Child Abuse at School - Dissertation Example

Child Abuse at School Human beings are at their most vulnerable when they are in that indefinable stage called childhood. Then they cannot understandthe significance of the actions they are subjected to and as a result quite incapable of responding to them in an appropriate manner. That is why they easily fall pray to the many types of abuses meted out to them by persons who are unscrupulous in the extreme. And such practices are more prevalent in schools where parental protection is always at hand. Corporal punishment is the one instance of child abuse that comes to mind when one thinks of school. Usually it is something imposed upon him in case he misbehaves. It can even have moral connotations. The child is punished for having violated a law or an expectation. In everyday terms, people use the word punishment to describe negative consequences imposed on people when they misbehave. Often, the term has moral overtones, suggesting that those being punished deserve that punishment because their actions violate a rule, law, or social expectation. But when it comes to behavior management, it has a somewhat narrow definition. In the field of behavior management, though, punishment has a narrower (and morally neutral) definition: the presentation or removal of events that leads to a reduction in a target behavior (Kazdin, 1989). According to this definition, events that serve to decrease an individuals behaviors are considered to be punishers. Teachers should understand the pros and cons about using punishment in the classroom, as schools frequently use the method as a tool to manage student behaviors. Since punishers affect different students in different ways, so one punisher my not be effective against all students and should be suited to a particular student’s temperament. There are times at which punishment tends to put a stop to problem behaviors and would seem a strong and desirable behavior management tool. But there is a price for everything. Here it happens to be the accompanying negative side effects. A study conducted by Marten & Meller has demonstrated that “Students who are regularly the object of punishment may over time show a drop in positive attitudes toward school (resulting in poor attendance and work performance), have a more negative perception of teachers, and adopt a more punitive manner in interacting with peers and adults.” (Marten & Meller). This means that it should be meted out with understanding and compassion and only when absolutely necessary. Discussion has been going on, on the topic of punishment for many years. Educators cannot find agreement as to the best way to discipline students in schools. Hundreds of articles were written and lectures delivered on this subject. Barbara Coloroso has made the interesting observation that most students cannot comprehend what action or lack of action on their part does bring punishment. They feel that the teacher’s mood at a particular moment brings about the punishment. Another expert supports this general idea. When discussing his experiences as a student who received physical punishment, Jerry Mills, quoting Tom Falin in his lecture on The educational theorist Rudolf Dreikurs believes that effective discipline needs no punishment. According to him, one must know just what to do in a given situation to produce good discipline. He propagates the idea that a student must respect systematic processes. He must also recognize the important fact that all actions lead to natural or logical conclusions. He believes that for the smooth productive functions of schools, a kid needs to feel like they identify and be in a position to contribute to the class. Another educator B. F. Skinner advised the giving of rewards to people to make them work harder and learn more quickly. Not satisfied with just ideas, he also tried to implement them. For example, he promoted a system of rewards that make the students feel they are compensated for their efforts, thereby reinforcing the positive sides of their character. At the same time he warned that it might not work in every instance. Under the circumstances, finding effective ways to counter misbehavior is of crucial importance. If a technique that is not appropriate to the situation at hand might turn an uncomfortable situation into dangerous one. Coloroso opines that faced with reprimands from teachers the students respond by fighting back or fleeing or even seeking revenge. So it is the duty of educators to create a desirable learning environment for the pupils of today. Now let us turn to the other side of the coin. Sometimes school discipline is termed legal child abuse. It has been found that spanking is not an antidote to violent behavior on the part of students. On the contrary it has been found to increase violence in them. It is heartening to note that the instances of school punishment are declining today, but a recent report states that almost half-a-million kids are spanked legally every year. This is no cause for cheer. Not only charity but many things else besides starts from home. When parents who are duty bound to protect their offspring are themselves charged for physically assaulting them, it is no wonder that this practice has infiltrated the school also. Also times are changing with student mores and many of the changes bring cold comfort. In school and universities it ahs become a practice for students to settle real or imagined grievances with guns. Instances like this have made the need for spankings seem not only necessary but even desirable. Still many feel that the disciplinary tool called corporeal punishment is legal child abuse and schools ought not to propagate this message. “Children are taught, by the example of authority-wielding adults, that violence is an acceptable response to inappropriate behavior.” (Debate on SCHOOL DISCIPLINE, USA Today, 14 July 1994 issue). The f act that this aspect is taken seriously is to be seen in the activities of organizations like The National Coalition to Abolish Corporal Punishment in Schools. Another frequent form is sexual abuse of children. Alcohol or drug addiction, suicide, mental aberrations, physical abuse and even consensual sex are subjects for surveys. Dr. Nancy Faulkner states that when it comes to sexual victimization, the enquiries grind to a halt. She says that this is because of the acute fear that such enquiries will open a Pandora’s Box. The whole affair is enveloped in secrecy and even the victims remain silent. That is why she maintains that “The nature of the crime constituting child sexual abuse is intertwined with the issue of victim secrecy.” It was only in the 1960-70 period that research began to reveal this kind of abuse as a grave problem of frightening dimensions. One recurring theme is found in the reports of almost all of the researchers who made it a point to study the problem: sexual abuse is seldom disclosed and rarely reported. There are many contributing factors that prevent the victim from revealing details of this heinous crime which suits the perpetrators down the ground. Such victims are ashamed of revealing their part in the crime. They suffer from a guilty-consciousness. Since this experience cannot be shared with anyone, they feel lonely, isolated and very much embarrassed to discuss the sexual aspect of the case. They feel impotent because they are powerless to redress the situation. All these produce a feeling of inadequacy also. They even go to the lengths of blaming themselves for the whole damnable affair. Children especially are reluctant to report such abuses. They are afraid the consequences of the revelations will be worse than being victims. They may even be apprehensive of retaliation from the perpetrator. “Based on research, it could be expected that victims perceptions of guilt and self-blame would interfere with their decision to identify themselves through disclosure.” (Ibid) Until now we were discussing the abuse syndrome with reference to developed countries like the USA. Let us now cite the example of an undeveloped country like Guyana. A survey was conducted in the high schools of the country revealed that there was significant abuse including sexual abuse by teachers. This is in direct contravention to the policies of the Education Ministry and the state laws. Brenda Gill-Marshall, a social scientist had much to say about the matter during a one-day seminar held at a prominent hotel. She pointed out that what was happening in the secondary schools was a serious social problem. Teachers guilty of such abuse are merely transferred to another school. She was very critical of this practice which transferred the problem to another school without remedying the situation in any way. She is of the opinion that such teachers should be prosecuted. She wants them to be dismissed from their jobs and their names be made public, in the larger interests of the public. In a recent study, more than a thousand children from over two scores of secondary schools were interviewed. The students told the interviewers that all had suffered some or other form of abuse at the hands of their teachers. Gill-Marshall found that in general children from her country while carrying on a secondary education must "put up with either physical, emotional and sexual abuse or neglect inflicted by many teachers." She said there was also evidence to show that even children at the primary and nursery levels, at their tender age were exempted from this dastardly crime by their very own teachers. Gill-Marshall goes on to say that it is the official policy of the Guyana’s educational system to promote corporal punishment. Although there are guidelines for meting out corporal\l punishment, many teachers flagrantly violated them and even those teachers who were not authorized to flog the children did so with impunity. Further no records were kept of floggings as was required. Seeking a way out of this horrific scenario, some pupils responded by dropping out of schools altogether. Performance of the affected students dwindled and the incidence of truancy increased. Some even turned violent fighting the teachers or forcing their parents to do so. To quote the statistics provided by Gill-Marshall will shed light on the gruesome practice as revealed by the aforementioned study. “Of 1,200 children interviewed, it was reported that: 226 children were made to kneel; 242 were shaken; 315 were slapped; 697 were whipped; 261 were made to stand on the bench; 172 were cursed; 135 were called derogatory names; 488 were insulted; 410 were put out of the class during instruction time; 592 were neglected; 69 were kissed; 21 were fondled; 160 had teachers who used obscene words to them and 30 had sexual intercourse with teachers.” Although this study is limited to a single country, the implications are self-evident. The deplorable fact remains that the problem is prevalent throughout the length and breadth of the world. And it does not make any distinctions as to how young or old a student is. Lucy Ward, a columnist of The Guardian citing an NSPCC report, writes that if children are neglected and abused at home they tend to do badly at school. They also suffer from behavior problems and become easy victims of bullying. The study also found that “maltreatment in the first five years of life almost triples a childs likelihood of having multiple physiological, behavioral and academic problems at school.” The study goes on to recommend that while addressing student’s problems, the schools should take particular care in seeking the possibility of their being abused at home and this approach would go a long way to help identifying any possible abuse early enough. The schools themselves have to play a role in protecting their pupils from abuse. “Creating a safe learning environment, identifying pupils who are suffering or at risk of harm and then taking appropriate action are vital to ensuring children are safe at home and at school.” The schools should initiate a number of measures to protect the pupils. They must investigate the background of all staff who have contact with the pupils to find out if any of them have criminal records. There should be staff who are trained to spot symptoms of abuse. A senior member of the staff should be given the task of child protection. Before a staff is allowed to work with children he should be checked upon first. Procedures should be devised so that appropriate action can be taken if any member of the staff is accused of abusing a student. Students should be given personal, social, health, education (PSHE) lessons that covers abuse related issues so that they are well aware of the implications in advance. Clinical implications are also involved in investigation and research on undisclosed sexual abuse. Some sexual abuse researchers report that the prevalence of at least an associative relationship between sexual abuse and other disorders, if not a causal relationship based on the sexual trauma. Effects of child abuse may continue even through adulthood. “Long-term effects that are frequently reported and associated with sexual abuse include depression, self-destructive behavior, anxiety, feelings of isolation and stigma, poor self-esteem, difficulty in trusting others, tendency toward revictimization, substance abuse, and sexual maladjustment.” (Courtois & Watts, l982; Finkelhor & Browne, 1986, Herman & Hirschman, 1977; Tsai & Wagner, l978). Unless sexual abuse victims are identified at an early stage, their sufferings will go on. So this is crucial for enhanced mental development and to function as a healthy adult. Some educators make the mistake of devising policies and procedures for those pupils who have voluntarily disclosed abuses meted out to them. This will not help the majority of victims who are afraid to reveal details of sexual abuse they were subjected to. Inside the classroom, there should be interaction between the teachers and students on many levels. To effectively teach and motivate the pupils high levels of communications skills are necessary. So feedback plays a prime role in the teaching and motivating process. Comprehensive and corrective feed back go a long way in promoting this process. An example of this kind of feedback is when teachers praise the students for a correct response and conversely how to change their responses when wrong. They are also made to learn comprehension strategies by developing their analytical skills. Feedback also makes students realize their mistakes when a mistake is made and the ability to correct them for themselves. But one thing should always be kept in mind: different situations demand different feedbacks which include “comprehensive and corrective, nonjudgmental, progressive, deficiency, facial and nonverbal behavior, teacher/student conferences, controlling, and directive. By giving feedback, teachers can help students understand (not just see) what they did wrong and give them ideas of how to correct their mistakes. With this understanding, students will gain greater appreciation and knowledge of subject matter. It is very important to note that different situations and certain kinds of students call for distinctive types of feedback.” (Ted Thompson, from the Department of Psychology at the University of Tasmania, Australia.) In conclusion it is only fair to quote the definition of Child abuse by the National Clearinghouse on Family Violence: It is "the betrayal of a care-givers position of trust and authority over a child. This position of trust may be in the hands of parents and other family members as well as teachers within the educational system." Works Cited Kazdin, A.E. (1989). Behavior Modification in Applied Settings (4th ed). Pacific Grove, CA: Brooks/Cole Publishing. Education and Learning. Protecting Your Child from Abuse: Your School’s Role. (2007). Directgov. Retrieved May 31, 2007, from http://www.direct.gov.uk/en/EducationAndLearning/Schools/YourChildsWelfareAtSchool/DG_4016091 Faulkner, Nancy. (2006). Pandora’s Box. The Secrecy of Child Sexual Abuse. Retrieved May 31, 2007, from http://www.prevent-abuse-now.com/pandora.htm Read More