State Survey May Ask Students About Bullying in Schools

Hoping to better measure the extent of bullying in California schools, state education officials are considering adding more questions about campus harassment to a survey given to 450,000 students statewide.

The changes to the California Healthy Kids Survey were recommended by an advisory committee and are under consideration by officials at WestEd, a research group that runs the project.

Although studies on bullying exist, little statewide information to assess the behavior is available, said Greg Austin, WestEd program director. The survey will be administered by districts across the state for the second time this year.

“We’re trying to get more of a sense of what’s going on in the school environment and how it affects perceptions of safety,” Austin said. “And we’re trying to get at what might go undetected.”

Bullying has become a hot topic for educators across the nation in response to a recent spate of school shootings by students. In two of those, one in San Diego County and another in Williamsport, Pa., investigators say the teenage shooters talked of being teased and bullied on campus.

A handful of school districts--such as the Newport-Mesa Unified School District--have since implemented or debated zero-tolerance policies on bullying, making penalties for picking on kids just as harsh as those for bringing weapons or drugs to school.

Newport-Mesa officials said they welcomed efforts to better quantify bullying in schools, but cautioned that the lack of a uniform approach means the survey’s findings must be interpreted carefully.

“It’s going to give more of a sense of what types of bullying activities occur on campus, whether they are verbal threats or physical intimidation,” said Jaime Castellanos, an assistant superintendent. But, he said, some schools may have taken more consistent and stringent action against threats than others. “This whole area of bullying is gray.”

The Healthy Kids Survey, administered every other year by school districts to most fifth-, seventh-, ninth- and 11th-graders with parental permission, asks dozens of questions about alcohol and drug use, sexual behavior and personal information such as race, ethnicity, height and weight. Responses are anonymous.

Questions to determine levels of and reasons for bullying would probably be included in the survey’s core section. The information would then be combined with other statistics gathered by the state to present a comprehensive picture.

Most Southern California school districts take part in the survey, particularly larger ones such as Los Angeles Unified and San Diego Unified.

Reaction to the possible changes was mixed.

“I think it would be extremely beneficial, because there is this code of silence the students have,” said Paul Tonello, assistant principal at Santa Paula High School.

Other educators, including Richard Simpson, an assistant superintendent in Thousand Oaks, said he thinks assessment of student safety is better done locally.

“Another report from Sacramento is not going to solve the problem,” he said.

The California Department of Education would have the final say on any survey changes, Austin said. If approved, they could be in place before the next survey is distributed in August.

Other ideas for this year’s survey include adding a question about use of the designer drug Ecstasy--growing in popularity among teenagers at raves. Also under consideration is a question about sexual orientation for inclusion in a portion of the survey that is optional.