The <\/a>2024 Violence Atlas, <\/em>developed by the Brazilian Institute of Geography and Statistics (IBGE) using data from the Information System for Notifiable Illnesses and Injuries (SINAN), the Ministry of Health, and the National School Health Survey (PeNSE), indicates that the number of students being bullied has increased. In 2009, the percentage of students in Brazilian schools who reported having been victims of bullying was 30.9%, a number that rose to 40.5% in 2019. \u201cWhat\u2019s more, the proportion of elementary school students who stopped going to school that year because they felt unsafe was 11.4%, more than double the 5.4% recorded in 2009,\u201d reports economist Daniel Cerqueira of the Institute for Applied Economic Research (IPEA), which carried out the study in partnership with the Brazilian Public Security Forum (FBSP).<\/p>\n Cerqueira believes that the increase shown in official statistics can be partly explained by improvements to SINAN, which computes information on diseases and injuries, including victims of fatal and nonfatal attacks at schools who arrive at public and private hospitals. \u201cHowever, improvements in data collection do not explain such sharp rises,\u201d notes the economist. He highlights the political radicalization process that began in the country in 2013 as something that has affected the way people treat each other. According to Cerqueira, statements made by public figures downplaying violence have helped create an environment in which aggressive and intolerant discourse is normal, which may have negatively affected the atmosphere in schools. Another aspect highlighted by the researcher is the increase in domestic violence against children and teenagers. According to the 2024 Violence Atlas<\/em>, in 2009, 9.5% of elementary school students in Brazilian state capitals reported having been assaulted by a family member in the last 30 days\u2014this percentage had risen to 16.1% by 2019. \u201cThe violence and neglect suffered at home impacts the school environment. Aggression functions as a form of defense and reaffirmation, albeit inverted, of the young person\u2019s self-esteem,\u201d explains the researcher.<\/p>\n Valentina Fraiz<\/span>Valentina FraizValentina Fraiz<\/span><\/p><\/div>\n Angela Soligo, a psychologist from the University of Campinas (UNICAMP), points to the devaluation of teaching as a profession, the discontinuation of educational policies, and the poor quality of school infrastructure as other contributors to the rise in school violence. Soligo led a national study on violence and discrimination in schools, carried out in partnership with federal universities from across the country and published in 2018. The researchers identified institutional prejudices in curricula, teaching materials, and pedagogical relationships as factors that can exacerbate the situation. According to Soligo, federal laws 10,639 of 2003 and 11,645 of 2008, which require schools to teach the history of African and Indigenous peoples, are often not followed. \u201cThe misrepresentation of certain social groups in teaching materials ends up perpetuating prejudice,\u201d she says. To make things worse, students who experience racism, sexism, or homophobia are not always well supported by school management.<\/p>\n On the lack of visibility of negative experiences among students, psychologist Jo\u00e3o Galv\u00e3o Bacchetto of the National Institute for Educational Studies and Research (INEP) carried out an analysis by sending questionnaires to school principals in the Basic Education Assessment System (SAEB). The survey received 63,000 responses. One of the most striking findings was the high number of schools that claim not to experience any type of violence: 40% of respondents stated they had not recorded any incidents. Another 20% reported only occasional episodes of low severity. Bacchetto believes the data reveals a mismatch between student suffering and recognition of the problem by school management. \u201cViolence is also a matter of perception. Many schools do not know how to recognize it,\u201d he says.<\/p>\n Telma Vinha, a pedagogue at UNICAMP, agrees that this is one of the elements that negatively affects the institutional climate, a concept that describes the collective perceptions and expectations of the school community, resulting from the shared experiences of its members. She points out that in some schools, 100% of the leadership says that there are few disagreements between students in the final years of elementary school, while more than half of the students say that there are many conflicts between them. \u201cChildren rarely tell adults about their troubles. It is therefore essential to listen to them on these issues,\u201d says the researcher. Vinha is currently leading a study on the topic as part of the Group for Ethics, Diversity, and Democracy in Public Schools at UNICAMP\u2019s Institute of Advanced Studies and the Moral Education Research and Study Group (GEPEM), which also includes specialists from S\u00e3o Paulo State University (UNESP).<\/p>\n Being too liberal with the concept of bullying is another problem, according to Soligo. \u201cClassifying racism and misogyny as bullying ends up obscuring the reason behind the aggression, making it difficult to formulate an effective response,\u201d she explains. Soligo says schools often seek to resolve conflicts labeled as bullying through mediated conversations between the aggressor and the victim. \u201cMediation helps to resolve specific disagreements, but if no effort is made to discuss racism and misogyny, for example, the problem behavior is simply repeated with other students in the future,\u201d warns the psychologist.<\/p>\n For UNESP pedagogue Luciene Regina Paulino Tognetta, confronting discrimination in the school environment requires more than reactionary projects\u2014a structural transformation is needed. Having researched the subject of school violence since 2006, Tognetta is currently involved in partnerships with the municipal education departments of Vit\u00f3ria (Espirito Santo) and S\u00e3o Paulo, seeking ways to improve interpersonal relationships. \u201cWe have found that having an antiracism policy is not enough if you do not also rethink the school\u2019s entire organizational structure,\u201d she emphasizes. This means, for example, that the institution should have Black professionals on its management team if it wishes to be capable of properly supporting victims of racism. \u201cThis is something that requires empathy and cannot be done by White people alone,\u201d continues Tognetta.<\/p>\n She believes that one of the flaws of private schools is their resistance to contact child protective services in serious situations out of fear of the families’ reaction and negative press. \u201cThis is an essential resource in cases of negligence. If a student repeatedly displays behavior of bullying a classmate, they need psychological support. If the parents do not provide this support, child protective services must be contacted,\u201d argues the researcher. Psychologist Jos\u00e9 Leon Croch\u00edck of the University of S\u00e3o Paulo (USP) stresses that holding the aggressor accountable must be considered carefully. Punishment may involve suspension or expulsion, depending on the student’s record. In serious cases, the parents of the victim commonly ask for the aggressors to be expelled. However, Croch\u00edck warns that this is not always the best response. \u201cSchool serves a social purpose. Expelling a student can make them more aggressive and can stigmatize them, making their social life difficult,\u201d he explains.<\/p>\n With the aim of investigating how bullying and discrimination manifest themselves in the school environment, Croch\u00edck led research funded by the Brazilian National Council for Scientific and Technological Development (CNPq) that involved 12 other Brazilian universities and institutions in Argentina, Spain, Mexico, and Portugal. Conducted between 2018 and 2021, the study looked at some 3,000 students from 89 public and private elementary and high schools in the participating countries. The results indicate that students who perform well academically are rarely victims or perpetrators of bullying, while those who struggle in the classroom but excel in competitive physical activities may be among the bullies. “Bullying is linked to hierarchical relationships based on the use of force and submission of the weakest,\u201d explains Croch\u00edck. With part of a research grant from FAPESP’s Public Education Program, the researcher is currently working on actions designed to combat discrimination and bullying in three public schools in S\u00e3o Paulo.<\/p>\n Classifying racism and misogyny as bullying masks the reason behind the attacks<\/p><\/blockquote>\n Marian \u00c1vila de Lima e Dias, a psychologist from UNIFESP who co-led the study, explains that the victims are usually \u201cinvisible students,\u201d meaning they are neither among the best nor the worst in the class and are rarely chosen for collective activities. \u201cThe average student, who does not stand out in terms of academics or sociability, is more likely to be the target of aggression,\u201d points out the researcher, who is studying violence in schools in Guarulhos, S\u00e3o Paulo, with funding from FAPESP. Another statistic identified by the study reveals a correlation between aggressors and victims: of every 10 students who suffer bullying, three go on to become bullies in the future. \u201cBut the opposite also occurs: three of every 10 aggressors end up as victims themselves,\u201d highlights Dias. The research also found that prejudiced attitudes are often related to what the aggressors perceive as weaknesses. \u201cBecause of this, marginalized groups, such as people with disabilities, are often the targets of this type of aggression,\u201d says the psychologist.<\/p>\n Violence in the school environment is also manifesting in less visible ways, according to Tognetta. By analyzing data from the S\u00e3o Paulo State Department of Education (SEDUC-SP), she determined that between 2019 and 2023, the number of cases related to psychological suffering among students in the state school system jumped from 117 to 3,100. In the same period, suicide by students increased from 7 to 67, while attempts rose from 9 to 325. \u201cThe central issue is not just that violence is exploding in schools, but that violence is imploding in individuals, leading teenagers to social isolation and encouraging them to seek out extremist groups online. If school does not welcome them, someone else will,\u201d she warns. Tognetta points out that the impacts of the COVID-19 pandemic, which negatively affected many students’ mental health, are still being felt to this day.<\/p>\n To understand how state and municipal education departments deal with violence in schools, sociologist Fl\u00e1via Pereira Xavier of the Federal University of Minas Gerais (UFMG) led a national survey of managers from education departments in 14 states and 182 municipalities. The study, funded by the Lemann Center, was designed to ensure regional representation and took into account different levels of the Municipal Human Development Index (IDHM). The researchers looked at five ways the departments manage school climate, atmosphere, and violence. The first related to how school principals report problems to their local education secretary and whether the secretary takes an active role in the dialogue. The second assessed whether education departments make efforts to improve the school climate, including through measures for conflict prevention and management, social and emotional development, psychosocial support, and ongoing training on bullying. The third examined the guidelines and resources provided by the departments to improve the school climate, considering guidance from institutional documents, the existence of a sector responsible for oversight, and funding given to schools. The fourth looked at the perception of principals regarding partnerships between education departments and institutions of the judiciary, social assistance centers, and health agencies. The fifth was whether the department recommends the inclusion of topics such as inequality and discrimination in school documents and training.<\/p>\n \u201cWe found that only 4.1% of the surveyed education departments have a robust structure to deal with school violence through coordinated actions in all five of the dimensions analyzed and partnerships with agencies such as the public prosecutor’s office and specialist social assistance centers [CREAS],\u201d warns the sociologist. According to the study, most departments have some form of program to address school violence, but there is no integrated approach. \u201cThe survey reinforced the need to strengthen the link between education, health, and social assistance, in addition to ensuring that initiatives designed to improve the school climate are continuous and interconnected with public security and justice policies,\u201d concludes the researcher.<\/p>\n The story above was published with the title “Aggression in education<\/strong>” in issue in issue 350 of april\/2025.<\/p>\n Projects Scientific articles<\/strong> Report<\/strong> Books<\/strong>![\"\"](\"https:\/\/revistapesquisa.fapesp.br\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/11\/rpf-violencia-nas-escolas-2025-04-2-800.jpg\")
![](\"\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/11\/RPF-violencianasescolas-2025-04-info2-ING-DESK.png\")
\n <\/picture>Alexandre Affonso \/ Revista Pesquisa FAPESP<\/span>\nValentina Fraiz<\/span><\/p>\n
\n– Hate speech provokes violence in schools<\/a><\/div>\n![\"\"](\"https:\/\/revistapesquisa.fapesp.br\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/11\/rpf-violencia-nas-escolas-2025-04-4-1140.jpg\")
Valentina Fraiz<\/span><\/p>\n
\n1. <\/strong>Tackling bullying and discrimination in public schools<\/em> (n\u00ba 19\/13579-3<\/a>); Grant Mechanism <\/strong>Public Education Program;\u00a0Principal Investigator<\/strong>\u00a0Jos\u00e9 Leon Croch\u00edck (USP);\u00a0Investment<\/strong>\u00a0R$433,869.30.
\n2. <\/strong>Tackling bullying and discrimination in public schools in Guarulhos<\/em> (n\u00ba 22\/06831-0<\/a>) Grant Mechanism <\/strong>Public Education Program; Principal Investigator <\/strong>Marian \u00c1vila de Lima e Dias (UNIFESP); Investment <\/strong>R$86,745.40.<\/p>\n
\nCROCH\u00cdK, J. L.\u00a0Personalidades autorit\u00e1rias e preconceitos: Rela\u00e7\u00f5es<\/a>.\u00a0Psicologia Argumento<\/strong>. 39(107), 1181\u201398. 2021.
\nBOZZA, T. C. L. & VINHA, T. P.\u00a0Cyberbullying, cyber agress\u00e3o e riscos on-line: Como a escola pode atuar diante dos problemas da (cyber)conviv\u00eancia<\/a>.\u00a0Revista Ibero-americana de Estudos em Educa\u00e7\u00e3o<\/strong>. Araraquara, Vol. 18, no. 00. 2023.
\nPAULINO TOGNETTA, L. R. & BARBOSA ABDALLA, M. de F.\u00a0A implementa\u00e7\u00e3o de um programa de conviv\u00eancia para escolas: Bases e desafios de ponta a ponta<\/a>.\u00a0Revista On-line de Pol\u00edtica e Gest\u00e3o Educacional<\/strong>. Araraquara, Vol. 26, no. esp.3. 2022.
\nDIAS, M. \u00c1. de L.\u00a0et al<\/em>.\u00a0As hierarquias escolares e a viol\u00eancia entre estudantes<\/a>.\u00a0Campinas: Educ. Puc<\/strong>. Vol. 28. 2023.<\/p>\n
\nXAVIER, F. P. (Coord). Gest\u00e3o das redes de ensino e clima escolar: Mapeamento das a\u00e7\u00f5es e uma proposta de matriz avaliativa sens\u00edvel \u00e0 equidade.\u00a0Centro Lemann<\/strong>, Nupede, UFMG, 2024.<\/p>\n
\nCROCH\u00cdCK, J. L. e CROCH\u00cdCK, N.\u00a0Bullying, preconceito e desempenho escolar: Uma nova perspectiva<\/strong>. S\u00e3o Paulo: Benjamin Editorial, 2017.
\nZUIN, A. S.\u00a0F\u00faria narc\u00edsica entre alunos e professores: As pr\u00e1ticas de cyberbullying e os tabus presentes na profiss\u00e3o de ensinar<\/strong>. S\u00e3o Carlos: Edufscar, 2021.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"Lack of policies to improve togetherness and the deteriorating educational infrastructure contribute to a rise in aggression at institutions across the country","protected":false},"author":601,"featured_media":566451,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_acf_changed":false,"_exactmetrics_skip_tracking":false,"_exactmetrics_sitenote_active":false,"_exactmetrics_sitenote_note":"","_exactmetrics_sitenote_category":0,"footnotes":""},"categories":[156,165],"tags":[226],"coauthors":[1600],"class_list":["post-566450","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-cover","category-humanities","tag-education"],"acf":[],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/revistapesquisa.fapesp.br\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/566450","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/revistapesquisa.fapesp.br\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/revistapesquisa.fapesp.br\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/revistapesquisa.fapesp.br\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/601"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/revistapesquisa.fapesp.br\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=566450"}],"version-history":[{"count":5,"href":"https:\/\/revistapesquisa.fapesp.br\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/566450\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":569425,"href":"https:\/\/revistapesquisa.fapesp.br\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/566450\/revisions\/569425"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/revistapesquisa.fapesp.br\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/566451"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/revistapesquisa.fapesp.br\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=566450"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/revistapesquisa.fapesp.br\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=566450"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/revistapesquisa.fapesp.br\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=566450"},{"taxonomy":"author","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/revistapesquisa.fapesp.br\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/coauthors?post=566450"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}
![](\"\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/11\/RPF-violencianasescolas-2025-04-info1-ING-DESK.png\")
\n <\/picture>Alexandre Affonso \/ Revista Pesquisa FAPESP<\/span><\/div>\n
![\"\"](\"https:\/\/revistapesquisa.fapesp.br\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/11\/rpf-violencia-nas-escolas-2025-04-3-1140.jpg\")
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