Bullying

According to a national survey 66% of bullied victims say school officials responded  poorly to their situation.

Youree Drive Middle School teacher Hilary Schaff told KTBS 3 News that she is surprised  that it's happening so often and that there are students who experience bullying everyday and don't think it's bullying and there are students who bully everyday and have no idea that what they are doing is bullying.

That is where the state steps in. There is now a law that requires school officials to launch an investigation the within 24 hours of a complaint being filed. The investigation form is 20 pages long and must be completed with every complaint.

"What we are looking for is a pattern of behavior. A one time incident doens't mean your child has been bullied," says Dr. Barzanna White of the Caddo Parish Schools.

"It can be anything from verbal teasing to kids doing what they call mean mugging. Meaning another kids looked at them the wrong way," says White.

But it's the cyber bullying that is harder to control according to Rep. Roy Burrell of Shreveport.

" Depending on how bad the situation is  it could result in criminal charges," says Burrell.

Parkway High School teacher  Michelle Chaney  says cyber bullying can be the hardest thing to watch for because most of it goes on outside of the school day.

For more information on the law and how schools deal with bullying check out:

www.louisianabelieves