| dc.description.abstract | There have been no studies into bullying in elementary schools on Sint Maarten. Because of the negative consequences and the high prevalence of bullying it is important to gain more insight into the facts of bullying and what can be done to prevent or decrease bullying in elementary schools on Sint Maarten. This study focuses on the micro level of the Ecological Systems Theory of Bronfenbrenner and its influence on bullying. The focus will be on students, teachers and parents. The research methods used were questionnaires and focus groups. This means that this study made use of both quantitative and qualitative methods. 933 students filled in the questionnaire for students and 37 teachers filled in the questionnaire for teachers. The first focus group of teachers consisted of 3 teachers and the second one of 9 teachers. The focus group of parents consisted of 8 parents. Results from this research show that 58.5% of the students involved were bullied this school year, that calling mean names is the most popular form of bullying, that the classroom and playground are popular locations, and being popular, feeling powerful and getting attention are the main reasons for bullying other students. Students, parents and teachers gave several suggestions for students, teachers, parents and schools to prevent or decrease bullying. These suggestions include: help the victim, punish the bully, talk with the children involved, suspend/expel the bullying student, learn students/children strategies to deal with bullying, educate the students/children and come up with consequences when the bullying occurs. This thesis finishes with limitations experienced during this research and recommendations based on the input of the participants and the results. | |
