Sex Education?

Since when are thirteen year-old boys sexually appealing? If my memory serves me correctly boys that age are immature, obnoxious and dirty. So why are we constantly hearing stories of teachers running off with their much younger students? Kelsey Peterson, a twenty-five year-old math teacher and basketball coach has just fled the country with a thirteen year-old student from Lexington middle school in Nebraska (http://abcnews.go.com/GMA/story?id=3815758). Apparently Ms. Peterson and the boy, Fernando Rodriguez, have been emailing and texting their love for one another over the course of the last few months. Are these just coincidences, or is there something more to the large number of student teacher relations?

We all know the story of Mary Kay LeTourneau and her romantic love affair with one of her students, 13 year-old Vili Fualaau. In this case, Ms. LeTourneau actually ended up marrying her student after a seven-year prison sentence. They now have a family and a “normal” life together in Washington. This relationship is the exception. Although it may be uncomfortable to recognize, this outcome is far better than some of the alternatives when teachers fall in love or lust with their students.

In an investigation by the Associated Press it was discovered that from the years 2001- 2005 there were 2, 570 cases of teachers losing their credentials due to allegations of sexual misconduct (http://abcnews.go.com/TheLaw/wireStory?id=3755182). And these were just the reported cases. Most of the time assault goes unreported or ignored and many teachers are repeat offenders who get off with just a slap on the wrist. This is due in large part to the fact that school boards and officials do not want to deal with the fallout of a sex scandal at their school. They would rather sweep it under the rug than create unrest in their community, especially concerning the risk of lawsuits from both the victim and the teacher.

Another huge factor concerning the involvement of the school systems is the lack of uniformity between states, and even individual counties. Teachers have often skipped from state to state followed by allegations of sexual misconduct only to be greeted with ignorance by their new employers. It is a dangerous prospect that a sexual assaulter can elude punishment by merely crossing state lines. Maine, which is the only state that did not participate in the AP’s investigation, actually assures teachers disciplinary files and punishments are kept secret. Hawaii, had no disciplinary cases during the duration of the 5 year study, but they did have a number of their teachers in jail for various sex crimes. These are just some of the idiosyncrasies that the AP found. It is important that we start to form some sort of unified system in dealing with teacher’s sexual misconduct. They shouldn’t be allowed to slip through the cracks of our faulty system. There is too much at stake.

Congress mandated a report that said that of the 50 million Americans students in this country approximately 4.5 million of them have experienced sexual misconduct by a school employee sometime between kindergarten and the 12th grade. This number is unacceptable, especially when you add that only about 1 in every 10 victims actually come forward with their stories of abuse. Most children are too scared that they won’t be believed or that they will get in trouble. The sad fact is that these fears are not unwarranted. In one case a girl was expelled from school after reporting that one of her professors sexually assaulted her. When a second accusation was brought against him he was finally punished, but the young lady who accused him was ostracized and finally switched schools and left town. This should not be the case. Children and teens should not feel frightened to speak the truth.

Teaching is a privilege. It is not an excuse to abuse power. The future of this country relies on the ability of educators to do their jobs professionally and inspirationally. I can tell you the names of all of my favorite teachers. They impacted my life in such a powerful way. Their passion for knowledge and their drive to instill passion into their students is awe-inspiring. It is imperative for our children to have equally influential teachers in their lives. They hold the power to better our future, and that responsibility needs to be cherished. It is inexcusable to use authority and opportunity to manipulate a student in any way. That act of betrayal can leave lasting negative scars. They need to respect the power that they possess and they need to use it to the advantage of the student, not themselves.