4 ms·

It might be the law of large numbers. The larger the school, the larger the probability for one or more really mean kids per age group. This is then probably am

by Udo 11y ago

It might be the law of large numbers. The larger the school, the larger the probability for one or more really mean kids per age group. This is then probably amplified once more by school size since mean kids thrive on a large audiences and have an easier time recruiting allies (who in this context aren't actively mean themselves but are eager to provide social support structures to bullies). I switched primary schools once at that age because of massive bullying (in my country switching to a different primary school is almost impossible unless you move to another school zone, so it took quite some effort). The second school was smaller and more diverse socially, and I got through the whole thing much easier.

zanny 11y ago
Same experience I had. Went from a medium sized middle school of ~3k to a high school of ~15k students and had the worst time. Transferred to a rural high school of ~1500 and had a much better experience the rest of my high school years. The other contributing factor though is culture. My middle school was serving a metropolitan suburbia. Demographics were mostly white, a good amount of Hispanics, and few Asian / African kids. Parents were often overbearing and abusive through their helicoptering, Stark contrast with my high school - much more mixed culture, knock 30k off the mean income, tons more violently abused kids who take it out on their peers. And then I moved to a literal bleach show, where in 1500 kids there were probably ~50 - 100 non-white students, and it was in a college town where the median income was around 100k. The kids were super passive aggressive to an outsider like me, but there was absolutely no violent bullying, and the insularism of the community meant I could just ignore everyone and they ignored me. Fundamentally though, its systemically broken to stuff kids in grades like this, with the same peers, with no escape for over a decade. Bullying is barely a thing outside of school because its only in school that you cannot escape it. In the real world, you quit jobs with peer abuse, you move away from toxic neighbors, you avoid the bad neighborhoods. It isn't toughening them up because its in no way reflective of reality to have to put up with verbal and physical harassment every day without reasonable recourse.
- hdctambien 11y ago
  > In the real world, you quit jobs with peer abuse, you move away from toxic neighbors, you avoid the bad neighborhoods. It isn't toughening them up because its in no way reflective of reality to have to put up with verbal and physical harassment every day without reasonable recourse. As long as you have the money or support to quit your job, or move, or avoid the bad neighborhoods. Do people choose to live in bad neighborhoods? Do they choose to send their children to poorly funded schools? Do they choose to work part time, minimum wage jobs? > Bullying is barely a thing outside of school because its only in school that you cannot escape it Or if you're a female on the internet. Or black in the south. Or poor.
  - guard-of-terra 11y ago
    "They want that nobody would be rich" "My granddad wanted that nobody would be poor" Do you want everybody to be poor, human-interaction-wise?

by Udo 11y ago

zanny 11y ago

Same experience I had. Went from a medium sized middle school of ~3k to a high school of ~15k students and had the worst time. Transferred to a rural high school of ~1500 and had a much better experience the rest of my high school years. The other contributing factor though is culture. My middle school was serving a metropolitan suburbia. Demographics were mostly white, a good amount of Hispanics, and few Asian / African kids. Parents were often overbearing and abusive through their helicoptering, Stark contrast with my high school - much more mixed culture, knock 30k off the mean income, tons more violently abused kids who take it out on their peers. And then I moved to a literal bleach show, where in 1500 kids there were probably ~50 - 100 non-white students, and it was in a college town where the median income was around 100k. The kids were super passive aggressive to an outsider like me, but there was absolutely no violent bullying, and the insularism of the community meant I could just ignore everyone and they ignored me. Fundamentally though, its systemically broken to stuff kids in grades like this, with the same peers, with no escape for over a decade. Bullying is barely a thing outside of school because its only in school that you cannot escape it. In the real world, you quit jobs with peer abuse, you move away from toxic neighbors, you avoid the bad neighborhoods. It isn't toughening them up because its in no way reflective of reality to have to put up with verbal and physical harassment every day without reasonable recourse.

hdctambien 11y ago
> In the real world, you quit jobs with peer abuse, you move away from toxic neighbors, you avoid the bad neighborhoods. It isn't toughening them up because its in no way reflective of reality to have to put up with verbal and physical harassment every day without reasonable recourse. As long as you have the money or support to quit your job, or move, or avoid the bad neighborhoods. Do people choose to live in bad neighborhoods? Do they choose to send their children to poorly funded schools? Do they choose to work part time, minimum wage jobs? > Bullying is barely a thing outside of school because its only in school that you cannot escape it Or if you're a female on the internet. Or black in the south. Or poor.
- guard-of-terra 11y ago
  "They want that nobody would be rich" "My granddad wanted that nobody would be poor" Do you want everybody to be poor, human-interaction-wise?