Bullying has become an increasingly growing issue that has affected and taken many lives from our society. Through EIRC’s Gifted and Talented R.O.G.A.T.E. program, I have been able to study the topic in depth and really tap into the world of bullying. R.O.G.A.T.E. is a rigorous program in which students are able to select an important topic of their choice and create a thesis in which they are able to study and conduct in-depth research. After the all information is gathered and organized, students begin to come up with a conclusion that either opposes or supports their hypothesis. When the presentation is finally complete, students are encouraged to present their findings among their peers and other students. With this great program at my reach, I decided to take the opportunity to look into a very common issue in society which was bullying. I gathered up information on the topic and started to think about what I could investigate through my presentation. I finally decided to base my presentation on the effects that programs and presentation based on bullying have on the students. I began to realize that when these presentation were given at schools, many people didn’t have much of a care for them because of how repetitive they had become.
     Programs implemented at school can’t save us from the reality of having to face bullying. For many years, the concept of bullying has always existed no matter whether it stems from mutual dislikes or personal problems that lead someone towards letting their anger out on other people. It is highly imperative that as a society, we take a stand against bullying, however, we should always keep in mind that no matter how much we try, bullying will always be a detriment to our society and exist no matter what. I have found that many of the programs and presentations offered at schools to educate children about bullying, never really impact the students as a whole because of how repetitive they have become in our everyday lives. It within these programs that students are exposed to very harsh and scary realities that come with bullying.
      While many may agree that exposing children to harsh content is a great way of teaching them about the consequences of something, it is very clear that students don’t always learn well by being exposed to things that are different from what they experience in their daily lives. It is very important for schools to understand the importance of bullying and the importance of having different alternatives than just having one presentation on bullying every year. Bullying stems from different things and sometimes it is caused by emotional instability. Due to how deep bullying can really be, it is important that schools take notice that bullying isn’t an issue that can be addressed to students and society as a whole. Bullying must be fought one person at a time which includes the participation of someone qualified such as a counselor. Implementing counselors at schools will not only make students feel as if they have a personal connection to the person, but will decrease the probability of them being bullied since they have someone to vent to. Bullying is a cry for help and within this cry for help, it is our job as a society to recognize these voices and help them out by taking the precautions needed to stop such a thing from stemming into something tragic.

EIRC is a public agency specializing in education-related programs and services for parents, schools, communities, nonprofit organizations and privately held businesses throughout New Jersey. EIRC offers many great resources under one roof ranging from gifted and special education services to creative problem solving…from nationally validated programs in science, mathematics and geography to child care and child assault prevention … from web development, graphics and printing to computer instruction … and from teacher in-service and curriculum design to international exchange programs.
The Gold Satori is one component of ROGATE, a Gifted and Talented program offering.  Students who qualify in Critical Issues may apply for Gold Satori.  Students applying for Gold Satori work independently completing community service and extending their Critical Issues research.  For more information about any of the EIRC programs, visit their website, www.eirc.org