Fostering a Culture of Friendship without Bullying Through a Legal Education Approach in Educational Settings

Abstract

Bullying remains a significant social and legal issue in educational settings, as it adversely affects students’ psychological well-being and social development. This community service activity aimed to strengthen students’ understanding of healthy social interaction and to prevent bullying through a legal education approach. The activity was conducted through online legal counseling involving junior high school and senior high school students. The methods employed included the delivery of educational materials through instructional videos, interactive discussion, and scientific publication as an output of the activity.The findings indicate that bullying, particularly verbal bullying, remains the most prevalent form and is influenced by individual, family, school, peer, and media-related factors. The study also shows that bullying continues to occur across different levels of education, indicating that it must be addressed as a serious issue within educational settings. Normatively, bullying prevention is reinforced by religious values as reflected in Qur’an Surah Al-Hujurat verse 11, constitutional guarantees under Article 28G of the 1945 Constitution of the Republic of Indonesia, and regulatory protection under the Minister of Primary and Secondary Education Regulation Number 6 of 2026 concerning Safe and Comfortable School Culture.At the international level, the principal legal foundation is the Convention on the Rights of the Child 1989. Article 19 of the Convention requires States to undertake legislative, administrative, social, and educational measures to protect children from all forms of physical or mental violence, injury, abuse, neglect, maltreatment, or exploitation. Accordingly, bullying prevention in educational settings should not be understood solely as a moral or disciplinary concern, but also as a matter of legal protection and human rights.