Peer violence and bullying – experiences and coping methods of teachers of grades IV–VIII

Introduction: The study aimed to describe the role, experiences and strategies used by educators of classes IV–VIII in the face of peer violence and bullying. The study focused on actual actions and experiences supported by the educator’s own practice. Method: Seven participants were interviewed in semi-structured interviews. Data analysis was carried out using a reflexive thematic analysis methodology. Results: Five main themes were identified: the role of the educator; peer violence and bullying; intervention activities; prevention activities; and good advice. Interventions most often include conversations with students, disciplinary interventions and cooperation with the educator, parents and other teachers. Preventive actions mainly follow the guidelines in the school curriculum and a number of socalled own activities. In addition, the analysis made it possible to distinguish two groups of educators, the so-called ‘subject’ and ‘relational’ educators, who differ significantly in their approach to students, the strategies used and the perception of their own role. Conclusions: The data collected shows that female educators, when confronted with peer violence, use a wide variety of both intervention and prevention measures. The study points to the need to verify the effectiveness of the measures and solutions presented, while taking into account the impact on relationships and classroom climate, in the short and long term. In order to increase the reliability of the study, as well as the effectiveness of the implemented measures, it is worth placing more emphasis on the distinction between the roles played by teachers at school: educator vs. subject teacher. A limitation of the study is the small research group, which did not allow for the diversity of educators’ experiences and the contexts in which violence and bullying occur.