Teachers' lived experiences of bullying

Abstract

Scope and Method of Study: This descriptive, naturalistic study examined teachers' lived experiences of bullying as children and how these incidents affected their choices of strategies in handling bullying situations in their classrooms as adults. Eight participants completed a protocol writing submission, a questionnaire, and an interview from which themes emerged and were analyzed. The epilogue in this study is a reflective narrative by the primary investigator on the lived experience of writing the dissertation from inception to completion.

Findings and Conclusions: The major themes related to the phenomenon of bullying that emerged from this study were: emotional aspects, resiliency, power relations, support systems, and reflections. Conclusions drawn indicated that teachers' lived experiences of childhood bullying appear to have an effect on the choices they make as teachers in the handling of bullying behaviors. Although the transferability of results concerning the lived experiences of teachers in this research study can not be generally applied to other settings, the implications regarding the impact of childhood bullying experiences on teachers' classroom environments may provide a basis for other teachers to examine their current practices, whether negative or positive, and seek to find connections to their own childhood experiences. In doing so, they may be able to break a chain of emotions or behaviors that are subconsciously influencing their classroom decisions, philosophies, or their basic approach to classroom management.

The reflexive journaling in the epilogue may be of interest to other educators or researchers who wish to gain knowledge of the dissertation process from the writer's point of view. This unique self-reflection reveals some of the struggles and successes that researchers may face throughout their quests.