Angara includes teachers in new anti-bullying law

Its not only bullies in class that students have to watch out for nowadays, but also abusive teachers whose cruelty could
drive a child to take his own life.
Sen. Sonny Angara has proposed the expansion of the relatively new Anti-Bullying Act to cover school authorities and
employees who subject students to degrading acts.
Teachers and other school employees, including the principal, and security, maintenance and administrative personnel,
may commit acts of bullying by using humiliating words and giving degrading treatment such as unwarranted corporal
punishment against students, Angara said in his proposed amendment to the anti-bullying law.
Harsher penalties should be imposed if the bullying drives the student to attempt to take his own life, he said.
According to Angara, a study commissioned by the United Nations Childrens Fund (Unicef), the Council for the Welfare
of Children and Plan International found that many elementary and high school students had experienced various forms of
abuse from their peers or their teachers.
Another study by an American psychiatrist found that teachers bullying of students received scant attention, he said.
As our childrens so-called second parents, it should be the teachers and the school authorities primary responsibility
and promise to parents to ensure the safety of the students. We should provide the Filipino youth the opportunity for
maximum learning in a peaceful setting and protect our children from the earliest forms of violence, Angara said.
Under Angaras proposed measure, any school employee who commits bullying would be levied a fine ranging from
P50,000 to P100,000, or imprisoned for six months to one year, or both.
If the bullying committed by the school employee results in the student attempting suicide, the fine would range from
P100,000 to P500,000, or imprisonment of one to three years, or both.
If the suicide attempt results in the students death, the penalty would be a fine of P500,000 to P1 million, or a three- to
six-year jail term, or both.
Under the law, bullying consists of any unwanted physical contact between the bully and the victim like punching,
pushing, shoving, kicking, slapping, tickling, headlocks, inflicting school pranks, teasing, fighting and the use of available
objects as weapons; any act that causes damage to a victims psyche and/or emotional well-being.

Top 5 Ways Educators Can Stop Bullies

A new documentary film, BULLY, follows several students to show how bullying happens in
schoolsand how educators often struggle to put a stop to it. A safe and supportive school
climate can be one of the best tools in preventing bullying. Whether its the classroom, the
cafeteria, the library, the restrooms, on the bus, or on the playground, children need to feel safe
or they cant focus on learning. Working together, everyone at school can help create a climate
where bullying is not acceptable.
Below are five tips to help teachers, administrators and other school personnel prevent bullying
from occurring in school, as well as how to respond when it happens. The information comes

from the recently re-launched federal website www.StopBullying.gov. Visit the new site for even
more valuable resources for teachers, parents and students.
1. Create a Safe and Supportive Environment
Establish a culture of inclusion and respect that welcomes all students Monitor bullying hot
spots in and around the building. Set a tone of respect in the classroom.
2. Manage Classrooms to Prevent Bullying
Develop rules with students so they set their own climate of respect and responsibility, and
reinforce the rules by making expectations clear and keeping requests simple, direct and
specific.
3. Stop Bullying on the Spot
Intervene immediately. Its OK to get another adult to help. Dont talk to the kids involved
together, only separately, and dont make the kids involved apologize or patch up relations on
the spot.
4. Find Out What Happened
Get the facts, keep all the children involved separate, listen without blaming and dont call the
act bullying while you are trying to understand what happened.
5. Support the Kids Involved
All kids involved in bullyingwhether they are bullied, bully others, or see bullyingcan be
affected. It is important to support all kids involved to make sure the bullying doesnt continue
and effects can be minimized.

Teachers suffer cyberbullying by pupils and parents

More than one in seven teachers has been a victim, the Association of Teachers and Lecturers' annual
conference hears
Rachel Williams
Tuesday 30 March 2010 16.34 BSTLast modified on Monday 19 May 201421.40 BST

More than one in seven teachers has been the victim of cyberbullying by pupils or parents, and almost half
know a colleague who has been targeted, according to a survey published today.
Students have set up "hate" groups on social networking sites calling for specific teachers to be sacked and have
even created fake profiles in their names containing defamatory information.
Schools must make clear to pupils that such behaviour will lead to punishment, the Association of Teachers
and Lecturers (ATL) said.
One delegate at the union's annual conference told of a teacher who had been called to the head's office to be
informed that a Facebook page in his name listed interests that included "underage sex with both boys and
girls". It was removed after he told pupils police were investigating.
Nick Clayton, of ATL's Wirral branch, told the audience in Manchester of "sinister" groups on Facebook
and Bebo "aggressively calling for the heads of perfectly competent, yet firm, teachers".
"If Ofsted can give you goosebumps, a Facebook critique can bring you to tears as a teacher," he said.
One head of department at an independent school told the study by ATL that his experience of cyberbullying
was the worst week of his career.
A secondary school teacher said he had been upset and worried about being a source of ridicule among
students after a video of him in the classroom was posted on YouTube.
The survey of 630 teachers and support staff found that 15% had been bullied online with tactics ranging
from abusive messages to hate sites and photographs or videos being posted.
Some 45% knew a colleague who had been a victim, and 17% were aware of hate groups being set up to target
others.
ATL's executive committee is to develop advice on the dangers of social networking for its members, after
delegates voted for a resolution calling for more help.
Several teachers also raised concerns about the number of pupils aged nine or 10, and some even younger, who
were lying about their age to get on Facebook. The site's rules state that all users must be 13 or over.
The ATL's general secretary, Mary Bousted, said: "There have been some horrendous incidents of cyberbullying
reported in this survey, which have made people's lives miserable.
"Bullying is no less serious whether it is done face-to-face or via a social networking site.
"Schools and colleges need to have clear policies to deal with it, and make sure that pupils will face appropriate
punishment if they engage in any form of bullying cyber or otherwise."

Facebook said it disabled any accounts that were found to breach its
rules on bullying and harrassment by intimidating others.
"Facebook is highly self-regulating, and we encourage users to report
questionable or offensive content," a spokeswoman said. "Facebook
takes all complaints by users seriously and we have a dedicated team
investigating these complaints."
She added that anyone who wanted to report an underage user could
easily do so on the site and the profile would quickly be removed.
Fake profiles also breach rules and should be reported.
Julian Stanley, chief executive of the Teacher Support Network, said the organisation had seen a marked
increase in calls and emails from teachers who had experienced online abuse.
"Schools are seriously lagging behind in implementing policies that could prevent this kind of bullying," he
said.

When teachers are the bully's target

By Stephanie Goldberg, CNN
(CNN) - Several years ago, Brendesha Tynes was taken aback when she received an e-mail from one of
her former students.
The note directed her to a Facebook event for an all-night bar crawl - an event with which Tynes, an
assistant professor at the time, had nothing to do. But it featured an offensive image and listed Tynes as the
host; another former student had set it up.
As an educator and researcher, Tynes had spent years looking into cyberbullying. Now, she was a victim.
Tynes said she was prepared to tackle the eye rolls and sharp tongues that can come with molding young
minds, but being publicly humiliated by a student wasnt in her lesson plan.

Reports from teachers say her case isnt an anomaly. A 2011 study, "Understanding and
Preventing Violence Directed Against Teachers,"reported 80% of about 3,000 K-12 teachers
surveyed felt victimized by students, students parents or colleagues in the past year.
Teachers reported that students were most often behind the verbal intimidation, obscene gestures,
cyberbullying, physical offenses, theft or damage to personal property.
But few teachers or researchers are talking about it.
People are very eager to talk about (teacher victimization) amongst co-workers and amongst friends, but
theyre very hesitant to report it to authorities or to the media, Tynes said. People want to protect their
students, even though theyre being victimized by them, and theyre worried about the reputations of the
schools they work at.
Dorothy Espelage, a professor of educational psychology at the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign,
ran the 2011 study and found little research available regarding violence directed toward teachers.
Only 14 studies have been conducted internationally about violence directed at teachers, Espelage wrote
in a follow-up report published this year in the journal American Psychologist. In the
new report, she suggests developing a national, anonymous database for teacher victimization to help
researchers pinpoint the how and the why about violence against teachers, prevent it and better train
educators.
Bullying among students and peer groups is a hot topic, Espelage said, but talking about teacher
victimization is considered taboo.
According to her 2011 study, 57% of teachers surveyed said they brought an incident to the attention of
administrators.
The study found that 44% of teachers said theyve experienced physical victimization. Men who participated
in the study were more likely than women to report obscene remarks and gestures, verbal threats and
instances of weapons being pulled on them. Women, on the other hand, were more likely than men to
report intimidation.
Educators: It's not just disrespect, it's bullying
Because theres so little information available, Espelage said she can only speculate about the gender
differences: Male teachers might be more likely to break up fights between students, subjecting themselves

to more acts of violence, while women might be victimized in other ways. Espelage said shes had students
demean her gender, and make obscene gestures and sexual remarks to her. A student once wrote on an
exam about having sex with her.
Despite feeling disrespected, Espelage said she, like the majority of teachers in her study, didnt report the
low-level stuff.
Staying quiet doesnt make sense for teachers, she said. Her research showed that the No. 1 reason
teachers leave the profession is because they cant handle the disrespect.
MetLifes 2012 Survey of the American Teacher revealed that job satisfaction is the lowest in
more than 20 years. The survey reported that 29% of teachers said they are likely to leave the profession.
Thats 12% higher than the number of teachers who said they would leave in 2009.
Its intimidating to walk in front of a group of students, said Bill Bond, a former teacher and high school
principal whos now a specialist for safe schools with the National Association of Secondary School
Principals. They are going to challenge you academically, socially, and I hate to say it, but they will even
challenge you physically. Kids just want to see where the limit is.
Bond said young teachers especially might be afraid to talk with a principal about being victimized in the
classroom because they believe it means theyre being ineffective somewhere.
But a good principal or mentor will be there to help that teacher look at the issue at hand and correct it, he
said.
Teachers arent innocent, either, he said - its more common for a teacher to humiliate or bully a student
than the other way around. When students feel disrespected by a teacher, theyll start to challenge them
and eventually, theyll make it personal, Bond said.
Mutual respect is key, he said.
Its tough to take control of 30, 35 teenagers with their hormones raging and all their opinions, Bond said.
The key to surviving is having peers you can go to and help you master your craft.
Tynes, now an associate professor of educational psychology and psychology at the University of Southern
California, said being cyberbullied in 2007 left her stressed and anxious. Tynes said a mentor helped her to
report the incident, and the student who created the Facebook event was required to complete diversity
training.

People were incredibly supportive, she said.

Tynes said she has learned from experience that opening the lines of communication between teachers and
students parents can prevent teacher victimization by students - and by their parents. The 2011 study found
that 37% of teachers who reported they'd been victimized felt that way because of a student's parent.
Keeping pupils engaged will also prevent an imbalance of power between teacher and student, she said.
When a teacher constantly hands out work sheets and offers little support, she added, it can make students
feel like the teacher doesnt care, and thats when they disconnect.
The cyberbullying experience fueled a desire to understand better how bullying affects young people.
Through her research, shes found that young victims of cyberbullying often experience depressive
symptoms and anxiety, just as she did once.
Despite the struggles, there's no better time than now to be a teacher, she said.
We have so many technological tools and new media at our disposal, she said. We can really enhance
and promote learning in more ways than we could in the past.

Students Bullying Teachers: Cyber Bullying and Bullying Teachers

We hear about cyber bullying often in the news. Students are getting online and bullying other students
over the Internet. They are using social networking sites, YouTube, instant messaging and texting to harass,
embarrass and, in general, bully other students. There have been instances that have been so hurtful that
students have contemplated and even committed suicide.
Unfortunately, teachers are on the receiving end of cyber bullying sometimes , especially when it comes to
a disgruntled student. There are so many cases of high school students walking out of class, going to the
school library, or home, and immediately creating fake accounts simply in order to humiliate the teacher. If
this is not the case, they will write derogatory comments and insults on their own pages, and invite fellow
students to chime in with their own negative comments and insults. Kids just want to fit in with their peers,
and this is a reason why so many kids are feeding on the fury of cyber bullying. In many cases, this all
occurs because a student was not satisfied with what they deem to be an unfair grade on a test or
assignment.

The reason this is done via the Internet is because this seems like a place where the student can say what
they want to say about their teacher, and they wont have to face the same consequences that they would
if they had said it to the teacher in person. Sometimes the students just assume that it is anonymous, or
that the teacher will not find out about it. Other times, the teacher is meant to see it and be intentionally
hurt by it. In any event, teachers are encouraged to always print or keep evidence of online bullying.
Children are impulsive and social networking sites are a perfect place to display this impulsiveness and say
whatever comes to mind. They then claim to have free speech at the expense of someones life, in this
case, the personal and professional life of their teacher. Sadly, sometimes parents are in on this cyber
bullying while this is quickly becoming an epidemic that is causing much of the decline in our schools
across the nation.
How to reduce the instances of cyber-bullying :

Teachers can regularly search their name online. They can Google themselves, and search for
Facebook pages which include their name, or search for Twitter accounts that contain their names.

Dont ever become friends on social networks with current and potential future students and
parents. This will cut down on the amount of personal information that they know about you.

Always make sure to password protect everything online. This will reduce any instance of your
social media accounts being hacked. Keep all accounts set on the most private settings. Also, password
protect your mobile phone in the instance that you lose it, or it is stolen by a student.

Keep your private life private. Dont share too much about your family, home, and background to
your students and their parents.

Always report any suspicious activity on your personal social networking accounts. Keep in mind
that anything personal that people can see could be used to bully you or your family.
Words of comfort for victims of bullying?

Other Ways Students Bully

High school students can bully a teacher in a number of ways . First, they can use their bad behavior in class
as a tool to gain attention from other students in class. This takes attention away from the lesson and from
the teacher; in turn, the bullying student will gain control of the classroom. Another way to bully a teacher
is outside of the classroom. This can also be done by cyber bullying through social media, or by sending
derogatory texts and instant messages to other students via cell phone. It can be done by merely
disrespecting the teacher in the hallway, or at a school event, or by spreading false and detrimental rumors
about the teacher among the other students in the school.
Bullying towards teachers can come in many different forms. Obviously, students can physically harm a
teacher. They can throw things, hit, kick, punch, slap, flick, and push the teacher. Students can harass,
intimidate, and disrespect the teacher. Verbal abuse is also prevalent among students bullying teachers.
Verbal assault is just as damaging to anyone as physical harm is. Mental abuse can take place when the
student threatens the teacher, leaving the teacher feeling fearful of the student, and also fearful for their

lives outside of the school building. Emotional abuse can occur if the teacher is sexually harassed or
harassed online, and when the reputation of the teacher and their career are in jeopardy.

What about Teachers Bullying Teachers?

Abuse that brings the teachers family or personal life into the mix will cause severe anxiety and stress on
the teacher and their spouse and other family members. Other forms of bullying teachers can be obscene
gestures and, unfortunately, there have been cases of weapons pulled on the teacher inside and outside of
the classroom. Vandalism of the teachers personal property and classroom property and equipment is a
form of bullying.WSOCTV.com 9 Investigates , a television news station out of Charlotte, NC, claims that
there have been reports of students trying to choke teachers by putting their hands around the teachers
necks, and also instances of students putting chemicals in teachers drinks, in order to poison them. There
are also instances reported of teachers bullying teachers.

Dealing with Administration and Parents

There have been many instances of students bullying teachers in the classroom while another student uses
their cell phone to video the incident, and then later posts this video on social networking sites and
YouTube. This results in the teacher feeling helpless, while administrations do not seem to be doing much
about these occurrences. In many of these instances, charges are not pressed, or the teacher is
encouraged not to press charges by administration. For some reason, everyone except the teacher desires
to simply sweep these terrible occurrences under the rug. Sometimes the principal or administration lets
the student go without punishment, solely because they do not want to deal with the situation with the
student and their parents.
This leaves teachers who are bullied by their students feeling helpless and fearing coming to work every
day, knowing that they will face these same students day after day. According to the MetLife Survey of the
American Teacher, there has been a decline in teacher satisfaction among the teachers in America over the
last couple of years. Many of the teachers today find themselves thinking about leaving education all
together at some point in the future. Teachers are grossly underpaid for the impact that they are making
on students today. Uncooperative administrations or administrations that do not support impactful
discipline for students who bully teachers are part of the problem for these teachers leaving their
profession. Students are called down to the principals office and simply told to discontinue their
disrespectful behavior, in turn, making the behavior worse in some cases.
According to The Educators Room article The Bullied Teacher, phone calls made home to parents usually
end in one of three ways. The parents dont respond to any attempts made to communicate with the
school, they reply with lip service in that they say they will talk to their child, but nothing results from this,
or they blame the teacher and do nothing about their childs behavior, and they will claim that their child is
practicing their right of free speech. Many times when a teacher feels victimized, it is partly because of
the parent not providing any assistance in the situation. Unfortunately, this is leading to a rapid increase in
teachers going on anti-depressant and anti-anxiety medications, just in order to go to work every day and
face their classroom full of teenagers, for whose high school educations they are responsible. Many
teachers feel that they are being ineffective, but this is not the case. They are not at fault for these bullying
situations. Many non-teachers feel that getting up in front of a classroom full of hormonal and energetic
teenagers with all kinds of opinions on everything takes a lot of gumption.

When discipline is brought into the situation, sometimes the teacher deems it difficult to carry out
assigning punishment to the bullying student. There are some instances where it is the school requirement
for a teacher issuing detention to a student to stay after school and sit with the student while they are
serving their time. This puts the teacher in further danger, while they may be left alone in a classroom,
where the bullying can continue, and there can be further harm done to the teacher.
According CNNs blog Schoolsofthought.blogs.cnn.com, 44% of teachers have experienced physical
victimization, but only 57% of those have reported it. Abuse from students happens to both male and
female teachers, while men experience more obscene remarks, obscene gestures and verbal threats, and
women experience more intimidation by students.

Preventative Measures
Preventing students from bullying teachers starts at the administration level. Faculty, administrators and
other school staff members need to start each year off by being on the same page with disciplinary actions
against student bullies. This must include those that bully other students, and those that bully teachers
and staff. There needs to be punishments put into place, where that punishment will be used every time
there is a bullying situation, with no exceptions. This protocol needs to be communicated clearly to
parents, possibly numerous times, via verbal and written communication. Parents need to understand the
seriousness of the problem, and understand the severity of the punishment, should their student be
punished for bullying a teacher.
After the school year starts, this same protocol needs to be adequately communicated to each student via
assembly, classroom, and intercom announcements. There also needs to be written communication, in a
contract form, that students and parents will need to sign in the event that there is a student bullying
teacher occurrence. Strict guidelines need to be followed by teachers, administrators, and parents in these
situations. These guidelines should apply to any and all bullying situations. Actions should be
communicated from the county/city school board all the way down to the parents and students. This will
help communicate the strictness of each disciplinary situation.
There are simple actions that a teacher can take to cut down on any bullying situations that may occur
within the classroom. They can always keep lines of communication open with students and parents. Make
sure that everyone can communicate clearly and openly discuss any situation that may be happening
inside and outside the classroom, among students and teachers. When teachers can keep the students
active in the learning process, which is harder than it sounds, most bullying situations can be prevented.
When students are left with free time or left to work in groups, or work independently, things can escalate
into bad circumstances. When students are constantly engaged in note taking, or active teaching, there
may not be time for students to interact with each other, therefore warding off many bullying situations.
Did you know that a high percentage of teachers admit to bullying students ? Also, explore the world
of modern age school bullying and learn how how students can fight back against bullying !
Spread the word on this alarming trend of students bullying teachers! Dont forget that your teacher isnt
your enemy, so if you suspect teachers bullying around your school you should report it!
Are you bullied by a teacher? how did you act when you were bullied by a teacher? Let us know in the
comment section below.

Republic Act No. 10627

September 12, 2013
H. No. 5496
Republic of the Philippines
Congress of the Philippines
Metro Manila
Fifteenth Congress
Third Regular Session
Begun and held in Metro Manila, on Monday, the twenty-third day of July, two thousand
twelve.
[REPUBLIC ACT NO. 10627]
AN ACT REQUIRING ALL ELEMENTARY AND SECONDARY SCHOOLS TO ADOPT
POLICIES TO PREVENT AND ADDRESS THE ACTS OF BULLYING IN THEIR
INSTITUTIONS
Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representatives of the Philippines in Congress
assembled:
SECTION 1. Short Title. This Act shall be known as the Anti-Bullying Act of 2013.
SEC. 2. Acts of Bullying. For purposes of this Act, bullying shall refer to any severe or
repeated use by one or more students of a written, verbal or electronic expression, or a
physical act or gesture, or any combination thereof, directed at another student that has
the effect of actually causing or placing the latter in reasonable fear of physical or
emotional harm or damage to his property; creating a hostile environment at school for
the other student; infringing on the rights of the other student at school; or materially
and substantially disrupting the education process or the orderly operation of a school;
such as, but not limited to, the following:

a. Any unwanted physical contact between the bully and the victim like punching,
pushing, shoving, kicking, slapping, tickling, headlocks, inflicting school pranks, teasing,
fighting and the use of available objects as weapons;
b. Any act that causes damage to a victims psyche and/or emotional well-being;
c. Any slanderous statement or accusation that causes the victim undue emotional
distress like directing foul language or profanity at the target, name-calling, tormenting
and commenting negatively on victims looks, clothes and body; and
d. Cyber-bullying or any bullying done through the use of technology or any electronic
means.
SEC. 3. Adoption of Anti-Bullying Policies. All elementary and secondary schools are
hereby directed to adopt policies to address the existence of bullying in their respective
institutions. Such policies shall be regularly updated and, at a minimum, shall include
provisions which:

(a) Prohibit the following acts:

(1) Bullying on school grounds; property immediately adjacent to school grounds; at
school-sponsored or school-related activities, functions or programs whether on or off
school grounds; at school bus stops; on school buses or other vehicles owned, leased or
used by a school; or through the use of technology or an electronic device owned, leased
or used by a school;
(2) Bullying at a location, activity, function or program that is not school-related and
through the use of technology or an electronic device that is not owned, leased or used
by a school if the act or acts in question create a hostile environment at school for the
victim, infringe on the rights of the victim at school, or materially and substantially
disrupt the education process or the orderly operation of a school; and
(3) Retaliation against a person who reports bullying, who provides information during an
investigation of bullying, or who is a witness to or has reliable information about bullying;
(b) Identify the range of disciplinary administrative actions that may be taken against a
perpetrator for bullying or retaliation which shall be commensurate with the nature and
gravity of the offense: Provided, That, in addition to the disciplinary sanctions imposed
upon a perpetrator of bullying or retaliation, he/she shall also be required to undergo a
rehabilitation program which shall be administered by the institution concerned. The
parents of the said perpetrator shall be encouraged by the said institution to join the
rehabilitation program;
(c) Establish clear procedures and strategies for:

(1) Reporting acts of bullying or retaliation;

(2) Responding promptly to and investigating reports of bullying or retaliation;
(3) Restoring a sense of safety for a victim and assessing the students need for
protection;
(4) Protecting from bullying or retaliation of a person who reports acts of bullying,
provides information during an investigation of bullying, or is witness to or has reliable
information about an act of bullying; and
(5) Providing counseling or referral to appropriate services for perpetrators, victims and
appropriate family members of said students;
(d) Enable students to anonymously report bullying or retaliation: Provided, however,
That no disciplinary administrative action shall be taken against a perpetrator solely on
the basis of an anonymous report;
(e) Subject a student who knowingly makes a false accusation of bullying to disciplinary
administrative action;
(f) Educate students on the dynamics of bullying, the anti-bullying policies of the school
as well as the mechanisms of such school for the anonymous reporting of acts of bullying
or retaliation;
(g) Educate parents and guardians about the dynamics of bullying, the anti-bullying
policies of the school and how parents and guardians can provide support and reinforce
such policies at home; and
(h) Maintain a public record of relevant information and statistics on acts of bullying or
retaliation in school: Provided, That the names of students who committed acts of
bullying or retaliation shall be strictly confidential and only made available to the school
administration, teachers directly responsible for the said students and parents or
guardians of students who are or have been victims of acts of bullying or retaliation.
All elementary and secondary schools shall provide students and their parents or
guardians a copy of the anti-bullying policies being adopted by the school. Such policies
shall likewise be included in the schools student and/or employee handbook and shall be
conspicuously posted on the school walls and website, if there is any.
The Department of Education (DepED) shall include in its training programs, courses or
activities which shall provide opportunities for school administrators, teachers and other
employees to develop their knowledge and skills in preventing or responding to any
bullying act.
SEC. 4. Mechanisms to Address Bullying. The school principal or any person who holds
a comparable role shall be responsible for the implementation and oversight of policies
intended to address bullying.

Any member of the school administration, student, parent or volunteer shall immediately
report any instance of bullying or act of retaliation witnessed, or that has come to ones
attention, to the school principal or school officer or person so designated by the
principal to handle such issues, or both. Upon receipt of such a report, the school
principal or the designated school officer or person shall promptly investigate. If it is
determined that bullying or retaliation has occurred, the school principal or the
designated school officer or person shall:
(a) Notify the law enforcement agency if the school principal or designee believes that
criminal charges under the Revised Penal Code may be pursued against the perpetrator;
(b) Take appropriate disciplinary administrative action;
(c) Notify the parents or guardians of the perpetrator; and
(d) Notify the parents or guardians of the victim regarding the action taken to prevent
any further acts of bullying or retaliation.
If an incident of bullying or retaliation involves students from more than one school, the
school first informed of the bullying or retaliation shall promptly notify the appropriate
administrator of the other school so that both may take appropriate action.
SEC. 5. Reporting Requirement. All schools shall inform their respective schools division
superintendents in writing about the anti-bullying policies formulated within six (6)
months from the effectivity of this Act. Such notification shall likewise be an
administrative requirement prior to the operation of new schools.
Beginning with the school year after the effectivity of this Act, and every first week of the
start of the school year thereafter, schools shall submit a report to their respective
schools division superintendents all relevant information and statistics on acts of bullying
or retaliation. The schools division superintendents shall compile these data and report
the same to the Secretary of the DepED who shall likewise formally transmit a
comprehensive report to the Committee on Basic Education of both the House of
Representatives and the Senate.
SEC. 6. Sanction for Noncompliance. In the rules and regulations to be implemented
pursuant to this Act, the Secretary of the DepED shall prescribe the appropriate
administrative sanctions on school administrators who shall fail to comply with the
requirements under this Act. In addition thereto, erring private schools shall likewise
suffer the penalty of suspension of their permits to operate.
SEC. 7. Implementing Rules and Regulations. Within ninety (90) days from the
effectivity of this Act, the DepED shall promulgate the necessary rules and regulations to
implement the provisions of this Act.
SEC. 8. Separability Clause. If, for any reason, any provision of this Act is declared to be
unconstitutional or invalid, the other sections or provisions hereof which are not affected
thereby shall continue to be in full force or effect.

SEC. 9. Repealing Clause. All laws, decrees, orders, rules and regulations or parts
thereof which are inconsistent with or contrary to the provisions of this Act are hereby
repealed, amended or modified accordingly.
SEC. 10. Effectivity. This Act shall take effect fifteen (15) days after its publication in at
least two (2) national newspapers of general circulation
LONDONS GLOBAL UNIVERSITY
Some of the most prevalent forms of harassment and bullying include the following.

Sexual harassment can take the form of ridicule, sexually provocative remarks or jokes, offensive comments about dress or
appearance, the display or distribution of sexually explicit material, unwelcome sexual advances or physical contact, demands for
sexual favours or assault.

Racial harassment is usually, although not exclusively, directed at people from ethnic minorities. It may include jokes about, or
gratuitous references to, a person's colour, race, religion or nationality. It can also include offensive remarks about dress, culture, or
customs which have the effect of ridiculing or undermining an individual or fostering hatred and/or prejudice towards individuals or
particular groups.

Harassment of people with disabilities can take the form of individuals being ignored, disparaged or ridiculed because of
mistaken assumptions about their capabilities. Their disability rather than their ability can become the focus of attention and
harassment can include inappropriate personal remarks, jokes or inappropriate reference to an individual's appearance.

Harassment on the grounds of a person's sexuality may be aimed at heterosexuals but is more usually experienced by
lesbians or gay men, bisexuals or transgendered people. Examples of harassment relating to sexuality are homophobic remarks or
jokes, offensive comments relating to a person's sexuality, threats to disclose a person's sexuality to others or offensive
behaviour/abuse relating to HIV or AIDS status. The European Commission code of practice on sexual harassment points out that
lesbians and gay men often encounter disproportionate levels of harassment relating to their sexuality. The response of lesbians and
gay men to harassment may also be complicated by the fact that in order to complain about it, or confront it, they may have to be
open about their sexuality with other people, perhaps for the first time.

Bullying is the exercise of power over another person through negative acts or behaviour that undermines him/her personally
and/or academically. Bullying can involve threatening, insulting, abusive, disparaging or intimidating behaviour which places
inappropriate pressure on the recipient or has the effect of isolating or excluding them. Bullying can take the form of shouting,
sarcasm, derogatory remarks concerning academic performance or constant criticism and undermining. Bullying is to be
distinguished from vigorous academic debate or the actions of a teacher or supervisor making reasonable (but perhaps unpopular)
requests of his/her students.