We should discourage attempts to 'out-viral' school bullying videos: Chan Chun Sing

Addressing recent viral videos of bullying incidents involving primary and secondary school students, Education Minister Chan Chun Sing on Monday (Oct 14) urged the society to not normalise such behaviours. 

While answering a series of parliamentary questions pertaining to the incidents, Chan noted that circulating such videos to dox the perpetrators or calling for them to be ostracised can "drive them to extremes and make it harder for them to mend their ways".

Last month, two videos of bullying incidents surfaced online, which showed primary and secondary school students hitting their schoolmates. 

"We want to steer clear of actions that might hinder or deny a perpetrator's chance for rehabilitation, such as counterproductive social media behaviours," Chan said. 

Sharing bullying videos online can also spawn copycats or attempts to "out-viral" previous videos, he added. 

In the last five years, the number of bullying cases involving the use of technology average less than one incident per 1,000 secondary school students, the education minister said.

However, he expects the numbers to "progressively rise" as students become more aware about what constitutes online bullying. 

The Ministry of Education (MOE) has also ramped up efforts to educate students about respectful and responsible online behaviour, and encourage them to speak up against such incidences. 

Discussions have also been held with the Ministry of Digital Development and Information (MDDI) and social media platforms to look into removing videos of bullying incidents, said Chan in response to a supplementary question by MP Sharael Taha. 

Schools conduct thorough investigations before deciding on appropriate course of action

When it comes to deciding on the appropriate course of action to take against perpetrators, Chan said that education institutions take a "tiered approach", depending on the severity of the incident. 

Thorough investigations are also conducted before determining what actions to take. 

Other factors taken into consideration are the seriousness of the incident, as well as the profiles and needs of the students involved.

Disciplinary actions may include putting the students involved in detention, or even suspending them from attending lessons. 

Caning, carried out in an appropriate manner and by an authorised adult, may be used as a last resort against male students. 

For severe bullying and fights, a police report will be made, and perpetrators will face legal consequences in accordance with the law. 

To help both victims and perpetrators of bullying, teachers and school counsellors are equipped to provide emotional support to help them cope and mend relationships. 

Students who are continue to be distressed will be referred to community mental health resources. 

"The objective of these educative and restorative efforts is to help students learn from their mistakes," said Chan.

"These efforts are taken to turn the bully around, rather than just expelling or suspending them from school when relationships are affected due to conflicts or misconduct. 

"We will continue to update these education and intervention measures and partner parents to create caring and safe learning environments for our students."

READ ALSO: Video of secondary school bullying incident goes viral, police investigating

claudiatan@asiaone.com