There are no bullies in College
My daughter, who is 10, has had a few issues with subtle bullying at her elementary school. Things involving one particular clique where this one group of girls play tricks to let her know that she isn't welcome. In one instance, these girls asked to meet her out at the far area of the playground. When my daughter got there, they all ran off, leaving her alone. Pretty tame, but still not too nice.
She recently brought home her report card and it was all "plusses", meaning that she is exceeding requirements in most of her subjects. I told her how important report cards are as we really want her to go to college (both her mom and I attended college), and I added, "there are no bullies in college".
This got me thinking. There really aren't bullies in college (of if there are, it seems to be very rare).
Like my daughter, I am farily short, which got me some unwanted attention in school. But once I made it into college (UCSB in this case), I was free. Suddenly, people just seemed nicer. Almost everyone you would meet appreciated differences rather than using them as a point of ridicule. I was accepted. Even more, I was appreciated for who I was and what I could bring to the table. What a nice change.
College is a place where young people seek knowledge and truth. They are taught how to think critically; to figure out what is likely true and what is likely garbage. Its a skill that is sorely needed in today's world where so much "knowledge" is handed down and "belief" trumps critical thinking.
Still, the nagging question is why don't bullies make it to college? Could it be that this type of closed minded behavior correlates to poor grades and a lower probably of collage acceptance? Perhaps the same social environment that encourages this behavior, in the end discourages the exercising of the brain. Whatever it is, it is kind of nice. Because kids can know that if they can get into college, they will very likely be free of bullies.
I will continue to encourage my daughter to get good grades and make it to college. I believe she will discover the same happiness I discovered there. Life has so much more to offer when you are hanging out with smarter people. And you find those smarter people in college and later in a professional career. Its a better life, period.
