Animals
The AP did a series on teachers who were guilty of sexual misconduct this week. While this is a serious issue with dire ramafacations for all involved, I think we need to keep in mind that only a small percentage of teachers are sexual predators. Unfortunately this small percentage of teachers can do damage to a number of students.
One of the issues raised were colleagues and administrators that turned a blind eye to the sexual misconduct. I am sure many of us are asking ourselves how they could do something so shameful. Here are my musings on the subject. An accusation of sexual misconduct not only hurts the teacher the accusation is leveled at it hurts his or her entire family. Everyone wants to believe the best about their friends and co-workers, when questionable actions are open to interpretation it's human nature to accept plausible explanations. And in today's litigious society leveling an unprovable accusation against someone can get you hit with a lawsuit. So what's the answer. I don't know, but hopefully an open and honest dialogue on the subject can provide us with some solutions to the problem.
We also have to acknowledge that sometimes the allegations are false; safe guards must be in place to protect teachers and others who work with children against false accusations. No one wants a witch hunt like The McMartin Daycare Case. Somehow we must find a way to safeguard children while insuring that witch hunts do not occur.
- No Way To Keep Predators From Moving From School To School
A disturbing facet of the teacher sexual misconduct reported in the series is that there often is no way to keep predators from moving from school to school. And, victims of the predators are often not believed when reporting abuse. ...
- Teacher Sex Abuse Scars Family, Town
AP reporters in every state and the District of Columbia identified 2,570 teachers who were punished for sexual misconduct from 2001 to 2005 alone, for actions that ranged from fondling to viewing child pornography to rape. Though experts who deal with...
- An Overlooked Blight On Our Education System.
Most of the abuse never gets reported. Those cases reported often end with no action. Cases investigated sometimes can't be proven, and many abusers have several victims. And no one - not the schools, not the courts, not the state or federal governments...
- Aelfric Worries About Socialization Of Homeschoolers
Aelfric says I am all for the right of a parent to home-school his or her child, but it's a choice to be carefully undertaken. Few parents can bring the intellectual diversity and educational acumen to bear that the panoply of school teachers could...
- 28 Kindergarten Students Suspended For Sex Offenses
During the 2005-06 school year, 28 kindergarten students in Maryland were suspended for sex offenses, including sexual assault, sexual harassment and sexual activity, according to state data. Fifteen of those suspensions were for sexual harassment. 28...
Animals
Somehow we must find a way to safeguard children while insuring that witch hunts do not occur
The AP did a series on teachers who were guilty of sexual misconduct this week. While this is a serious issue with dire ramafacations for all involved, I think we need to keep in mind that only a small percentage of teachers are sexual predators. Unfortunately this small percentage of teachers can do damage to a number of students.
One of the issues raised were colleagues and administrators that turned a blind eye to the sexual misconduct. I am sure many of us are asking ourselves how they could do something so shameful. Here are my musings on the subject. An accusation of sexual misconduct not only hurts the teacher the accusation is leveled at it hurts his or her entire family. Everyone wants to believe the best about their friends and co-workers, when questionable actions are open to interpretation it's human nature to accept plausible explanations. And in today's litigious society leveling an unprovable accusation against someone can get you hit with a lawsuit. So what's the answer. I don't know, but hopefully an open and honest dialogue on the subject can provide us with some solutions to the problem.
We also have to acknowledge that sometimes the allegations are false; safe guards must be in place to protect teachers and others who work with children against false accusations. No one wants a witch hunt like The McMartin Daycare Case. Somehow we must find a way to safeguard children while insuring that witch hunts do not occur.
- No Way To Keep Predators From Moving From School To School
A disturbing facet of the teacher sexual misconduct reported in the series is that there often is no way to keep predators from moving from school to school. And, victims of the predators are often not believed when reporting abuse. ...
- Teacher Sex Abuse Scars Family, Town
AP reporters in every state and the District of Columbia identified 2,570 teachers who were punished for sexual misconduct from 2001 to 2005 alone, for actions that ranged from fondling to viewing child pornography to rape. Though experts who deal with...
- An Overlooked Blight On Our Education System.
Most of the abuse never gets reported. Those cases reported often end with no action. Cases investigated sometimes can't be proven, and many abusers have several victims. And no one - not the schools, not the courts, not the state or federal governments...
- Aelfric Worries About Socialization Of Homeschoolers
Aelfric says I am all for the right of a parent to home-school his or her child, but it's a choice to be carefully undertaken. Few parents can bring the intellectual diversity and educational acumen to bear that the panoply of school teachers could...
- 28 Kindergarten Students Suspended For Sex Offenses
During the 2005-06 school year, 28 kindergarten students in Maryland were suspended for sex offenses, including sexual assault, sexual harassment and sexual activity, according to state data. Fifteen of those suspensions were for sexual harassment. 28...