- Messages
- 4,479
- Location
- Shenandoah Valley, Virginia, USA
This was the 90s, so... yeah, I don't care how glacial, it wasn't ok. We were a rural small school, but we weren't completely backwards. People just didn't want to be bothered.I guess what I was getting at is that by the time it would have been obvious that she was pregnant, you would think the parents would have been actively involved in the situation. Maybe I'm being naive, but I couldn't imagine them not being so.
Of course, I don't know the details of the specific instance you cited.
When this particular example occurred, if you are anywhere near close to my age, it was probably the early to mid-'70s, when we, as a whole, were not as socially conscious as we are now. In 1974, the 'Child Abuse Prevention and Treatment Act (CAPTA) was passed by Congress.' This Act's purpose was to provide 'funds to states for development of Child Protective Services (CPS) and hotlines to prevent serious injuries to children. These laws and the media and advocacy coverage and research brought about a gradual change (my italics) in societal expectations on reporting.'
It was basically the beginning of formalized child protection services. There was no provision (yet) for actual reporting. People, and society, as a whole, move in a glacier-like manner when responding to change.
That being said, yes, one can, from today's perspective, think that teachers back then were horrible for not getting involved, but back then, most things that were family matters were indeed family matters, and the prevalent zeitgeist was to not get involved.
Only as recently as the last few years has there been increased pressure on educators to get involved in matters concerning family, and many people are still reluctant to do so.
There is absolutely no reason to ever be hesitant to call CPS if you believe a child may be being abused. Even if you see something and you're like, "is this abuse?" you should say something. They are the experts and can tell you if it's worthy of a report or not.
I'm absolutely sure that everytime I've seen a kid abused in my presence I've called them. My first call was when I was 21 and saw a woman pull a child off his feet and throw him into an aisle end cap in the store. I followed them out to their car when they left the store and called 911 with the make, model, and license plate of the car. Maybe it helped, maybe not, but I've always been proud of myself that I didn't look the other way like many of the adults around me who shook their heads in disgust when they saw it.