Okay, so we've all been to NAMES, all heard their spiel. But does it work, knowing that your classmate's are going through a hard time? I mean, you gain an appreciation for Plato's quote, "Be kind, for everyone you meet is fighting a harder battle." But a lot of students, after walking out of the Corndog, feel like the sense of camaraderie from the auditorium when we sat and listened to people's stories disappeared within a few days.
Bullying at New Trier is hard to put a finger on. I don't think I can recall a single moment when I've walked through the halls and seen someone be "bullied," though the term connotes both physical and mental bullying.
It's been repeated a thousand times, and I almost hate to say it again, but I feel like there is a huge gap between the sexes when it comes to fighting with each other. I do not expect to ever see a girl punch another girl in all seriousness, though I know its certainly possible and has definitely happened. Girls, in my experience, go for the more passive approach. ERIC Digests mention a study that supports this, saying girls are more likely to "spread rumors" and "enforce social isolation."
This was especially true in middle school, and even freshman year. Cliques abounded. At the East Campus, there are certainly cliques, but with such a multitude of students and classes, its hard to find a definite, secular clique with members not a part of other groups of friends. Are cliques a form of bullying?
As a New Trier student, what do you define as bullying? Did the Names program make you feel any different towards your peers?
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I am willing to argue that names did work. Sure, we may not walk around the school holding hands and singing kumbayah (Idk how to spell that), but we are all, for the most part, nice to each other. I've talked to people at Kenwood academy, which is a different SES than us, and they have much more bullying. I've also talked to people from GBN, and though as not as it was at one point (the 'Hazer High') scandal, there is still more fist fighting and open bullying than here. I have to say that I have never seen a 'jock' (they are easily recognizable) pick on or even make a single off color remark to a 'nerd.' Groups tend to form where 'nerds' talk to each other and 'jocks' talk to each other. But it is really quite crazy how nice we all are to each other. Personally, I have friends from all sorts of cliques and I think that that is a good thing. There is certainly a social hierarchy, but those at the top don't wield their power.
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