Acknowledging Bullying As a Problem

During this blog I will finish discussing research findings found within the academic journal article, “The causes and nature of bullying and social exclusion in schools” by Maria el Mar Badia Martin. First I will discuss a potential reason why new cases of school bullying keep emerging. Afterwards, I will discuss some elements that need to be addressed before schools can confront the issue of school bullying.

1)   The text notes that “despite [the] apparently high rates of victimization and the potential influence of [sibling bullying] experiences on peer relationships, sibling bullying has been relatively ignored [within] literature, perhaps because it is so common.” In my opinion this claim is very significant in understanding, and partially explaining, why new cases of school bullying keep emerging. One of the best ways to stop a problem is to prevent the problem from ever developing and occurring. However, as the text notes, this is not what has been happening with sibling bullying, which has been linked to school bullying. Instead, sibling bullying, a potential precursor to school bullying, has been mostly ignored and normalized by the general public. In addition, many scholars, investigators, and researchers have failed to conduct additional studies that investigate the correlations that may exist between sibling bullying and school bullying.

2)  Before schools can confront the issue of school bullying, some elements need to be addressed. According to the text,  research has shown that bullying occurs in all schools. However, before school bullying is confronted, it must be acknowledged as a possible problem. In other words, schools must acknowledge that they are not fault free and must be willing to accept the fact that bullying is a problem, or at least a potential problem, within their school system. A problem cannot and will not be solved, if it is not acknowledged first. In addition, research has shown that although “high profile [anti-school bullying] campaigns at national, local, or school level are useful ways of initiating action, on their own they do little or nothing to help [decrease the amount of bullying that occurs within schools]”. As a result, when trying to design a plan for diminishing school bullying it is important to keep in mind that although high profile anti-bullying campaigns may be useful in attracting attention and awareness to school bullying as a problem, they are not solutions. In fact, there is no "single-solution" or "one-size-fits-all solution" that can be applied to rid all schools of school bullying. Instead, each school must individually find out what strategies and actions will work best within its own school system.

Autism Costs Average $17,000 Yearly for Each Child

WebMD News from HealthDay

By Amy Norton

HealthDay Reporter

http://www.webmd.com/brain/autism/news/20140210/autism-costs-average-17000-yearly-for-each-child-study-finds?page=2 

MONDAY, Feb. 10, 2014 (HealthDay News) -- The cost of services for children with autism averages more than $17,000 per child each year -- with school systems footing much of the bill, a new U.S. study estimates.

Researchers found that compared to kids without autism, those with the disorder had higher costs for doctor visits and prescriptions -- an extra $3,000 a year, on average.

But the biggest expenses were outside the medical realm. "Non-health care" services averaged $14,000 per child, and special education at school accounted for more than 60 percent of those costs.

Past studies into the costs of autism have mainly focused on health care, said Tara Lavelle, a researcher at RAND Corp. in Arlington, Va., who led the new study published online Feb. 10 and in the March print issue of Pediatrics.

These findings, she said, give a more comprehensive view. Her team estimates that services for children with autism cost the United States $11.5 billion in 2011 alone.

"The societal cost is enormous," said Michael Rosanoff, associate director of public health research and scientific review for Autism Speaks, a New York City-based advocacy group.

And the dollar estimates from this study cover only children with autism -- not adults, noted Rosanoff, who was not involved in the research.

He said the findings do give a clearer idea of the costs to school systems, in particular. Now more work is needed to "dig deeper" into the issue, Rosanoff said. Some big questions, he noted, are whether school districts have the resources to handle the needs of all students with autism, and whether individual children are being well served.

In the United States, about one in every 88 children has an autism spectrum disorder, according to the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. The developmental disorders vary widely in severity. Some kids have "classic" autism, speaking very little, and showing repetitive, unusual behaviors like hand flapping; they may also be intellectually impaired. Other kids have average or above-average intelligence, but have difficulty with social interaction.

For the new study, Lavelle's team pulled data from two national surveys. They found information on 246 families with children affected by autism spectrum disorders, ranging from mild to severe, and close to 19,000 families with unaffected children.

In one survey, parents were asked about non-medical services for their kids -- from special education at school, to autism therapy sessions, to help with child care. Those costs turned out to be much bigger than medical care, with special ed being the single largest expense -- at $8,600 per year, on average.

There was one surprise in the findings, according to Lavelle: Parents of kids with autism spectrum disorders reported no greater out-of-pocket expenses than other parents, on average.

"That's inconsistent with previous research, which has found higher out-of-pocket costs," Lavelle said. She noted that this study had a fairly small sample of families affected by autism, and that might have prevented the researchers from finding substantial differences in parents' expenses.

Rosanoff agreed that the finding is surprising. But he said it's possible that this latest study reflects progress in getting insurers to pay for autism therapies.

As it stands, 34 U.S. states have now passed "autism insurance reform laws," according to Autism Speaks. Several others are considering such legislation.

"This study could suggest that autism insurance reform is working," Rosanoff said.

Lavelle said more studies are needed to see how families are coping financially. As for schools, she said very little is known about whether districts have the resources they need to serve all their students with autism.

Rosanoff said one potential way to lessen the burden on schools would be to improve early diagnosis and treatment of autism.

Diagnosing an autism spectrum disorder can be difficult, since there's no simple test for it. According to the CDC, autism can sometimes be diagnosed by the age of 18 months, but many children do not receive a final diagnosis until they are much older.

The agency says that all children should be screened for developmental delays during routine check-ups, starting at the age of 9 months. Such screening could help in detecting an autism spectrum disorder sooner.

If children can be diagnosed early, Rosanoff said, they can begin therapy well ahead of school age. That might ease their reliance on special education once they do enter school, he said.