So it continues, bullying. When it occurs in a high school, administrators scramble to hire anti-bullying speakers to address the issue by hosting school assemblies. In addition to having a bullying policy in place, schools should address bullying by hiring a professional bullying speaker.
Why are school assemblies important?
School assemblies are important because it’s an easy way to relay a message toward a specific topic to the entire student population. Not all school assemblies address an issue. Some assemblies are used to encourage students to do well on a state test for example. Others are used for fun or as a reward for good behavior, like a pep rally. Here are 5 school assembly planning tips to assist you as you prepare for your next event.
Positive School Climate Increases Student Academics
Continue to have school assemblies as research shows, schools that continue to foster a positive school climate, score high in academics.
Students want to perform well. If the school culture is to do the very minimum, it will become a low performing school. However, if the school administration raises the standards on their students and teachers, the school will ultimately improve academically. Hence the quote: “My teacher thought I was smart, so I was.”
Having a positive school climate has nothing to do with social economic status of the neighborhood, any school regardless of race and income levels, can have happy teachers and students.
Why Anti-Bullying Speakers?
There is no shortage of speakers that will speak on a popular topic. In fact, some speakers will change their topic just to get hired. When hiring a speaker to tackle subjects such as drug prevention, suicide or bullying, remember that they are representing the school as a consultant. Do you really want to create unnecessary controversy? Do you want upset parents? The saying still stands, “you get what you pay for.”
Experience. Make hiring an anti-bullying speaker a line item in your school budget or have the school’s Parent Teacher Association sponsor an event. If you’re an event planner trying to book speakers to tackle prevention issues without a budget, you’re in a vulnerable situation. If you look for the cheapest speakers on the market, you’ll find the least experienced. It’s true. What experienced expert do you know that travels the country spreading their message at no cost?
Relatable. As you watch dozens of speaking videos online of speakers, consider how well they will relate to your students. If you have students that are fun, hire a speaker uses humor to motivate teens. If you have students that are more serious, you may invite a prevention company that sends out presenters and is more about a movement. Do not invite a person solely on the fact that they are famous or from a sports team. These folks create a lot of hype and are much more effective for a pep-rally or a basic motivational message, not prevention.
Authentic. A true communicator knows how to bring themselves into the presentation. In fact, students know when a presenter is being fake or trying to be cool just because they’re talking to teens. Hire a speaker that is authentic and real. After the presentation, you’ll see how some students were touched by the authenticity of the speaker by walking up to him/her and sharing how the message really spoke to them.
In conclusion, when searching anti-bullying speakers for middle schools, hire a person with experience that can relate to your student demographics and that will be authentic with your students.
