1 Kid In 5 Kids Cannot Attend School As They Are Subjected To Bullying

We talked to TURGEV Chairman of the Board Doctor Fatmanur Altun about “Preventing Bullying Project”. Altun reminded that according to UNICEF’s 2019 data, 70.6 percent of the youth between ages of 15-24 have been victims of online bullying and 1 in 5 kids cannot go to school because of bullying and said: “A bully child can also be a victim of bullying. It is important not to see bullying as an inseparable part of the child's personality but as a behavioral problem that can be fixed.”

Can you tell us a bit about yourself?

I am a lecturer at Marmara University’s Department of Sociology. I took part in the publishing industry as a translator and writer for a while. Currently, I am the writer and advisory board member of various magazines.

I have been the Chairman of the Board of Directors of TURGEV for about two years. As a sociologist with a PhD in civil society studies and as the Chairman of the Board of one of the biggest educational foundations of Turkey TURGEV, I am working on developing mechanisms to raise awareness and create solutions about our current social problems.

Can you inform us about TURGEV and about Preventing Bullying Project?

Turkey Youth and Education Services Foundation gives scholarship and sheltering support for girls, with an aim of raising an enterprising youth who are aware of themselves as well as their goals, who research, question, learn and produce since 1996.

In addition to scholarship and sheltering support, we organize workshops, seminars and academic lessons and support them to become individuals who create value in all areas of life by seeing girls as the building blocks of society and culture.

With the Awareness Campaign Against Online Bullying which we carry out in line with the mission of TURGEV, we aim to raise social awareness about bullying by providing information and tools that will empower children, youth, parents, caregivers and educators on online environments. With an approach that focuses on compassion, kindness and consciousness of privacy, we see values education as an inseparable part of technology literacy.

What do you aim with the project?

The communication campaign which we carry out with the slogan “Prevent Bullying” essentially offers basic information and solution suggestions in order not to normalize bullying behaviors, to protect children by adult guidance and supervision, and to raise awareness of internet users of all ages.

The culture of violence and hate as well as social lynching and online bullying which we all witness or suffer as internet users unfortunately, have even more destructive effect which would be difficult to compensate on the personal developments and self-confidences of children and young people. As both educators and parents, we aim to prevent bullying behaviors, to learn what we can do to support children psychosocially, and to encourage internet users of all ages to become aware of bullying.

Parents Have A Lot To Do In This Sense

Can you tell us about Online Bullying and Secure Internet?

Bullying is a type of violence that needs to be evaluated completely different from peer conflicts and disagreements that are a natural part of social life, and differ from simple disagreements with its systematic and chronic structure. Bullying concept covers intentional, repetitive and unfair negative behaviors targeting a person or group. Online bullying is a type of bullying that has entered our lives with the spread of internet technologies and social networks. It covers all kinds of bullying behaviors made through smart devices or via messaging apps, social networks, gaming platforms or via e-mail.

The ‘secure internet’ approach gains importance for the sake of eliminating the violence and hate that the children and young people are exposed to on the internet, and of getting the best benefit from the internet by accessing information in a controlled internet environment. It draws attention to the importance of keeping an eye on children on the internet as well and not leaving them alone, and ensuring their safety with rational limits and usage habits.

Here, we care about bringing forward the importance of parents’ acquiring basic internet literacy as well as what they can do to be good role models for their children on matters such as privacy, kindness and compassion .

Can you inform us about the Guide For Awareness Against Online Bullying prepared in scope of the project?

Our guide (Rehberimiz) has been prepared specifically for parents and educators with basic information and advice on bullying. It is suitable for downloading to personal computers or for printed use. With the guide we aim to offer answers on questions such as: “How will you know if your child is being bullied?”, “What should you do when your child is bullied?”, “What falls to educators on the issue?” as well as providing applicable solutions. 

E-Education modules (E-Eğitim) which are prepared in parallel with the content of the guide, consist of more comprehensive mini online courses on bullying. Users can test their basic knowledge on bullying at the end of each module.

Can you mention the details if you have a study or research on bullying? What could be the underlying factors or the reasons for bullying?

Bullying is a serious problem that has entered the radar of many worldwide non-governmental organizations, government agencies and technology companies. In this regard, we’ve proceeded by scanning the researches of the United Nations Children’s Fund and the academic studies conducted in our country. We encountered striking and alarming data. For example, according to 2019 UNICEF data, 70.6 percent of young people between the ages 15-24 are victims of online bullying. 1 in 5 children cannot go to school due to bullying.

Sure, it is very important to examine the underlying causes of bullying in fighting against bullying. As we try to emphasize on the Prevent Bullying website (web sitesinde) through both the guide and the training modules, there are reasons such as insecurity, twisted perception of power, family violence and being exposed to bullying under the bullying behavior. Yes, the bullying child can also be a victim of bullying. It is important not to see bullying as an inseparable part of the child’s personality, but as a behavioral problem that can be fixed. In addition, the fact that values ​​such as tolerance, kindness, compassion, empathy and respect for differences in human relations succumbing to the speed of technology and the economy of interest can be discussed as another underlying factors in the prevalence of bullying. Just as our children are supported academically at home and at school, it is important to support them to internalize moral values.

What would you like to add about bullying finally, do you have a message or a call?

It is very important that we know and think about all of the things we do on the internet, what we share and what we post for fun, and think about the results. Starting today, we need to take simple precautions among households, schools, and social media so that the devastating effects of bullying do not haunt our children and young people in adult life, leave bad traces in their minds and bodies, and that violence and hate do not become part of our culture.

We invite internet users of all ages who want to hold a view on what can be done in this regard, who want to contribute to this struggle and to increase the safe and beneficial aspects of the internet, to our web site (web sitesine). We kindly ask you to contribute to the development of our campaign by sharing your ideas and opinions with us and to join our call for anti-bullying.

Thank you for your attention and support.