Reading Partridge's 'The Goblet Club' as an Integral Part of a Secondary School's Anti-Bullying Programme

Notwithstanding legislation and individual schools' codes of conduct prohibiting bullying, bullying is an escalating problem in South African schools. It seems as if existing anti-bullying policies, programmes and intervention strategies are failing to address the scourge. Bibliotherapy has been identified as a way to strengthen schools' existing anti-bullying programmes. This paper reports on findings from an investigation into the suitability of reading Partridge's "The Goblet Club" during bibliotherapy sessions which form an integral part of a school's anti-bullying programme. The study found that "The Goblet Club" gives an authentic, well-researched portrayal of bullying among boys, as well as teacher-on-learner bullying. The book sheds light on the bullies, victims, bully-victims and bystanders, types of bullying, and coping strategies employed by the fictional victims of bullying. The reading of Partridge's "The Goblet Club" as part of a school's anti-bullying programme will give learners the opportunity to use the fictional characters' struggles and aggression to gain insight into their own nemeses, different types of bullying, and the effectiveness of coping strategies. [For the complete Volume 15 proceedings, see ED574185.]