Terrace Bay Students Learn ‘How Bullying Feels’How Bullying Feels
St. Martin School Students who participated in Bullying Awareness exercise. Photo StMS
TERRACE BAY, ON – During Bullying Awareness Week, the St. Martin Gr. 7/8 class [read about other activities at the school the same week] had the opportunity to participate in an adaptation of Jane Elliot’s “Blue Eye, Brown Eye “exercise in order to experience firsthand exclusion, ostracizing and bullying by their peers. This exercise allowed students to walk in someone else’s shoes, if only for a day, and capture a glimpse of what victims of bullying may experience.
In less than an hour, even though students understood the exercise was not real, they became “uncomfortable” with their roles beginning to internalize the reactions and comments of their peers. Their role became their reality even if it was for just a short period of time.
This very worthwhile activity resulted in a great deal of self-reflection on the students’ part leading to meaningful discussions during the talking circles and hopefully a new and changed perception. As one student commented “Could you image doing this for a week?” the return comment was “What about your whole life?” clearly demonstrating the students had definitely “…walked a mile in [bullying victims] shoes…” hopefully gaining a deeper understanding and empathy surrounding bullying.
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