Bullying by Teachers Towards Students—a Scoping Review

Abstract

Bullying between peers is a well-known fact and during the last 20 years there has been considerable research on this topic. A topic that has received much less attention is bullying by teachers towards students. This article aims to review the research literature that exists on this important topic. The review covers articles about teacher bullying in elementary, primary, lower, and upper secondary schools, in a retrospective, prospective, or current perspective. The results show that teacher bullying occurs within school contexts all over the world in various ways and to various extents. Although the prevalence rates of bullying behaviors from school staff towards students vary greatly, from 0.6 to almost 90%, this review clearly shows there is a need to pay more attention to this challenge. Several studies show that being exposed to teacher bullying can adversely affect a child’s physical and mental health, participation in education and working life, and sense of well-being in adulthood. There is a need to address this topic in practical work, in teacher education, and in anti-bullying programs. Teacher bullying is also an important topic for future research.