Teacher–Student Agreement on “Bullies and Kids They Pick On” in Elementary School Classrooms: Gender and Grade Differences

Abstract

This article examined teacher–student agreement on the measure: “bullies and kids they pick on” in 38 (15 first, 12 third, and 11 fifth grade) elementary school classrooms. Overall agreement between teachers and students was low, 7.9%. The frequency of bully–victim dyads reported by teachers and victim prominence were positive predictors, and class size was a negative predictor, of teacher–student agreement. Gender and grade differences emerged. Teacher–student agreement was higher for boy–boy and girl–girl than girl–boy bully–victim dyads. The agreement on boy–boy bully–victim dyads was higher in 5th than in the 1st grade classrooms. Limitations and educational implications of these findings are discussed.