Dear Editor,
As a former educator at Queen’s College for four years and someone who has possibly followed all the developments in the Neesa Gopaul case, I find rather disturbing a number of matters related to the gruesome and tragic demise of the former student of that esteemed institution.
I find it disturbing that while the ministries, Guyana Teachers’ Union (GTU) and other persons wrangle publicly about what should or should not have been done in Neesa Gopaul’s case there are hardly any solutions being put to the fore on avoiding a similar occurrence.
Before I delve into that though, I must say I applaud the efforts of those in authority to find and weed out the negligent.
In the meantime, I am only hearing of an attempt to punish those allegedly responsible, though it appears the authorities were misdirected or misguided in ‘choosing’ their targets for punishment. I have not heard of any attempt by the relevant ministries and social service groups to move in on the schools to train teachers on how to identify and deal with cases of abuse of schoolchildren.
I am not hearing of any move by the authorities to warn parents, relatives and guardians of the repercussions of committing or hiding such criminal acts perpetrated on their wards. And, I am not hearing that the authorities will ensure each school is staffed with a guidance and social welfare counsellor.
Admittedly, schools play a key role in fighting child abuse, but we should not forget that the problem must be confronted on many levels. Ultimately, the greatest challenge may lie in attempting to alter social attitudes and conditions that foster or tolerate the abuse of children. Emphasis must be placed on educating the community; parents, children, teachers while, the institutions must be constantly upgraded and equipped to tackle the ever increasing variations of abuse.
The school is the one social institution outside the family with which nearly all children have consistent, ongoing contact. I therefore conclude, it is particularly well suited for educators to be trained in identifying endangered children, including those who are being sexually maltreated. We must therefore strive towards becoming more effective participants in prevention and intervention efforts designed to reduce the complex problem of child abuse. With the little training I’ve been exposed to as a Girl Guides counsellor, pastoral care sessions during my school years at St Rose’s High and Queen’s College, in addition to my own research and experiences, I am very cognisant of the fact that child abuse is such a complex problem that no one sector of society can tackle it single-handedly. It is of vital
importance that there exists full cooperation between school personnel and child protective services, hospitals, officials from the human service and health ministries and the police.
The roles or duties of the school and the other authorities aforementioned must be clearly understood and appreciated before a collaborative relationship can develop and function efficiently and effectively. A prudent person would suggest that a liaison officer should be designated to provide continuity between the school and each of the relevant organizations as a means of increasing mutual understanding. One would also conclude that using that consultant or resource person to work between the school and ministries would serve to be supportive and reassuring to both principal and staff facing a child-abuse crisis.
The agencies and ministries charged with the responsibility of addressing the issue of abuse must lead the way in providing critical information to the society and must duly investigate all reports of such crimes. The ministries should organise child protection teams in the community and the schools as a risk management tool which should consist of relevant specialists such as counsellors, educators, social workers, doctors and nurses, lawyers, police, and mental health professionals, who should work together.
I was not ‘teacher trained’ therefore I am not certain that the training includes instruction on dealing with such issues in school; however, if it isn’t part of the programme it is time it was added. It is time to stop shifting the blame and to use this tragedy as a wake-up call from the years of slumber and mishandling, negligence and abandonment of duty by those who should have acted above and beyond the call of duty to ensure that Neesa Gopaul’s problems were effectively addressed.
Training would improve the effort of the team and those efforts would serve to reduce the chance of another such tragic outcome because decision-making would be shared and second opinions would be built into the framework of responding.
A 1990 study in the United States showed that teachers are emphatic about abused children, but fear and lack of knowledge make them hesitant about reporting abuse. It also concluded that teachers are more likely to report and follow up on such matters when the principal of the institution supports and encourages reporting those matters and participates in the quest to address the problem.
An abused child may show emotional and behavioural difficulties – acting-out behaviour such as delinquency or aggression with poor peer relationships – while in some cases, the child may be overly compliant yet reclusive. There are other school-related difficulties including an inability to concentrate, faltering school performance, reluctance to change clothes for Physical Education sessions or participate in physical activities, arriving at school early and staying late; running away from home; suicidal thoughts or attempts; and sexual promiscuity or avoidance of relationships. At the same time it is important to note not all abused children show these signs. Therefore, educators must not automatically jump to the conclusion that a child is being abused. Many times the signs are ambiguous, because other stress factors in a child’s life can produce similar symptoms.
However, when the acts of abuse become clear as in Neesa Gopaul’s case, one must ask what the authorities were waiting for after receiving information about and evidence of abuse. It appears the majority of the teachers acted sufficiently to inform and warn the authorities. What else did the authorities expect the teachers to do when some of Gopaul’s own relatives failed her? The police failed her. Neighbours failed her and most importantly Child Protection, Human Services and the Education Ministry failed her. What else did they expect from these teachers whom the authorities failed to train on the matter of abuse, and who despite that, used their conscience and service above self mentality, and reached out and asked for help only to be shunned by the very organisations that were put in place to help Neesa Gopaul? I pray thee tell, why the teachers?
Yours faithfully,
Martina McDonald-Johnson
