Almost all of us (probably all of us) have experienced bullying of one or more types in our lives. It comes from our "friends" (even those who often really are what we think of as friends), from our early years. But even when we are not young we are subject to the effects of being tormented by bullies. They can manifest as depression, even suicide, retreat from the world or other changes in behaviour, or high blood pressure or other health problems.
There have been many diaries here talking about bullying, including that inspired by skin colour, sexual orientation and identity, or other aspects of identity. This one deals with bullying that goes on in and around the classroom -- bullying by teachers, bullying by students, and bullying by colleagues. Bullying is always a terrible thing, and it is no less horrid in a university setting. If you are a student, it can affect your ability to succeed in university, which will have long term career and life implications. If you are a faculty member, bullying from others (bosses, colleagues, students) has implications for career as well. You have at least a master's degree, and often a Ph.D. or other terminal degree, education that has cost a lot in time and funds, also representing significant emotional investment.
I've been thinking about this as we get to the end of the semester here. When my grades went in I took some time to look up people on my former Dean at his current university and discovered that he had retired a year ago. He had left here for an administrative position there, which he was so very bad at he did not stay a sean, and retired in the tenured faculty position that came with the deanship. In a way it makes it easier to know that he was so bad he failed at the job in two separate places. But it took me twenty years to not be stressed when I dealt with his successor deans when I met with them, and I still am much more uncomfortable with administration than are many of my colleagues.
But teachers can be on both sides of bullying. They can be the bullies as well as being bullied by students. The queries about exam results or "why did I get this grade" discussions are often really beneficial for both parties, but on occasion they can descend (or escalate) into more personal and even threatening confrontations. It is a challenge for teachers to achieve an appropriate balance but it is a very important one to strive for.
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I have been teaching here for 24 years, and in that time I have been threatened, insulted, ignored, and complained about. But I am fortunate that there is not a significant grade-grubbing culture here. There are instances of students who argue for each and every point on an exam, and when they are told that there are no additional points to be had, go above that level to complain to the instructor's supervisor. There are ways that this can represent bullying, but it is to always the case.
The long-departed dean above once called me in to his office to tell me that a particular student's mother was on our Board of Governors and her son was dissatisfied with my clearly-laid-out absentee policy regarding quizzes. Didn't I think that I should change my policy for this student, because he hadn't really missed that many classes that were important? After all, my evaluations from previous years had put me in a category that showed perhaps I wasn't that good a teacher and I probably should not have annoyed a member of the Board of Governors. I do not think that the pressure originated from the student, and it might not have been much from the mother as well. But my supervisor clearly felt pressured and went beyond that to, essentially, threaten me with termination of my job.
A colleague at another university tells me of a colleague threatened with a complaint to the equity office because a student was the only person in the class who was of a visible minority and also was the student whose mark was the lowest. The professor reviewed marks with the student and did not make adjustments, and that was the point at which the student raised the potential of a complaint of that sort. The threat was not followed through, but it made everyone very uncomfortable. I would consider this bullying. But in many instances this has indeed been the only way that people would be forced to confront their innate biases and adjust their expectations to reflect significant diversity of opinions and interests. So the concept of bullying is complicated. What one person would call bullying another might call simply a request for careful review of the results of an exam.
Another, sadly very common, inspiration for bullying is in the area of religion. Just over a week ago a professor at Polk State University was singled out for the phrasing of directions for an essay by Lance Russom, a humanities instructor, who accompanied three question prompts on nuns in the fifteenth century with the following instructions:
You are to only answer the above three questions. SECOND, and this is VERY important, I DO NOT want you to write about how wonderful you think Christianity is now because women can do A, B or C. History is history and facts are facts and your opinion on if it is better now or not is irrelevant for this discussion. This is a HISTORICAL discussion about the Middle Ages. If you really feel the need to express your opinion on how you think Christianity is now for women, you may email me, you may call my office or I would love for you to stop by for a nice cup of hot tea where we can talk about it, but it does not belong in this assignment. The pieces you are reading [are] from some of the greatest expressions of mythology by women ever, the question is to honor that voice in that moment of history.
The premise was offensive to the student (a 16 year old dual enrollment student), who chose to critique the questions rather than answer them, and took the guidelines given above as the thing that she wanted to address instead of the questions themselves. While the student got an A in the class, she (her name has been released by her choice) got zero points on this particular essay and two others assigned.
The issue at Polk State College was picked up by conservative sites nationwide, including Breitbart.com (no link! You can search it if you want), but the university has stood behind the professor, something I am impressed by. It should not be surprising, but bullying at the national conservative level has affected curriculum throughout the U.S. something that disturbs me.
Just some thoughts on a Saturday afternoon, after grades for the semester have been submitted.
How do you define bullying in an academic context? Have you been bullied? How did it affect you?