Teacher bans word 'banter' from classroom to tackle bullying

A teacher has banned the word "banter" from his classroom in a bid to tackle bullying.

Mike Stuchbery, who teaches English at a school in Great Yarmouth, Norfolk, said children were using the term as a "Get Out Of Jail Free card" to legitimise bullying.

Writing on his blog, he said: "Banter, once a term that was used to signify ‘light-hearted joking, a gentle ribbing of a friend’, now seems to be a catch-all term for any sort of off-colour or inappropriate behaviour.

Explaining his decision to ban the term, Mr Stuchbery wrote: “Through repetition and the magic of social media, banter has become an acceptable, friendlier-sounding term for bullying. It attempts to mask inappropriate, appalling behaviour under the guise of some sort of ancient, noble, peculiarly British tradition."

He said he would explain to all his students why the word can no longer be used as an “excuse for inappropriate behaviour”.

“Instead, I’m going to look my students dead in the eye and ask them point-blank: ‘Why did you do it? Why did you steal his pencil case? Why did you thump her? Give me a solid reason.’ From now on, I will demand that students be accountable for their behaviour – no more escape clauses," he wrote.