In 30 years, this Danish method has made it possible to divide cases in schools by three.
Being bothered at school, pushed around, made fun of or pushed aside are some of the situations that many students encounter throughout their school career. These experiences can take a toll on their confidence, make them more anxious, and ruin their enjoyment of going to class. This problem, more common than we think, concerns parents and teachers, who are looking for solutions to help children live their daily lives better, but it is often difficult to spot the signs.
Faced with school bullying, many countries, including France, are increasing initiatives to stem the phenomenon. France has recently implemented awareness programs such as the national “No to Harassment” day or even alert systems in establishments. But it is in Denmark that we find one of the most innovative and effective approaches. Since 1993, the Danish kingdom has included compulsory empathy and kindness lessons in its school curriculum from the age of 6.
These weekly sessions, called “Klassens Tid” at the school, offer concrete exercises such as drawing on the neighbor’s back to develop goodwill between students, or the use of a teddy bear that the children spontaneously offer to a friend in distress. That “allow for children to be closer to each other”, confided teacher Michelle Kelly at Franceinfo. The results of this Danish approach are remarkable and speak for themselves. In thirty years of application, these empathy courses would have made it possible to divide cases of harassment in the country by three, giving Denmark one of the lowest rates in the world, according to data from Radio France. But the Danish model does not stop at empathy lessons.
It is accompanied by strict legislation that came into force in 2017, requiring establishments to adopt a prevention strategy and an action plan in the event of a report. “The idea is: the more I know you, the less likely I am to harass.”explained Henrik Busborg, a mathematics teacher who prioritizes class cohesion before academic skills, to our colleagues. This philosophy is reflected throughout the Danish education system, where a “collaborative pedagogy” For “get the children to work together as much as possible.” An approach which now inspires other European countries in their fight against school bullying.
