Abuse

Abuse. This is a difficult topic that every early childhood educator must reckon with. We are all humans, and inevitably because of pressure from parents/colleagues/principals/children, we can end up doing the wrong things.

There are many different types of abuse, and a few of them are domestic abuse, emotional abuse, neglect, physical abuse, and sexual abuse (NSPCC, 2024). It is quite self-explanatory what each constitutes.

In 2023 there were 147 cases of abuse, and there are many more unreported cases, and a strategy to curb this is to ensure parents and teachers can have ways to report such incidents and closed-circuit television cameras are now implemented in all preschools and government-funded early intervention centres (Chan, 2024).

Children are vulnerable, we as adults should never hurt them even if we are feeling overwhelmed. It is up to the management of schools to ensure that the school morale is kept at a positive level.

References

Chan, G. (2024, July 3). 147 child abuse cases investigated by ECDA in 2023 as confirmed cases also rise. The Straits Times. Retrieved from https://www.straitstimes.com/singapore/politics/147-child-abuse-cases-investigated-in-2023-as-confirmed-cases-also-rise-ecda

NSPCC. (2024). Types of abuse. Retrieved from NSPCC: https://www.nspcc.org.uk/what-is-child-abuse/types-of-abuse/