St Francis Xavier’s seeks to be a place of acceptance, affirmation and justice. We believe that bullying strikes at the very basis of these values and prevents students from reaching for excellence in every dimension of their lives. Students are entitled to receive their education free from humiliation, harassment, oppression and abuse.
Bullying affects everyone, not just the bullies and the victims. It also affects those who may witness violence, intimidation and the distress of the victim. The latter may especially affect family relationships. Bullying can also damage the atmosphere of a class and even the climate of a school.
Bullying behaviour is in conflict with the care values and purpose of a Catholic school. Bullying needs to be recognised, named and addressed to ensure St Francis Xavier’s works towards an authentic Christian school culture.
At St Francis Xavier’s we explicitly teach and integrate the four key values of Respect, Responsibility, Dignity and Faith into everything we do. Our aim is to provide the students with information and knowledge about what each targeted value looks like, sounds like and feels like, to encourage them to practice these values inside and outside the classroom and to adopt these behaviours as their own.