Over the next year, school teachers will receive special training on how to deal with cases of bullying and follow the updated response protocol.

This was reported by Nina Savytska, an anti-bullying policy advisor, in her speech at the August conference. She stressed that only about a third of teachers currently follow the established procedure for responding to bullying.

According to Savytska, false stereotypes are still quite common in schools. Often, teachers reduce cases of violence to "normal conflict" or "courtship", or even blame children for their differences, which is unacceptable, especially when a child has special needs or is hyperactive.

The advisor stressed that any manifestation of bullying is a form of violence that requires a quick and clear response. For this purpose, a convenient and psychologically adapted action protocol is being developed.

"Our teachers are used to working according to instructions. So if the protocol is clear and practical, it will definitely work effectively," Savytska said, adding that the document will be updated and made more efficient.

In addition, all-Ukrainian training for teaching staff is planned to consolidate the new approach. In the future, it will be supported by the creation of an interactive simulator - a special application (probably in Diia) that will help to develop the skills of responding to children's appeals.