Examples of Bullying: Where & Why School Bullying Can Happen
Bullying is one of the most challenging and harmful issues today. A child in your fellow desk will be getting bullied and you won’t even have an idea about that.
Why? Because of its discreet nature and countless forms.
It begins as a minor comment, a whispered rumour, or exclusion from a group. But its effects can grow into lifelong trauma and affect the whole future of a child. That’s why, school bullying is not something to be taken lightly.
Let’s understand why and where bullying occurs withWihkum and take the first step toward its prevention. Because no one should feel unsafe in a place meant for learning and growth.
Examples of Bullying: Where It Can Occur?
Bullying doesn’t only occur in one place or form. Understanding the various settings can help schools, staff and students taking appropriate measures.
So, let’s reveal some of the common environments where bullying stays hiding.
1. Bullying in Schools
Schools are one of the most common places where bullying occurs.
According to Australian data, about 27% of Year 4 to Year 9 students report being bullied every few weeks or more. In a recent Queensland state audit, state schools reported nearly 76,400 bullying incidents in the 2023 school year (plus 61,900 harassment incidents).
These figures show that bullying in schools is not rare, but a significant risk to student safety.
It can happen in classrooms, corridors, playgrounds and even buses. So, you need to keep a check on each location and build a secure environment. It affects not just victims but also bystanders and undermines the sense of safety a school should provide.
2. Bullying in the Workplace
Most people think of bullying as a children problem. But school staff, teachers and adult employees are also not safe from this issue.
In Australia, national data shows the workplace bullying rate as about 9.6%. Surveys indicate that a large number of workers are in “toxic” work environments. For example, over half of unionised respondents reported unhappy, oppressive workplaces, and 54% reported intimidating behaviour.
When school staff are bullied (by colleagues or supervisors), the impact transfers to students in the form of weakened support, reduced vigilance and low morale. Hence, the culture of building grows and prevention becomes even more difficult.
3. Social Bullying
It is the most hidden form of bullying in any environment. Social or relational bullying involves actions such as exclusion, spreading rumours, damaging someone’s social standing or manipulating peer relationships.
Examples include:
- A student consistently left out of group activities.
- Spreading untrue rumours about a peer to isolate them socially.
- Encouraging others to exclude a target student from events or friend groups.
It can occur in lunch-rooms, sports teams, or between social groups, and school leaders will be unaware. Hence, more active prevention system is needed for it.
4. Bullying at Home or Domestic Environments
We most think of schools and workplaces, while talking about bullying. But do you know? Bullying may happen in home or family settings. E.g. between siblings, within joint families, or between neighbours or community members connected to the student.
For school communities, it is important because:
- The home environment influences how students cope with bullying at school.
- Some students being bullied at home can begin bullying the fellows in school.
Detection and intervention of this type of bullying is even more difficult. Because it requires communication with families, consistent policies, and support referrals.
5. Bullying Online (Cyberbullying)
The digital age has introduced a new and potent dimension of bullying: cyberbullying.
In Australia, the numbers are growing sharply: the national online safety regulator reported a 40% jump in child-cyberbullying reports in early 2024 compared with the prior year. News sources also show that 1 in 5 young school students report online bullying per year.
Cyberbullying is more dangerous, because:
- It can occur 24/7, beyond school grounds.
- Bullies can hide behind screens, and victims feel more isolated.
- It co-exists with in-person bullying (one study found 84% of students bullied online also face face-to-face bullying).
Schools must treat cyberbullying with more urgency than playground or classroom bullying because the impacts are more severe.
6. Racial, Prejudicial, Religious & Sexual Bullying
Bullying can arise in any situation where someone is targeted for who they are. E.g. due to their race, ethnicity, religion, gender identity, sexual orientation or other characteristic.
Examples of them include:
- A student being singled out because of their cultural background or language.
- A student being teased or harassed for their religious dress or beliefs.
- Students with disabilities or mental-health challenges being bullied.
- Unwanted sexual comments, gestures or exclusion for a specific gender.
- Gender-based or LGBTQI+ related bullying.
Such bullying intersects with broader harassment laws and requires strong policies, especially in multicultural school settings.
Now, let’s explore some reasons behind bullying.
Why & When Bullying Can Happen?
Understanding the triggers, environments and timing of bullying helps schools and staff anticipate the risk and intervene early.
Power Imbalance and Repetition
By definition, bullying involves a real or perceived power imbalance between bully and the target and behaviour that is repeated over time. Now this power can be physical, social (popularity), digital (control of content), or positional (senior student or teacher).
When schools or workplaces tolerate this imbalance, bullying flourish.
Situational Stress & Transition Points
Bullying risk increases during times of change and stress. E.g.
- The start of school, transition between primary and secondary, or moving schools.
- In workplaces, new managers, role changes or restructuring.
- Times when supervision is weaker (playtimes, buses, unsupervised online time).
Example: The national online safety regulator observed that cyberbullying spikes during school terms as it follows playground incidents.
Poor Supervision, Weak Policies or Culture
Bullying mostly happens when supervision is weak or where the culture dismisses it. In school settings, if staff do not notice or address relational bullying, students will feel that the behaviour is “normal”.
In workplaces, when bullying behaviours are ignored, they embed into the culture and reporting is reduced. Data show that in Australia, only 18% of staff reported anything was done to stop bullying behaviours in their workplace.
Timing & Locations of High Risk
Bullying occurs the most in:
| Unsupervised spaces | Playgrounds, corridors, buses, sports changerooms |
| During transitions | Between classes, at recess, while lining up, during loading/unloading of buses |
| Online | Outside school hours, through apps/social media, group chats |
Schools should audit these high-risk spaces, schedule supervision accordingly & coordinate digital-safety policies too.
How to Handle School Bullying?
Let’s build a practical framework for schools, staff and students to respond when bullying occurs or when there’s a threat that it can happen.
Also Read: Bullying in School: A Crisis We Can’t Ignore
Prevention First: Establishing a Culture
- Adopt a clear anti-bullying policy that defines behaviours, states zero tolerance, and aligns with national standards.
- Promote a positive school climate with respectful relationships, peer support, and staff-student trust.
- Train staff and students about bystander behaviour. Research shows that bullying can stop within 10 seconds if bystanders act.
- Include digital safety education is part of the curriculum. Highlight cyberbullying risks and responsible online behaviour.
Early Detection and Monitoring
- Conduct regular surveys or check-ins to track bullying incidences and check student perceptions of safety and report trends.
- Use school audits to identify unsupervised zones and times of increased risk.
- Monitor online platforms, chat groups and make sure that students know how to report cyber-bullying safely.
- For staff, establish channels for reporting bullying at work and maintain the confidentiality and accountability.
Responding When Bullying Happens
- Once identified, address bullying incidents with care. Meet with target, bully, witnesses and involve parents if required.
- Develop a case plan that covers immediate response (safety), medium-term support (counselling, peer support) and longer-term monitoring.
- Use tools like incident-logging systems to track recurrence, effectiveness of interventions and support needs.
- Integrate technology for cases of cyberbullying, freeze evidence, and partner with law-enforcement if necessary.
Mental Health Measures for Victims and Bullies
| For victims | Provide counselling, peer-mentoring, safe spaces to talk, reinforce self-esteem and social networks |
| For bullies | Behaviour modification plans, restorative justice, teaching empathy and peer interaction skills |
| For witnesses | Encourage students to speak up, support peers, and report incidents. |
Technology & Digital Safety
While most anti-bullying efforts focus on behaviour, digital safety systems can help in rapid response and accountability.
- Create a geofenced school environment for high-risk places.
- Incident-auditing and reporting to get concrete data for prevention strategies.
- A sense of security for students knowing that staff are connected and responsive.
Want to Take an Initiative Against School Bullying?
Build Safer Learning Places with Wihkum
At Wihkum, we provide the digital security platform your school needs. So, you can protect staff and students from threats and school bullying.
Our app is easy to set up (fully functional within 2 hours after upload of staff documents). Plus, it works on both iOS and Android, uses GPS to pinpoint responders and logs incidents for auditing and continuous improvement.
With Wihkum, you can have an effective safety tool aligned with best practices and risk-management policies. It will reduce the risks and minimise the impact of incidents through efficient management. So, students can learn with peace of mind & sense of security.
Take the step now to strengthen your school’s safety culture.