School teachers are commonly the subject of bullying but they are also sometimes the originators of bullying within a school environment.
Incidence
Comprehensive research carried out in the UK found that teaching was one of the occupations at highest risk from bullying:
15.5% of teachers stating they were currently being bullied
35.4% saying they had been bullied over the last five years.
In another survey, the Economic and Social Research Institute found bullying to be more prevalent in schools (13.8pc) than other workplaces (7.9pc).
Complex dynamics
Parsons identifies teacher bullying as often being part of a wider bullying culture within a school, with a complex web of dynamics such as:
teachers may be bullied by: other teachers, students, office staff, principals, school governors and/or parents
teachers may bully: other teachers, students and/or parents
bullying teachers may themselves get bullied by others in turn
Staffroom bullying
A common manifestation of teacher bullying is staffroom bullying where teachers are bullied by other teachers or school managers.
Manifestations
Bullying of teachers can take many forms in order to harass and intimidate including:
face-to-face confrontation
memos
cyber-bullying (including the use of text messaging or social networking sites).
Bullies often exploit positions of seniority over the colleagues they are intimidating (see rankism) by:
criticising their work
making unreasonable demands on workload (see setting up to fail)
sarcasm and jokes aimed at the victim
undermining them by over-ruling their decisions and views.
In some cases, teachers are ignored and isolated by colleagues in the staffroom or turned down for promotion or training courses (see silent treatment).
Impacts
The possible impacts of bullying on teachers include:
victimisation and victim blaming
false accusations and fabricated formal disciplinary action
stress symptoms such as anxiety, headaches, nausea, palpitations, and hypertension
symptoms of post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD) such as a compromised immune system, sleep problems, excessive guilt, irritability, hypervigilance (which feels like paranoia, but isn't), constant anxiety, reactive depression and suicidal thoughts
loss of self-esteem
loss of job
In pop culture
Teachers being protrayed as bullies have made into popular culture, along with works with teachers being bullied by other teachers, students, and even the principal.
Films
Kids in America, a group of students with help from some teachers tries to stop their bully of a principal from becoming Superintendent, realizing the harm she can cause
Matilda, based on the novel of the same name, a student with psychokinesis helps her follow students and a teacher to stop a cruel principal's regin of terror in the school.
The Breakfast Club, Principal Vernon is often seen as a bully to the students serving detention.
Mr. Woodcock, the film focuses on a man who is outraged that his former gym teacher, who bullied him and his classmates, is about to become his stepfather.
TV
iCarly, there has been episodes, like "IHave My Principals", where Ms. Francine Briggs and Mr. Howard clearly bully students, including the main characters, one of whom, Sam, is a bully herself. Mr. Devlin and Lauren Ackerman also bullied the students.
Ned's Declassified School Survival Guide, Mr. Sweeney, a science teacher, appears to be evil until the third season, where he appears to reform himself to the point of saving his students from Vice Principal Harvey Crubbs, who also bullies the students, mainly the main characters.
Glee, Coach Bieste is bullied by staff, including Sue Sylvester and students.
Music
"Another Brick in the Wall (Part 2)" by Pink Floyd - the song tells the story about a student dreams about getting revenge against the abusive teachers.