Abstract:

The paper presents the results of a qualitative study on bullying in elementary schools in the Czech Republic. The main objective is to define how current teachers perceive their readiness to deal with bullying in elementary schools. This objective served as a basis for defining the following research questions: How do current teachers perceive their readiness to deal with bullying in elementary schools?, What is the effect of the length of teaching experience on teachers’ readiness to deal with bullying in elementary schools?, Can teachers rely on the internal system of the school designed to prevent or address bullying in elementary schools?.

The data collection method was the semi-structured interview. For the purposes of the research a theoretical and descriptive content analysis was applied. The research categories were established by means of the clustering method based on the semi-structured interview.
According to the results, the respondents confirmed insufficient readiness to deal with bullying in elementary schools. They confirmed that the length of teaching experience is crucial to deal with bullying. As far as functioning inside the school in concerned, the respondents believe that positive aspects include sharing experiences and a team approach in addressing this phenomenon.

Keywords:

Bullying, elementary school, teacher, qualitative research.