Although forty-seven states in the United States have passed laws against bullying in schools, many Americans agree that these legislations have not made a significant contribution to solving the problem. In an attempt to provide effective solutions to stop bullying in schools, many people point fingers. Some individuals rightly argue that students who are bullied at school are being denied their right to equal protection under the Fourteenth Amendment. Some others argue persuasively that teachers and administrators are not taking firm enough action to stop bullying. However, while community engagement is essential to the solution, preventing bullying is largely the responsibility of parents. Teachers, school administrators, students, and especially parents need to be educated about bullying and how to address the behavior appropriately. Bullying has become a major problem in schools, particularly among teenagers. In 2011, Dovoe and Murphy report that, during the 2008–2009 academic year, 7,066,000 students between the ages of 8 and 18 reported being bullied at school. That's an alarming 28% of the 25,217,000 students surveyed in this survey. In recent years, major television networks have devoted significant amounts of airtime to broadcasting documentaries about bullying in schools. While many will agree that the issue deserves attention, there appears to be a conspiracy of media sensationalism. Most reports highlight the problem repeatedly without any valuable consensus. In reports, some critics blame the evolution of violent movies and video games. However, violent video games and films don't buy themselves; parents and family members buy them. Viewers will benefit from the documentaries that h... middle of paper... ok, like he threatens others like this even in school. Likewise, if he is humiliated and mistreated at home, he will do the same to others at school. The cycle of behavior begins at home and is an important factor in preventing bullying in schools. Children rely on their parents to teach them by example how to live and how to respond to situations. Works Cited Devoe, Jill and Christina Murphy. "Reports of bullying and cyberbullying". Results of the 2009 School Crime Supplement to the National Crime Victimization Survey. Web Tables. U.S. Department of Education - National Center for Education Statistics (NCES), August 2011. Web. November 7, 2011. Olweus, Dan. “What is a Bully.” Olweus bullying prevention program. Np, nd Web. November 14, 2011. Rigby, Ken. New perspectives on bullying. Jessica Kingsley Publishers, 2002. EBSCOhost eBook Collection. Network. November 20. 2011.