site.bta"Violence Is Powerlessness" Campaign Aims to Reach 100,000 Students

The "Violence Is Powerlessness" campaign, launched by Bulgaria’s Ministry of Education and Science (MES) and Ministry of Interior (MoI) to tackle aggression among young people, aims to reach 100,000 students in more than 1,000 schools, Education and Science Minister Georgi Valchev said on Wednesday at a joint briefing with Interior Minister Ivan Demerdzhiev at the Council of Ministers.

The initiative has so far targeted students in eighth and ninth grade, Valchev explained. In October, the Ministry of Education and Science will establish 28 working groups, each consisting of three members — a coordinator, a psychologist and a teacher — representing each of Bulgaria’s 28 administrative regions. The groups will conduct training sessions at regional education authorities and schools across the country, the minister said.

Valchev said he believes that the Bulgarian family is in crisis, as are all institutions, including the Bulgarian school system. He described young people as having become “wandering atoms with phones in their hands, looking for likes and unable to find their place in the crystal lattice of society,” which he said was a fundamental problem.

He pointed out that years of focusing on reporting projects without seeking tangible results have contributed to serious attempts by young people to isolate themselves, form small, closed groups, and, under various pressures in social media, construct their own heroic image and sense of identity.

Valchev noted that aggression among young people has been identified as an issue by the institutions and that work has been carried out to address it, but in a fragmented manner. A series of programs have focused on reducing bullying, violence and aggression in Bulgarian schools, with the current goal being to bring these efforts together.

The minister recalled that there are already more than 1,500 practicing psychologists within Bulgaria’s preschool and school education system, as well as more than 800 educational specialists working to support children and families facing difficulties.

Valchev said that in the coming months, the Ministry of Education and Science will also seek to highlight the importance of extracurricular activities, which provide young people with opportunities for self-expression. “We will also turn our attention to the somewhat overlooked Bulgarian community cultural centers, which likewise offer a wide range of opportunities for children and young people to express themselves and achieve their potential,” the education minister added.

He noted that the legislation would be reviewed, including the law on combating antisocial behavior by minors and juveniles. “We will seek to change the way municipal commissions that monitor such behavior operate, and above all, we will seek to bring the efforts of the institutions together,” Georgi Valchev said.