Abstract

GROSSI, Patrícia Krieger  and  SANTOS, Andréia Mendes dos. Unveiling the phenomenon bullying in public schools in Porto Alegre, RS, Brazil. Rev. Port. de Educação [online]. 2009, vol.22, n.2, pp.249-267. ISSN 0871-9187.

Bullying is an English expression which was adopted in several countries to refer to intimidation. Fights, offenses, mean commentaries, physical and psychological aggressions, and repression are types of violence generally associated to childhood. Studies indicate that bad manners childhood play could generate serious consequences such as  low self-esteem, new sources of violence, and, inclusively, suicide matters. This study is developed since July 2007 in four public schools in the city of Porto Alegre, RS, with 192 student’s participants. Through questionnaire and focal groups, it was observed that more than 70% of the students perceive the existence of prejudice in the school environment and almost 40% consider it regular/bad or horrible the relations in schools, reflecting the discomfort of students concerning the school. This dynamic is leading to more exclusion and isolation among teenagers.

Keywords : Bullying; Violence; Public schools.

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