Tips for understanding and addressing bullying
at school: considerations for students with ASD
Implications for students with ASD

Many students with Autism Spectrum Disorder (ASD) are more likely to provide a significant
reaction to bullying (can be immediate or after excessive targeting). This can be
reinforcement and entertainment for bullies.

Some students with ASD are easily manipulated by other students and may not even be
aware they are being bullied e.g. by being asked to say inappropriate statements by others.

Some students with ASD can tolerate higher levels of ill-treatment from others in exchange
for perceived friendship or inclusion in groups.

There is a relationship between being bullied and lower self-esteem, poorer coping skills in
general, unhappiness at school and depressive illnesses.

Most bullying happens in the playground not the classroom, often out of sight of teachers

Most bullying in the early years of school is physical or direct bullying

Many students with ASD do not comprehend the concept of delaying a response or reaction
so as ‘not to get caught’. It is often the student’s reaction that teachers first see rather than
the bullying. This means the student may be punished for what appears to be an
overreaction to others’ behaviour. Often the bullying that caused the reaction goes
unpunished.

Most students with ASD do not have the social skills and support networks to counter
bullies, thus becoming chronic targets.

Many students with ASD are unaware of the need to ask for assistance; Theory of Mind
difficulties may mean they think teachers know about all incidents and are thus choosing not
to intervene.

Some students with ASD choose to be alone at break times; their isolation can make them
an easy target.
General strategies to reduce bullying in schools
Much of the literature on bullying supports the following:

develop a whole school approach to bullying prevention, including a formal school plan of
action and evaluation, to create a safe and caring environment

create school rules and teach them explicitly so everyone understands what acceptable
behaviour looks like

manage the classroom in a style that supports students to learn alternative behaviours

develop a system for students to safely report an incident to a teacher or the school office, to
prompt action by the school to address the issue

develop cooperative home and school links

develop a student services team that is actively involved in managing incidents

create a safe environment (supervision of ‘hotspots’, safe areas and engaging play areas).
Strategies to reduce the frequency of bullying of students with ASD
Supporting the student with ASD, either as a target or bully, involves identifying strategies that
are compatible with their individual needs, interests and ability to comprehend bullying
incidents.
Most students with ASD are visual learners, so debriefing and problem-solving issues visually
using drawings, actions and symbols enhances comprehension and engagement. Often explicit
teaching is required to teach alternate behaviours; most students with ASD do not know what
else to do in a given situation and may need support to develop proactive strategies that avoid
incidents such as developing play and socials skills, as well as developing coping strategies and
phrases to use ‘on the spot’.
The following strategies may help reduce bullying:

Modify the environment:
o
Identify what is happening at your school. Specifically identify the times, places,
students and activities that are more likely to put students at risk of bullying. Often, less
structured times such as outside play times and any movements or transitions can be
high-risk times for bullying. Adjust supervision accordingly to provide safety.
o
Develop a designated supervised, safe area. Allowing students to access supervised
quiet areas during play and unstructured times reduces the likelihood of them becoming
overwhelmed, upset or overly excited. Quiet or break areas should be developed for
the classroom and the playground. Suggested activities for quiet or break areas include
books, games, puzzles, sensory toys, cubby houses, photo books and music areas.
Teach students to access safe areas.
o
Manage the group size and dynamics to minimise issues. Reducing the group size
and/or limiting contact between specific children supports positive interactions by
recognising the limits individuals are able to sustain interactions. To better monitor
students, as well as making it easier for them to remain calm and positive, stagger
movements, breaks, activities and transitions. Provide more structure at break time
such as designated areas, games, activities and responsibilities for classes or
individuals.


Teach the skills:
o
Develop specific visual school rules regarding bullying. Presenting information visually,
simply and clearly supports comprehension and minimises misunderstandings.
Specifically teach what these rules and consequences mean e.g. bullying is continued
teasing, not accidentally bumping you.
o
Specifically teach and reinforce play skills while supervising play. Teaching students
alternative behaviours to bullying such as turn taking, play skills, strong talking and
ways to initiate conversations and interactions with others minimises bullying
behaviours. Children who are positively involved in play at break times are less likely to
be targets, bullies or bystanders.
o
Identify peer supports. Buddy programs, educating students about differences, teaching
peers how to be peer supports and what responsible bystanders do and say reduces
bullying.
o
Use visual supports such as comic strip drawings and video to clarify what students are
learning and to work out alternate ways of handling situations involving bullying. Adapt
bullying programs to ensure they are visual and concrete for the student with ASD.
o
Specifically teach students with ASD how to remove themselves from bullying or
difficult situations e.g. “smile, talk, walk, and tell an adult” as they are less likely to know
how to do this. Teaching students to ignore bullying is unlikely to work, as it is too
difficult and taxing in the long term.
o
Teach students what they can do if they are bystanders of bullying. This could include:
talking to the target about the bullying; letting the target know you care; including the
target in activities/conversations; sticking up for the target; and telling someone what
has happened.
o
Set up and structure group work opportunities to help students learn more collaborative
and cooperative skills. Look at group composition to help reduce anxiety and exclusion
and ensure that students ‘at-risk’ are in groups where they are most likely to experience
positive interactions.
o
Revise information presented regularly and support students with ASD to adapt this
information to a range of environments and situations by practising/teaching in a range
of environments and situations.
o
Adapt bullying program resources; consider the student’s social comprehension level
that is generally lower than his/her same-aged peers. Ensure resources target the
student’s visual learning preference, have minimal ‘writing’ (circle, draw, choose, fill in
the thought/speech bubbles etc) to engage the student. Use video, role-play or
practise.
o
Use every day games and small group activities to teach turn taking, waiting, social
language and group skills. Games can be simple (snap, memory) or more complex
such as snakes and ladders, or games may be tailored to teach curriculum content as
well. Use concrete and real examples of incidents and interactions to teach.
Address bullying if it occurs:
o
Develop a ’telling plan’ or routine so any issues are quickly identified and may be
addressed e.g. have a debrief after each play; record what happened at break time in
pictures and assign feelings; follow up tasks or future plans to interactions. Teach
students to debrief or tell.
o
Respond to incidents of bullying quickly so students are less likely to seek retribution or
revenge. If necessary, recording incidents to ‘follow up’ later shows you have taken it
seriously.
o
Work closely with parents to identify and respond to specific ongoing incidents. Be
mindful of the long term effects of bullying and social isolation on students. Share
strategies used at school with parents so they may also use and encourage the same
language and strategies.
o
Consider the ‘why’ of bullying behaviour: do they know what else to do, is it a routine,
does it remove the student from a specific activity, can you change the environment?
Teach students how to gain more socially appropriate power by being a leader or a role
model if they consistently demonstrate a need for control and power.
Bullying and social skills resources suitable for young students with ASD
As well as the above referenced resources and authors, there are numerous resources for
bullying available on the web, in books or as reference. As mentioned above, consideration
must be taken to adapt these materials.
The following authors, resources or outlets may have ASD specific or social skills focused
resources that may be adapted for individuals and or classes.

Rigby, K. (2010). Bullying interventions: six basic approaches. ACER Press, Melbourne.

National Autistic Society (UK) has information sheets on bullying.

Gray, C. (2004). Gray's Guide to Bullying. Jenison Autism Journal (Spring 2004).

Gray, C. Sixth Sense II. (A lesson plan to educate children about ASD, individual differences
and suggestions to support interactions.)

Dubin, N. (2007). Asperger Syndrome and Bullying - Strategies and Solutions.

Resources At Hand (Australian ASD resource outlet).

The Friendly Schools and Families Program (A social skills and bullying program available
through the Australian Council for Educational Research.)

McGrath, H. & Noble, T. (2006). Bullying Solutions: Evidence-based Approaches to Bullying
in Australian Schools. Pearson Education.

Bullying- No Way! (Created by Australia’s educational communities and includes dedicated
portals for teachers, parents and students.)

Child and Youth Health (Follow links to ‘Kids Health’ topics and ‘Your School’ for papers “Are
you a Bystander?”, “Bullying”, “Dealing with Bullies”, and “Teasing others and how to stop”.)

The Raising Children Network site contains clear and simple information for parents about
how to spot bullying, bullying at school and what to do if your child is bullying others.

Slee, P. (2001). The P.E.A.C.E. Pack. P-12 program to reduce bullying.
References

Heinrichs, R. (2003). Perfect Targets: Asperger Syndrome and Bullying, Kansas: Autism
Asperger Publishing.

Attwood, T. (2004c). Strategies to reduce the bullying of young children with Asperger
Syndrome. Australian Journal of Early Childhood 29, 15–23.

Slee, P; Bottroff, V; & Michaelsen, K. (2007). Autism Spectrum Disorders, Bullying and
Relationships: A School Community Approach To Intervention. Accessed on 17/01/12 at
http://www.ncab.org.au/Assets/Files/Slee,%20P.%20Bottroff,%20V.%20Michaelson,%20K.%
20Autism%20spectrum%20disorders.pdf