There’s a moment many teachers recognise. A student who used to raise their hand is now sitting quietly. A confident child begins asking, ‘May I go to the washroom?’ as soon as group work starts. Someone’s attendance slips from Monday to Wednesday, then a full week. When you finally ask, softly, ‘Kya masla hai?’ you often get the same answer: ‘Nothing, miss/sir. Bas… aise hi.’
In our schools across Pakistan, bullying rarely arrives as a clear headline. It shows up like a fog: small comments, private jokes, class WhatsApp groups, a nickname that becomes a label, a photo edited and shared, a voice note forwarded ‘for fun.’ The child keeps going to school, but something inside them stops feeling safe.
And that’s the real issue: bullying isn’t only about a bad moment. It’s about a student’s sense of safety, belonging, and izzat.
Continue reading “Not ‘Mazaaq’: Bullying & Cyberbullying in Pakistan, How It Hurts Our Students and What Schools Can Do Better”