Sexual abuse in primary and secondary schools

Sexual abuse in primary and secondary schools concerns child sexual abuse occurring in educational institutions from kindergarten through secondary education.[1]

Phenomenon

With teachers having much influence and close proximity to children, sexual abuse in schools occurs at high rates.[2] A 1993 study performed by the American Association of University Women examined seventy-nine state schools in the United States, finding that 9.6% of students reported sexual abuse by teachers in the school setting.[2]

The victims of school sexual abuse are often "vulnerable or marginal students".[3]

By country

Canada

750 cases of abuse in Canadian schools were reported between 1997 and 2017, majority of them occurring in public schools.[4]

Estonia

In Estonia, the Tallinn Child Support Centre found that 1.3% among the pupils which are aged between fourteen and sixteen had reported rape (a total of 2006 surveys were returned).[5]

France

In April 2015, education official Najat Vallaud-Belkacem admitted that "16 teachers were allowed to work in schools last year despite holding previous convictions for paedophilia."[6] An international NGO claimed that "Thousands of children in French schools have been sexually abused by paedophile teachers".[6] In the same year, twenty-seven staff members in primary and secondary schools were fired for sexual abuse.[7]

India

In March 2000, a cross-sectional study of students in the 11th grade of eight higher secondary schools in Goa found that "Coercive sex had been experienced by approximately 6% of adolescents."[8] The pupils affected by this experienced higher rates of substance abuse, poorer academic performance, as well as poor mental and physical health.[8]

United Kingdom

In The New York Times, Stephen Castle documented:[9]

The very nature of boarding schools — closed environments in which teachers can wield enormous power — can make them attractive to child abusers. But in previous decades, parents were often reluctant to challenge teachers’ authority, said Alan Collins, principal lawyer at Slater & Gordon, which represented the former Aldwickbury student. He has 30 to 40 more cases pending against schools across the country.[9]

Since 2012, "425 people have been accused of carrying out sexual attacks at UK boarding schools".[10]

United States
Further information: Sexual harassment in education in the United States

In the United States, "roughly 290,000 students experienced some sort of physical sexual abuse by a public school employee from 1991 to 2000—a single decade, compared with the roughly five-decade period examined in the study of Catholic priests."[1]

A federal report estimated that in the state of California, "422,000 California public-school students would be victims before graduation".[11]

The United States Department of Education withheld US$4 million from Chicago Public Schools "for what federal officials say is a failure to protect students from sexual abuse."[12]

Zimbabwe

In Zimbabwe, a 2001 study found that 70% of the time, Sexual intercourse through physical abuse was present by teacher perpetrators in primary schools, with 98% of the victims being females.[13]

Prevention

By 1988, prevention programs and materials with regard to school sexual abuse came into vogue.[14] Problems associated with these, however, include "emphasising a simple solution to a complex social problem and contributing to victim blaming."[14]

Despite the prevalence of these prevention programs and materials, multiple studies have demonstrated that "teachers use programs spasmodically and selectively, omitting the essential concepts relating to children's rights".[15]

See also

References
  1. Hendrie, Caroline (10 March 2004). "Sexual Abuse by Educators Is Scrutinized". Education Week.
  2. Crosson-Tower, Cynthia (2014). Confronting Child and Adolescent Sexual Abuse. SAGE Publications. p. 166. ISBN 9781483359267.
  3. Hazelwood, Robert R.; Burgess, Ann Wolbert (2016). Practical Aspects of Rape Investigation: A Multidisciplinary Approach, Fifth Edition. CRC Press. ISBN 9781315316345.
  4. https://globalnews.ca/news/4274096/750-cases-of-sexual-abuse-in-schools-says-canadian-centre-for-child-protection/
  5. "Sexual Exploitation of Children in Estonia and Measures Taken to Address this Situation". Council of the Baltic Sea States. Retrieved 12 January 2018.
  6. Capon, Felicity (8 April 2015). "National Scandal Over Major Child Abuse Cover-Up in French Schools". Newsweek.
  7. "French education minister says 27 school staff fired for child sex abuse". France 24. 16 March 2016.
  8. Vikram Patel, Gracy Andrew (2001). "Gender, sexual abuse and risk behaviours in adolescents: A cross-sectional survey in schools in Goa". The National Medical Journal of India. 14 (5): 263. CiteSeerX 10.1.1.467.6130.
  9. Castle, Stephen (16 March 2014). "Wave of Sexual Abuse Allegations for Private Boys' Schools in Britain". The New York Times.
  10. Renton, Alex (19 February 2018). "Shocking scale of sexual abuse at UK boarding schools revealed by ITV documentary". ITV News.
  11. Profita, Hillary (24 August 2006). "Has Media Ignored Sex Abuse In School?". CBS.
  12. Ingber, Sasha (28 September 2018). "Chicago Schools Lose Millions For Allegedly Not Shielding Students From Sexual Abuse". NPR.
  13. Tichatonga J Nhundu, AlmonShumba (2001). "The nature and frequency of reported cases of teacher perpetrated child sexual abuse in rural primary schools in Zimbabwe". Child Abuse & Neglect. 25 (11): 1517–1534. doi:10.1016/S0145-2134(01)00288-5. PMID 11766014.
  14. Trudell, Bonnie; Whatley, Mariamne H. (January 1988). "School sexual abuse prevention: Unintended consequences and dilemmas". Child Abuse & Neglect. 12 (1): 103–113. doi:10.1016/0145-2134(88)90012-9. PMID 3365575.
  15. Briggs, Freda; McVeity, Michael (2000). Teaching Children to Protect Themselves. Allen & Unwin. p. 2. ISBN 9781741154214.
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