Teachers’ Rights and Responsibilities
Table 9.2
257
Selected Physical and Behavioral Indicators of Physical Abuse and Neglect, Sexual Abuse, and Emotional Abuse
Physical Indicators
Behavioral Indicators
Physical Abuse—nonaccidental injury to a child that may involve beatings, burns, strangulation, or human bites ●●
Unexplained bruises, swollen areas
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Self-destructive
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Welts, bite marks, bald spots
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Withdrawn and/or aggressive extremes
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Unexplained burns, fractures, abrasions
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Complaints of soreness or discomfort
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Evidence of inappropriate treatment of injuries
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Bizarre explanation of injuries
Physical Neglect—failure to provide a child with basic necessities ●●
Unattended medical need, lice, poor hygiene
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Regularly displays fatigue, listlessness
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Consistent lack of supervision
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Steals food, begs from classmates
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Consistent hunger, inadequate nutrition
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Frequently absent or tardy
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Consistent inappropriate clothing
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Reports no caretaker at home
Sexual Abuse—sexual exploitation, including rape, incest, fondling, and pornography ●●
Torn, stained, or bloody underclothing
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Withdrawal, chronic depression
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Pain, swelling, or itching in genital area
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Hysteria, lack of emotional control
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Venereal disease knowledge
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Inappropriate sex play, premature sex
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Frequent urinary or yeast infections
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Excessive seductiveness
Emotional Abuse—a pattern of behavior that attacks a child’s emotional development such as name calling, put-downs, and so on ●●
Speech disorders
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Habit disorders (sucking, rocking, biting)
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Delayed physical development
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Emotional disturbance
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Substance abuse
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Neurotic traits (sleep disorders, play inhibition)
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Ulcer, asthma, severe allergy
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Antisocial, destructive, delinquent
Note: United Mothers (see “Source” below) emphasizes the following advice: “Symptoms, or indications of abuse, vary greatly from child to child . . . . Possibly only one or a few, or none of these symptoms . . . will be readily apparent in a child who IS being abused. Absence of any or all . . . does NOT mean that a child is NOT being abused. If you suspect there is a problem, do NOT try to diagnose or determine the extent of the problem on your own; please contact a professional immediately.” Source: Adapted from guidelines published by Safeguarding Our Children—United Mothers. Reprinted with permission. Also see material at www.childabuse.com; Felicia F. Romeo, “The Educator’s Role in Reporting the Emotional Abuse of Children,” Journal of Instructional Psychology (September 2000); Tracy W. Smith and Glenn W. Lambie, “Teachers’ Responsibilities When Adolescent Abuse and Neglect Are Suspected,” Middle School Journal (January 2005), pp. 33–40; “Mandatory Reporting of Child Abuse and Neglect State Statute Overview,” December 9, 2011, posting by the National Conference of State Legislatures, available at www.ncsl.org; “Mandatory Reporters of Child Abuse and Neglect,” 2014 posting by the Child Welfare Information Gateway, available at www.childwelfare.gov; and Richard S. Vacca, “Reporting Suspected Child Abuse,” CEPI Education Law Newsletter (November 2014), available at www.cepi.vcu.edu/publications/newsletters.
9-2k Reporting Child Abuse Because a high percentage of abuse is directed at school-age children, schools play an important role in protecting them. In most states, laws require educators to report suspected cases of child abuse to authorities or designated social service agencies. As a result, increasing numbers of school districts have written policies describing how teachers should proceed when they suspect abuse. Warning signs that may indicate a child is being abused are shown in Table 9.2.
9-2l Copyright Laws A copyright gives authors and artists control over the reproduction and distribution of works they create; consequently, permission for reproduction usually must be obtained from the owner. Beginning in the 1970s, widespread use of copy machines bred serious
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