Physical Violence Case Study

(IV). Case Studies:

Asia – Pacific Region

1. Physical Violence and Abuse:

• In the Pacific, UNICEF asked 16–17 year olds participating in a Child Household Questionnaire (CHHQ) if a teacher had physically hurt them in the last month. The answers ‘Yes’ to this question ranged from 7% of respondents in the Solomon Islands to 29% in both Fiji and Kiribati.

• In Timor-Leste, a school-based survey with 164 secondary school students found that 81% of students reported having experienced violence (from either teachers or other students) and less than half of the students (48%) said they knew where they could get help.

• In the Philippines, a study with 2,442 school children below 18 years old in 58 schools found that at least 5 out of 10 children

• In India, a study of 1,040 boys aged 10–16 living in Mumbai found that more than eight out of 10 boys had been the victims of violence; two-thirds of boys ages 12-14 in a cluster of low-income schools in India said they experienced at least one form of violence in the last three months at school, including violence perpetrated by other students. Physical violence reported including being beaten, slapped, kicked, pushed, hit with an object, or threatened with a weapon, while “emotional violence” included being insulted, shouted at, derided via abusive language, and locked in a room or

The study revealed that one in four students in grades 4 to 9 reported being affected by bullying. Bullying was highest among grade 5 (32%) and grade 8 (29%) students. Further, 10% of all students reported being bullied by means of technology (i.e. cyber-bullying) with higher rates reported by secondary students and students from non- government schools.

• In another regional review, students with low academic achievement scores and those identified as having learning difficulties reported more incidences of being bullied in all countries apart from Indonesia and the Republic of Korea.

• In India and other parts of South Asia, caste systems and discrimination against ethnic minorities are believed to make some students more vulnerable to bullying. Indigenous, ethnic or even religious status of students also continues to be basis for discrimination and violence against and between students. For example, in India, research assessing the impact of the entry of dalit and adivasi students (traditionally excluded social groups) into educational institutions found that these children suffer widespread verbal abuse at the hands of their upper-caste teachers in primary schools. This was found to have a critical impact on the way in which these first generation dalit and adivasi school attendees