He KiVa method Is an innovative Finnish anti-bullying school-based, research-based and evidence-based program to prevent bullying and to stop harassment occurring both in classrooms and outside.
It promotes personal well-being and education, and provides adequate tools to eradicate Bullying cases And harassment as well as ongoing monitoring of the situation in schools.
It includes a lesson plan aimed at all students focused on bullying prevention, and a series of actions to be used when a case of harassment has been detected and to end the situation.
What is the KiVa method?
It is a Finnish method that fights against bullying, promoting school well-being and education. Having not only the best educational system but also one of the best systems against bullying.
KiVa comes from the Finnish words"Kiusaamista Vastaan", against bullying. Being created in the University of Turku in 2007, realized by experts in the matter and financed by the Ministry of Education and Culture.
90% of schools in Finland use this method, which is already being expanded and is being used in other schools in Belgium, Sweden, Estonia, United Kingdom, New Zealand and Spain, proving its success and effectiveness.
KiVa is scientifically proven under studies that works, with its effects being evaluated as well. In addition, professionals using this method must be trained in the program.
This program focuses on reducing, preventing, and controlling harassment among students of any type, including cyberbullying. Focusing primarily on witnesses and spectators, key aspect of the program, and not exclusively on the victim or victims.
"KiVa tries to change the rules that govern the group. Within the group are the others, those people who do not harass, who observe, who are witnesses and who laugh. Through that non-verbal communication they convey the message that what happens is fun or good, even if they have a different opinion"Christina Salmivalli, professor of Psychology and one of the creators of the program.
The objective is to make the group see that harassment is not fun, that it is not necessary to tolerate it, it is not necessary to see it as things of children and that one does not have to take an attitude of passivity and ignorance.
The group is conscientious to participate and to stop the harassment obtaining, not that the victim changes its attitude, but that that change takes place in the stalker through the influence of the witnesses.
It pretends that the harasser is not supported and that the harassment is not silently accepted, but that these situations are acted on and communicated. Giving that support and protection to the victim to see that she is not alone.
Content of the program
The program consists of three units:
- For ages 6 to 9 years.
- For ages 10 to 12.
- For the transition to secondary education, being only available in Finland.
It has specific material for teachers, students and parents, being a program that is permanently implanted in schools.
The center staff is specifically trained through program professionals. Essential step to understand it, to understand what is intimidation, its mechanisms and its consequences, to know the program in depth, its main ideas and guidelines of action, the content of the program as well as the effective way to implement it.
It consists of 10 lessons and works that are being carried out throughout the course, and where students attend these classes, debate, carry out activities and group work on harassment and respect for others.
Students receive classes on how to improve coexistence and knowledge about different types of harassment, with lessons on respect and empathy, learning through support materials, audiovisuals, video games. As well as materials for teachers and talks for parents.
In addition, a virtual mailbox was set up for those students who did not want to make public their situation in front of other classmates and through him to tell that they are victims, or for students to report situations they are witnessing.
There are also recreational watchers, who are the students themselves and wear reflective vests, to raise awareness and to remember that they are responsible for the safety of all.
On the other hand, each school has a team of three professionals who are alert and begin to act as soon as they are aware of a bullying or cyberbullying situation.
"First they act as a filter, to recognize if it is a systematic harassment or something punctual. Then they meet with the victim for support, help and reassurance. They also talk to stalkers so they are aware of their actions and change them,"Christina Salmivalli recalls.
This program focuses on three main axes:
-School . Provide key information on harassment, how to address harassment, and encourage commitment by all parties.
-Class . To influence students so that they do not remain silent and do not accept situations of abuse.
-Students . Address situations of harassment in an effective way and with a follow-up of the situation.
Education system in Finland
In this country, education is a key issue, occupying the First places in education In the Global Economic Forum's Global Competitiveness Index (ICG).
Finland is considered one of the most innovative countries in Europe and a country with one of the best education systems in the world, according to the PISA reports.
The compulsory school is governed by a series of clear demands that is reflected in the curriculum, with an effective service of support to the students, attaches great importance to the profession of the teacher becoming a very requested race while being selective .
In addition, once compulsory education is completed, different options are offered to students to decide on the continuation of their professional studies, taking into account their will and interests.
The obligation of the teacher is to create interest and encourage students to learn, but without demands.
Teachers are the key to improving education, so they are chosen from among the best students, educated by the best professionals, secured by a job once they finish their training, are valued and during the first years of their training Follow up.
They attract the most capable people, offer them a good position and salary, and show them great appreciation for wanting to stay in the profession and to teach the students, and learn everything they can.
The PISA reports show how Finland is the leading country according to data obtained in Reading Comprehension, Mathematics and Natural Sciences in 15-year-old students. In addition, these results are not only surpassed by the different countries, but also surpassed by themselves compared to previous results.
The emphasis is on equality and on the fact that everyone can achieve the same results, organizing a pedagogical support for students who present problems, the school begins at age 7. With 16 years and once the compulsory education is finished, it is possible to decide whether to continue one more year if they need it, or to accede to the Superior Secondary of three years and not obligatory.
With this it can be entered later to technical training races and existing"runways"for the student who wants to change orientation. To obtain a postponement at the University you must pass a national exam and then a selection test as there are more candidates than places. Very important in explaining the assiduity of students with university aspirations.
The system is relatively cheap, given a few hours for a few years, the salary is sufficient, the teachers are well prepared and work hard, the students too. Tolerance is key and the socialization of students is also emphasized.
Evidence of program effectiveness
In Finland it has been evaluated through a randomized study that included 117 control schools and 117 intervention schools. Demonstrating that the KiVa method reduces bullying and victimization and increases motivation, academic achievement, perception of a positive group climate as well as reducing anxiety and depression.
After the intervention, 98% of the victims said their situation improved.
Data from more than 1000 Finnish schools showed that after the first year of program implementation, bullying and harassment had been significantly reduced.
This program has won the European Prize for Crime Prevention (2009), Best Social Policy Award (2012) and National Awards in 2008, 2010, 2011 and 2012.
Implementation of the program in Hispanic countries
In 2015 the first phase of implementation of the program began in schools that use English as a language of instruction since the materials in Spanish are in development.
The previous training is offered in collaboration with EduDesign Finland, its co-founder, Tiina Mäkelä, is KiVa's first certified trainer in Spanish America.
"The pioneering schools to implement KiVa this school year are showing great enthusiasm for the tools that this program offers to prevent, monitor and address bullying in schools. Many of them are also interested in sharing their experiences to promote the implementation of KiVa in their region. During the academic year 2015-16, we are also collecting qualitative data and case studies of the implementation of KiVa in these pioneering schools."
The Scandinavian School of Madrid is one of the first schools in which the program has been implemented, in Spain. Jenny Dettmann, its director, comments:
"Respect, empathy and inclusion are fundamental values of our school. The KiVa program has given us concrete tools to work with these values. We now teach KiVa classes as a new subject in elementary school."
The Torrequebrada International College (CIT), located in Benalmádena (Malaga), is also one of the first to implement it. Its director Sonia Díez says:"Kiva is not only a philosophy, it is a plan that implies actions, tools and concrete measures to avoid bullying."
The director of the Federico Malpica Escalae Institute (the first organization to implement KiVa in Spanish-speaking countries) explains:
"Finland's know-how in education has received the full attention of Spain and the Hispanic world. We are delighted to be at the forefront of offering Finnish educational solutions in Latin America. Although KiVa has been developed to prevent bullying, we believe that its versatile and student-centered methods and materials give an idea of what the Finnish teaching and learning system is like."
What is bullying?
Harassment among schoolchildren is an increasing and frequent problem in classrooms, better known as bullying .
It is a physical and psychological abuse that occurs repeatedly and over time, and with it the abusers intend to subdue and annul their victims.
Bullying has become one of the most Social problems The most worrisome, especially parents. So it is important to be alert and identify cases of harassment or abuse of power, in order not to get to the passivity that is so frequent in this type of situations.
It is also necessary to be trained and informed in the matter in order to be able to identify these cases more clearly since stalkers and harassed have certain established profiles.
Some clear signs that a child is being harassed would be a sudden change in school performance, mood swings, not wanting to go to class, the onset of somatic symptoms, anxiety I depression . This problem can lead to very serious consequences for children, even suicide , in the worst case.
The types of harassment that may appear would be Physical harassment When aggressions such as punching, kicking, pushing, etc. appear; Verbal harassment Such as tagging, insulting, recording the victim or taking pictures while you paste them to upload them to the internet, etc; Psychological harassment With the purpose of completely annulling the person and undermining his self-esteem; And social harassment, pretending to isolate the person.
He Cyberbullying is another one Type of bullying Which has appeared along with the new technologies, being very worrying to move that abuse outside the classroom and extending to the victims' homes.
Bullying figures in Spain
- One in ten children report being bullied.
- 1.6% of children suffer repeated harassment and 5.7% suffer sporadically.
-16% of children acknowledge having participated in some act of harassment towards a partner.
-The Institute for Educational Assessment and Counseling (IDEA) indicates that 49% of children report being criticized or insulted. And 13.4% acknowledge having hit a partner.
References
- RAE. Definition of Bullying . Excerpted from definicion.de
- Kiva Program . Excerpted from kivaprogram.net
- Kiva Program. First steps in the implementation of the Finnish anti-bullying program . Excerpted from kivaprogram.net
- Biobiochile. The Kiva method that ended the bullying in schools in Finland. De biochile.cl.
- UCM Library. The Kiva method against bullying . Article e-learning innov.
- Enkvist I. (2010). The Finnish educational success. Lipstick (3), p. 49-67.