Professional Documents
Culture Documents
Betsy Tuitavuki
Professor Fillmore
ENG 2010
19 November 2018
Dozens of studies have proved that most forms, if not all, of child abuse mainly appear in
the home, by someone a child knows and trusts. Several studies have begun to move away from
the home and have looked to school as well. The place where children spend half of their waking
day, five times a week, at. A study back in 2009 examined child abuse and the reporting
practices done by school counselors. While child abuse was the most reported, emotional abuse
was the most suspected but not reported (Buser et al. 3). Emotional abuse, being that it is not a
physical thing one can see and touch, will always receive doubts on the severity it has claimed it
can be. However, it should not be overlooked at all, especially in the school system. While child
abuse is a topic barely spoken of in school, emotional abuse is spoken even less. Yet, over 80
percent of children who have experienced physical child abuse, have also experienced emotional
abuse (Barlow et al. 11). There should be programs and lessons focused entirely on child
emotional abuse in school, starting in elementary. By speaking more about all the issues and
topics surrounding child emotional abuse, awareness would increase and hopefully more
Children can go through their whole school life experiencing emotional abuse but not
knowing nor realizing that it had a name. Emotional abuse can be committed by any adult. It is a
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phenomenon that is happening not just in the home but in a school setting (Nearchou. 97).
Krugman and Krugman back in 1984 had researched about classroom emotional abuse. One of
the teachers had emotionally abused 17 students in his class (McEachern et al. 4). The students
suffered from low self-esteem to constant worry about class performance and withdrawal
behavior. If administrators and staff, especially teachers aren't made aware that certain things
they say and do to students can have a lasting effect, this issue will not improve. Majority of
schools have counselors and school social workers. Their roles are many and it includes
Mceachern suggests that counselors should work with groups of teachers, “providing
professional development sessions to educate them about emotional abuse” (McEachern 6).
Teachers may also notice other teachers being the offenders so “ignoring the problem of teacher
bullying compounds it by giving license to any educator who believes that he or she can act with
impunity toward students” (McEvoy). Having quarterly meetings for all staff about emotional
abuse and what they can do in the classroom to prevent and look out for can definitely help raise
the awareness.
Holding bi-yearly assemblies for both staff and students with the focal point being child
emotional abuse will help make the topic a more comfortable one to discuss. Administrators and
the school counselors could bring experts on emotional abuse to speak to the school. Assemblies
should be interactive with the children and could even have seperate stations that focus on the
different types of emotional abuse as well as who commits it, and resources on how to stop it.
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A survey had been sent out to students in Bismarck schools regarding their mental health.
About 30% of students had said they felt hopeless and depressed which motivated the
administrators and staff to fund for a mental health professional to assess students and began
pilot projects revolving around helping students with their mental health (McCleary). By taking
small steps towards helping these students, and making sure that they are not alone in this battle,
had been a small but effective difference. School’s don’t have to automatically bring in a
professional and start assessing students, it can be as simple as getting the information out there
and among the students. By having these assemblies, the children will get to understand the
concepts of emotional abuse which can then allow the topic to be discussed further.
which teaches students to understand and manage their emotions as well as learning
problem-solving and empathy skills. It’s happening in all grades, once a week (Mccleary). The
school has also provided a therapist who comes once a week, forming group sessions with the
students. It was emphasized that the earlier one can begin these intervention programs, the better
Creating classroom size lesson plans to further discuss about emotional abuse could help
the children know the importance of understanding the term and the related topics and issues.
Lesson can be an hour, twice every 2-3 months, where children can ask questions and get
answers right away. Learning together with their teacher can build a positive, trusting bond,
allowing a wider gateway for students to confide in their teacher if they have or are experiencing
emotional abuse. Brett Welch, a school counselor in Harvie Elementary in Virginia, says that
when one child is having a bad day, the rest of the classroom can be affected (Emanuel).
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Students learning about emotional abuse with their peers can allow empathy to go around the
classroom. Peers could understand what some of their classmates may be going through, forming
close friendships.
The school should include parents as much as possible in learning about emotional abuse.
Many parents don’t realize that they are being emotionally abusive. Often they have “unrealistic
child behaviours, and their own behaviour when interacting with children” (Barlow et al. 61).
Parents could attend the assemblies about emotional abuse, interacting with not only the
professionals but also with their children to become more aware together.
In Ohio, the Olmsted Falls City schools along with the PTA council wanted to raise
awareness about anxiety in students (Benson). They aired the film “Angst” and afterward a panel
discussion including a “community mental health provider and a parent, as well as a teacher,
principal and counselor from each Olmsted Falls City Schools building” (Benson) began. This is
a great example of how parents and the school can come together to raise awareness for
incorporated. Emotional abuse is repetitive and can happen in school as well. A child may make
excuses to stay home or lose interest in school. In a more direct way, a child could complain that
the teacher hates them, or they are being rude and picking on them all the time. These are some
habits that a parent can look out for in their child that can be a sign that they are being
emotionally abused in school (Karosen). Introducing that this issue will be given more attention
during parent teacher conference will allow parents to discuss possible concerns and vise versa.
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One on one time with the teacher, child, and parents would be an effective way to form a more
The school could also send emails and include in school newsletters about emotional
abuse, providing resources for more information and help. Many parents who are emotionally
abusive may have been emotionally abused themselves (Barlow). As action is taken to increase
awareness about emotional abuse in schools, parents could learn more too and even find
Spreading the word and providing factual information about emotional abuse in schools
will increase awareness. Starting with administrators, staff and teachers, then to the students as a
whole and in classrooms, to parents, all working together. In the efforts of preventing and
stopping ongoing emotional abuse, schools can play a huge role. As being leaders of the
community, and huge influencers on children’s development, school’s must use that authority to
shape lives, not just academically healthy but mentally healthy in all the ways they can.
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Works Cited
Barlow, Jane, and Anita Schrader McMillan. Safeguarding Children From Emotional
libprox1.slcc.edu/login?url=http://search.ebscohost.com/login.aspx?direct=true&db=nleb
k&AN=339481&site=eds-live.
Benson, John. “Olmsted Falls City Schools and PTA Council Team up to Tackle Teen Anxiety.”
www.cleveland.com/olmsted/index.ssf/2018/11/olmsted_falls_city_schools_and.html.
Buser, Trevor J., and Juleen K. Buser. “Helping Students with Emotional Abuse: A Critical Area
of Competence for School Counselors.” Journal of School Counseling, vol. 11, no. 9, Jan.
2013. EBSCOhost,
libprox1.slcc.edu/login?url=http://search.ebscohost.com/login.aspx?direct=true&db=eric
&AN=EJ1012312&site=eds-live.
Emanuel, Gabrielle. “How Domestic Violence In One Home Affects Every Child In A Class.”
www.npr.org/sections/ed/2016/09/03/491204888/how-domestic-violence-in-one-home-af
fects-every-child-in-a-class.
Karosen, Caitlin. “What You Can Do If Your Child Is Being Bullied by a Teacher.” Noodle, 3
Apr. 2015,
www.noodle.com/articles/is-a-teacher-bullying-your-child-heres-how-you-can-stop-it.
McCleary, Mike. “A 'Critical' Need: Bismarck Schools Offer Additional Mental Health
bismarcktribune.com/news/local/bismarck/a-critical-need-bismarck-schools-offer-additio
nal-mental-health-services/article_5f5b7126-9110-5b6b-88d8-7b7c1446a2a3.html.
McEachern, Adriana G., et al. “Emotional Abuse in the Classroom: Implications and
Interventions for Counselors.” Journal of Counseling & Development, vol. 86, no. 1,
libprox1.slcc.edu/login?url=http://search.ebscohost.com/login.aspx?direct=true&db=buh
&AN=28512765&site=eds-live.
www.tolerance.org/magazine/fall-2014/abuse-of-power.
Cross-Sectional Study with Greek Students.” Science Direct, Academic Press, 28 Oct.
2017, www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S0145213417304064?via=ihub.