The latter – "it was just a joke" – has been used since time immemorial by perpetrators of bullying, victimisation and harassment to excuse and justify their behaviour.

Some parents of children caught bullying will often accuse schools of "over-reacting" and dismiss bullying as a playground spat or a bit
of fun and seek to place blame on the victims by asserting
they are weak or being over-sensitive.

If some highly popular TV programmes are taken at face value, it appears that celebrity status and money can be acquired on the basis of
shouting and swearing at and humiliating others or that to be successful in business goes hand in hand with rude, aggressive, insensitive treatment of others.

Add to this mix the growth in websites which encourage and give licence to youngsters to abuse and humiliate their teachers and which are rationalised by the providers as "a much needed forum for constructive criticism".

Is it any wonder, therefore, that the message for young people about bullying is, at best, confused – and, at worst, such behaviour is reinforced and seemingly condoned?

Schools, rightly, are seen to be at the forefront of the battle to beat the bullies.

Yet, in developing strategies to secure an environment for pupils to learn without fear of harassment and abuse, a critical aspect is ignored, resulting in schools themselves inadvertently giving succour to bullies and adding to the confused messages that youngsters are receiving from elsewhere.

The oft ignored critical aspect is the attitude and approach of a school to the bullying and harassment of staff.

A recent NASUWT survey of 5,000 teachers demonstrated that 67 per cent of teachers have suffered some form of bullying at work in the last two years.

Of these, 65 per cent of incidents were committed by pupils, 20 per cent by line managers and 14 per cent by colleagues.

Over 73 per cent of the incidents were reported, but 45 per cent of the respondents said that no appropriate action was taken on the
incidents which took place in school – and 57 per cent said no action was taken on incidents which occurred outside school.

Ensuring staff in these circumstances are not only supported, but seen to be supported when they are the victims of bullying, is a critical part of creating a climate throughout the school in which it is clear that bullying is abhorrent and unacceptable and will not be tolerated.

Every time a pupil who has harassed and bullied a teacher is dealt with ineffectually, the effect is to condone and give permission to bully to any pupil so inclined.

Consequently, the vulnerability of pupils and staff increases and it is harder for victims to seek help. A climate in which bullying thrives is created.

Bullying is by its very nature a largely covert activity. Those who are bullied are sucked into a world of silence and concealment of the problem in a desperate effort to avoid being bullied and abused still further.

As a result, one of the hardest problems schools face in tackling bullying is to encourage victims to feel safe enough to report what is happening to them.

Imagine, therefore, the feeling of hopelessness of a youngster who is being bullied, who desperately wants to report it and seek help and protection, when they see a teacher abused by pupils and no appropriate action is taken to protect that teacher.

Those schools which neglect the needs of the workforce, stating worthily that their top priority is the pupils, in reality are penalising pupils.

There is demonstrable evidence of the educational value-added for pupils which results from prioritising staff well-being and working conditions and affording them professional respect and support.

Creating the environment in which teachers feel valued and supported means that they are able to give of their best and able to focus on helping their students meet their own ambitions.

A school which fails to tackle effectively the bullying of its workforce is failing to afford them appropriate professional support and respect.

This will have many negative outcomes, the most disturbing of which is making the pupil victims more vulnerable – and their bullies more powerful. This cannot be in the interests of our schools.

Chris Keates is general secretary of the NASUWT teaching union which is holding its annual conference this week.