Ally Lucas
PreÂAP English 1
Amanda Evetts
21 May, 2014
How to Prevent Child Sexual Abuse in Schools
Child abuse has been an enormous problem in every corner of the world for years, but a specific
type of child abuse many times goes unnoticed. Teachers sexually abusing their students is becoming
more and more common in today's society, and going overlooked more often than not. 4.5 million
students nationwide in grades kindergarten through 12th have been sexually assaulted by an educator.
This number includes both upperclassmen/teacher inappropriate relationships and pure pedophile
relationships. Child abuse needs to be stopped because many psychological problems can affect the
children. Unfortunately, many children don't bring their issues to anyone's attention, so the attackers
stay hidden.
It's very important for this issue to be brought into light because sexual abuse is obviously unlawful,
and many times, the criminal either goes completely unpunished or is very lightly punished. For example,
a Korean tutor avoided jail because his wife "speaks very little english" and his family relies on him to
support the family with all their needs, although he sexually abused an eleven year old girl for nine
months. This is not only a very clear example of social injustice, but it's utterly disgusting. Anyone who
commits any kind of abuse to a defenseless child deserves to go to jail for the maximum sentence
allowed under law.
Children many times do not speak up about their abuse for many reasons. Some kids are afraid of
disappointing their parents or disrupting the family with their problems, and some are afraid of making
their teacher angry and their teacher responding with more abuse or bad grades. Some children are too
young to understand what's happening to them and their teacher tells them the abuse is "okay" and that
it's "just a game."
Child abuse has many psychological effects on children. Studies about childhood development show
that the brain develops mainly during childhood in response to the experiences one has endured. When
a child is abused, it can cause depression, anxiety, difficulty concentrating, academic problems, isolation,
flashbacks, and insomnia. Children who are sexually abused can even develop sexually transmitted
diseases. These side effects can last into adulthood and their past of abuse can haunt them for the rest of
their life.
Child abuse needs to be put to an end. Children many times can't overpower their attacker, so they
have to let whatever happens, happen. Students should be able to go to school and feel safe, not scared
or violated in any form. To resolve this issue, I believe teachers should be monitored more often, even
when giving after school tutorials. Monthly interviews with random students should also take place to
talk about anything suspicious they notice happening in the classroom. Also, when the principals are
hiring, background checks should be incredibly thorough to ensure the safety of their students.
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Works Cited
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