its mapping tool, which uses web-based surveys tailored for students, parents, teachers, and school management. The surveys generate an integrative report via an IT system, offering schools a science-based overview of their anti-bullying efforts. Alongside this, the Foundation developed a consultation model to guide schools in improvement processes. Nine trainer-consultants were trained to implement consultations and trainings, and the Roadmap was made available in Estonian and Russian. The tool and model were piloted in six schools, involving 1055 students, 306 parents, and 317 teachers in surveys and trainings. Feedback from participants was used to refine the tools and services.
The project enabled the Bullying-Free School Foundation to sustainably offer the Roadmap’s mapping tool and consultations to schools and local governments. This initiative supports the spread of science-based anti-bullying approaches and policies across Estonia. Schools that participated in the pilot have begun implementing their improvement plans, with some initiating cooperation projects, such as in the Ida-Harju district. The project fostered collaboration between CSOs and educational institutions, laying the groundwork for long-term benefits in reducing bullying. The Foundation continues to refine the Roadmap and plans to monitor its long-term impact in the coming years.