Indian Prairie's new anti-bully strategy: Stop, Walk and Talk

When it comes to combating bullying in elementary schools, Indian Prairie Unit District 204 principals are hoping three simple words can do the trick.

The three-step "Stop, Walk and Talk" approach is being tested in elementary schools after surveys at Gombert and Spring Brook showed students in third through fifth grades rarely experienced bullying but, when they did, were reluctant to tell an adult.

The program is an extension of the Positive Behavioral Interventions and Supports curriculum used in District 204 elementary schools and Metea Valley High School. That curriculum focuses on teaching students good behavior, rewarding them for modeling it and tracking data to see if behavior improves over time with positive reinforcement.

The three-step bullying prevention program encourages students to first tell - verbally and with a predetermined hand-signal - the aggressor to stop the inappropriate behavior.

If that doesn't work, students are told to calmly walk away from the situation.

Finally, if the first two steps don't alleviate the problem, students are to tell an adult.

"We're working, particularly with the younger students, to explain the difference between tattling and telling an adult," Spring Brook Principal Dave Worst said. "Basically we want them to understand that any situation that makes them feel uncomfortable or threatened needs to be addressed."

Worst said the survey also indicated students didn't always tell adults because they didn't believe any action would be taken.

"So we're really working on student perception," Worst said. "As a staff, the best thing we can do is follow through to show we are taking them seriously."

Gombert Principal Kristen Ross said a similar survey of her students in spring 2008 led to the Stop, Walk and Talk approach being instituted at her school. She said it has been well received so far.

While students understand the concept, she said many fifth-graders found it "uncool" to tell a peer to "stop." A focus group was assembled to determine a "more cool alternative" and recommended saying "timeout" with the hand signal used by sports teams.

Both schools will continue to evaluate the success of the program and track bullying data throughout the year.

Assistant Superintendent Sharon Tate said a modified program will be rolled out in middle schools later this fall and a high school alternative is being developed that would include a peer mediation element.

For students uncomfortable facing a bullying or safety concern head-on, the district also has unveiled an anonymous Web-based tip line that delivers information to school principals and administrators.

Students and parents are encouraged to report legitimate safety concerns online at www.ipsd.org/tips.

District spokeswoman Janet Buglio said the line can be used to report both incidents that already have happened and those that might be about to take place.