Bullying in Norway? No way.

BULLYING IS BAD NEWS for both bully and victim. Studies show that bullies are much more likely to be convicted of a crime later in life than non-bullies, and their prey often become violent themselves--remember that the Columbine attackers vowed revenge against students who had tortured them for years. Federal data also show that bullying victims are four times more likely both to bring weapons to school for protection and to get into a fight than are students who aren't bullied.

U.S. schools are now looking at an unlikely source--Norway--for help with their bullying problems. By using a system called the Olweus Bullying Prevention Program, schools in Chula Vista, California, have seen an 18 percent drop in hitting and kicking, 21 percent fewer threats, and 12 percent less incidence of racial name-calling.

Through surveys, school officials in Chula Vista identified the sites, frequency, and varieties of bullying. The police department provided four hours of training for school resource officers, focusing on types of bullying, their effects, and successful intervention procedures. Each school then created a Bullying Prevention Committee, consisting of teachers, administrators, resource officers, parents, and others.

In class, teachers would document bullying, enforce rules against bullying, and discuss the issue in class. School administrators kept a database documenting instances of bullying.

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Besides the drop in specific behaviors noted previously, the schools identified site-specific progress. Bullying fell 27 percent in gym class, 23 percent in bathrooms, and 11 percent in cafeterias.

@ A BRIEF FROM THE INTERNATIONAL ASSOCIATION OF CHIEFS OF POLICE, AVAILABLE THROUGH SM ONLINE, DETAILS THE PROGRAM.