How to Report Bullying: A Parent's Step-by-Step Guide

Is your child, or a child you know, experiencing bullying? It's a difficult situation for any family to face, but there are steps you can take to protect your child and seek help. Here's a guide from the Second Congressional Commission on Education (EDCOM 2) on how to address and report bullying.

Bullying can take many forms, including:

• Physical bullying - causing physical harm through actions such as hitting, kicking, or taking or damaging belongings 

• Psychological or emotional bullying - intimidation, stalking, and similar behaviors 

• Verbal bullying - name-calling, slurs, or verbal threats 

• Cyberbullying - any form of bullying that occurs in a digital environment, such as private group chats, direct messages, public posts, and online communities. Acts of cyberbullying can include online bashing, posting hateful comments, sending abusive messages, creating doctored or AI-generated photos and deepfake videos, and other similar harmful acts. 

• Social bullying - any form of bullying that involves more than one perpetrator 

• Gender-based bullying - bullying someone based on their gender or gender identity, especially among LGBTQ+ children

If any of these acts are committed by a student, learner, or any member of the school community against a student in a way that causes physical or psychological harm, creates a hostile environment, or disrupts school activities and operations, they may be considered bullying.

The first time your child experiences bullying, approach their teacher first, preferably their class adviser, along with any other educators or school personnel involved. Classroom teachers should be able to address the issue, especially if the bullying occurred in the classroom.

If the incident happened outside the classroom, you may also want to report it to the Learning Formation Officer assigned by the school or the anti-bullying committee required under the Anti-Bullying Act.

If nothing changes or the resolution process is too slow, you can escalate the matter to the school principal and the guidance or discipline office by filing a formal complaint. This helps school authorities understand the seriousness of the situation and the need for immediate action.

What if your family has already gone through the school's resolution process, but the bullying continues or your child still does not feel safe?

This is the time to involve the appropriate government agencies.

You can file a formal complaint through any of the following:

• Schools Division Office - the office responsible for your child's school 

• DepEd Regional Office - raising your child's case with the regional office may take less time than filing with the DepEd Central Office because it has a smaller jurisdiction and may handle fewer bullying cases. 

• DepEd Central Office - if you decide to file the case with the central office, submit it to the Learner Protection Unit. This unit handles unresolved cases and helps ensure children are protected in learning environments.

In cases where your child feels unsafe even outside school or other learning centers, you may also involve local or national authorities, such as:

Barangay - if you need immediate intervention, barangays may assist in resolving certain bullying-related disputes and, in cases involving violence against women or children covered by RA 9262, may issue a Barangay Protection Order. However, ordinary school bullying cases are primarily handled under the school's anti-bullying policy and procedures.

Anti-Cybercrime Unit of the PNP - specializes in cyberbullying cases, which can escalate into serious threats.

NBI - may become involved in severe cases involving physical injuries, serious threats, or cyberbullying.

When filing a formal complaint, whether with school authorities or government agencies, gather all relevant information, including:

• Dates, times, and locations of the bullying incident/s

• Names of the bully/ies and their connection to your child

• Names of witnesses, if any

Your child should write a short narrative of what happened. If they are uncomfortable doing so, you can ask them to describe the incident(s) and write it down yourself.

If available, evidence can help support your child's case. This may include:

• Screenshots or links related to cyberbullying (screenshots are often best because online content can be deleted by the original poster at any time)

• Medical reports documenting injuries

• Photos of injuries or damaged belongings

• Prior reports or school records, especially if your child is not the bully's first victim

• All schools up to the high school level in the Philippines

• Learning centers

• Alternative learning systems

• Philippine schools overseas

• Within a 2-kilometer radius of schools

• School bus stops

• School buses

The minimum policies required by the government are:

• Fostering a healthy environment that encourages respectful and meaningful relationships among students and members of the school community 

• Regular assessment and monitoring of student behavior and the conduct of other members of the school community 

• Reviewing and strengthening anti-bullying policies and programs to ensure they remain effective and responsive to emerging issues

The disciplinary body must investigate, act on, and resolve a complaint within 30 days from the date the complaint is filed.