TEACHERS’ PERSPECTIVES ON BULLYING IN EARLY CHILDHOOD EDUCATION

Introduction

The study analyses how early childhood education teachers in Spain perceive bullying among children aged 3 to 6, taking into account their training, their assessment of the school environment, and possible risk factors that trigger aggressive behavior. Although there is uncertainty about how to address bullying at this stage of education (3-6 years), it is clear that this problem exists and that many children are affected by the way their peers treat them at this age. This study aims to shed light on this issue.

Methods

The research was conducted with 70 early childhood education teachers aged 39-40. It should be noted that, in Spain, this profession is almost exclusively practiced by women at this stage of education. Variables related to the training received, the perception of coexistence in the educational center, the influence of risk factors, and knowledge of cases of bullying in their own center or in others were analyzed. To this end, non-parametric statistical tests were applied to identify differences by center ownership and the presence of specific plans against bullying.

Results

The results indicate that participants consider themselves insufficiently prepared to deal with bullying (2.66/5), while they rate coexistence in their schools very positively (4.29/5). They mainly attribute aggressive behavior to technology and television, placing less importance on the family and almost none on teachers' responsibility. Furthermore, teachers detect bullying more frequently in other schools than in their own. In addition, the presence of anti-bullying plans is associated with a better perception of the phenomenon and the school climate.

Conclusions

The lack of training and the externalization of the causes of bullying highlight the need to strengthen teacher training and implement prevention protocols from an early age.