Schools Without Scars

The dynamics of bullying from early 2026 to the present continue unabated. Behind neat uniforms and what should be a warm learning environment, there lie silent stories of children who feel unsafe in spaces that should protect them.

Every time such news is read, the author always wonders: when did schools become frightening places for some children? In the past, the author was convinced that school was a safe second home.

The problem of bullying in the school environment is not new, but it remains an unresolved issue. Data from KPAI (Indonesian Child Protection Commission) and Jaringan Pemantau Pendidikan Indonesia (JPPI - Indonesian Education Monitoring Network) show that cases of violence against children increased sharply in 2024, with an increase of more than 100 percent compared to 2023.

Throughout 2024, 573 cases of bullying were recorded, a significant increase compared to the 285 cases recorded in 2023. Ironically, this cycle continues into 2025, where KPAI reports a total of 2,031 cases of child rights violations with 2,063 children affected throughout the year.

Low Awareness

In practice, bullying often manifests in forms considered “trivial,” such as teasing, derogatory nicknames, and social exclusion. Many still consider it a normal joke, but KemenPPPA (Ministry of Women Empowerment and Child Protection) describes this phenomenon as an iceberg, where many victims are reluctant to report due to fear or shame.

The author remembers a child being teased about their hair, another given a degrading nickname, and yet another slowly excluded from social circles without drama.

If this continues unchecked, schools may lose their function as safe spaces, and the learning process will no longer be a pleasant experience.

The main problem lies in the low awareness of students about the impact of bullying. Many students do not yet understand that simple words they say can hurt others. How often do we hear the sentence: “They’re just kids, it’s normal to joke around.”

In fact, that is precisely the problem. When children are allowed to get used to teasing, they are learning that hurting other people’s feelings is okay, as long as it is wrapped in the word “joke.”

UNICEF Indonesia data from 2020 (re-released in 2024) shows that the prevalence of bullying in Indonesia reaches 41 percent among 15-year-old students, meaning almost half of children that age have been victims. In addition, victims often choose to remain silent.

The KPAI revealed that 66.3 percent of child rights violation cases do not include the identity of the perpetrator, which indicates a lack of courage from the victim or family to reveal the actual perpetrator. Fear, shame, and the belief that reporting will not change anything cause these cases to continue without adequate handling.

The phenomenon of bullying does not stand alone. The Federation of Indonesian Teachers Unions (FSGI) reported that from January to July 2024, there were 15 cases of violence in educational environments classified as severe and handled by the police, with 5 victims dying due to physical violence committed by peers or older students.

This figure shows that weak supervision, lack of enforcement of rules, and suboptimal character education are interrelated factors.

From Home

On the other hand, the influence of social media also exacerbates the situation, where teasing behavior is often considered funny and worth imitating. The 2024 National Survey on Children and Adolescent Life Experiences (SNPHAR) confirms that 14.49 percent of boys and 13.78 percent of girls aged 13-17 have experienced cyberbullying.

Deeper still, this shows that values of empathy and mutual respect have not been truly instilled.

In fact, our religion has long reminded us: “Let not one group mock another, for it is possible that they are better than them” (QS. Al-Hujurat: 11).

The impact is also not simple: victims can experience anxiety, loss of self-confidence, and in extreme cases, loss of life.

In everyday classroom situations, this is often seen without realizing it. The author once witnessed a simple incident that continues to resonate today. In a class, a student came forward to speak. Their voice was soft, slightly hesitant because they were nervous. Suddenly, some friends in the back laughed softly.

Not loud, not long, but enough to make the child immediately stop and freeze in place. That day passed as usual. No one considered it special. The teacher may not have heard it. But for that child, something may have changed forever. Perhaps from that moment on, they chose never to try speaking in public again.

Experiences like this, if allowed to repeat, can trigger long-term trauma for students. Data from the Ministry of Health also recorded 2,621 cases of bullying in the Doctor Specialist Education program throughout 2025, proving that a culture of bullying has taken root even at the higher education level.

From this, it is clear that bullying does not always come in large forms; it often comes quietly, in words that are considered light.

According to the author, the approach to bullying in Indonesia is still too reactive. Action is only taken when the problem has occurred and gone viral on social media, rather than being prevented from the start. So far, we have been acting after it is too late: after there are victims, after major news shocks the public.

In fact, the Indonesian Child Protection Commission (KPAI) recorded that throughout 2025, biological fathers (9 percent) and biological mothers (8.2 percent) were the most common perpetrators of child rights violations, followed by school officials and other perpetrators.

This shows that character education must start at home.