Schools' Responsibility To Support Abused Or At-Risk Children

In the public school system, there are often students who suffer from mental health issues, self-esteem, abuse (physical and mental), and numerous other struggles. It is vital that we as a part of the school family are able to recognize warning signs of these students to get them the help they need as soon as possible. If an at-risk or abused child is sad, withdrawn, or worried the Primary Mental Health Project is useful in providing a caring adult relationship that supports the child and often shows improved classroom performance (Brassard & Diaz, 2009). As a school counselor, I would work on providing those types of relationships of mentors to serve at-risk students.

The Story

Jack is slightly different than other 14-year-old boys, who are energetic and the typical teenage boys. Jack comes from an abusive home, but he has been going to therapy since he was eleven years old once a week. Jack started being abused by his father when he was six until he was ten years old until his mother divorced his father. He is now being raised by a single mother which only escalates some of the issues he faces. Jack tends to be withdrawn from any love or affection from his mother when she asks how his day went or about his mood, though he is usually friendly, calm, and reserved. Aside from those things, he suffers from panic attacks and loses concentration easily, and his grades are suffering as a result. Children who are victims of neglect demonstrate a variety of emotional, cognitive, and physical impairments (Turner & Rogers, 2012).

Issues at School

Jack doesn't have many friends but has two close friends, Ashton and Griffin, who are his classmates that he spends time within and out of school. He has been bullied by other boys in his class because of his physical appearance, he is a bit heavier and doesn’t wear the same clothes as them. The risk of becoming obese would be multiplied by 9 in children living in situations of abuse or neglect (Turner & Rogers, 2012). Jack never stands up for himself and always avoids confrontation with the bullies.

He gets sick a lot with headaches and nausea almost once a week, and he skips school quite a bit because of this. His mother struggles with this because she doesn’t know if the headaches are real or just an excuse to get out of school because of the bullying, being rejected, and Jack’s inability to pay close attention in class. When Ashton and Griffin are out of school, Jack is left alone and eats lunch by himself. He is extremely shy and avoids girls and other boys in his class just because he fears being made fun of, as I mentioned above. Jack never fights or talks back to his bullies, however, there was a time his younger sister was being bullied by a group of girls, and Jack got angry, yelling at the group of girls, taking up for his little sister.

Resolution

Based on the case study above about Jack and the challenges he faces, it is clear to me that he has suffered serious trauma from the abuse from his father, and though he has been going to therapy, it seems as if he could greatly benefit from more help. Abused children experience high rates of behavior, learning, and emotional problems that catch the attention of psychologists and counseling services (Brassard & Diaz, 2009). As a professional school counselor, I would meet with Jack and let him know he is not alone in his fight and that everyone, both teachers and staff, were on his side. I would support him in standing up for himself against the bullies as well as making sure teachers knew about the bullying so they can spot and end the harassment if Jack feels like he can’t defend himself. I would also provide him with all of the resources he needs to ensure he succeeds academically, socially, and emotionally.

Conclusion

I would suggest that I would like to hold personal sessions with Jack at least twice a week, in addition to his other therapy sessions, to talk about how things are going at school as well as home. (Grothaus, 2013) explains that school and community stakeholders should work closely together to address the emotional needs of students with disruptive behaviors. Though Jack doesn't have any signs of disruptive behavior, he is still suffering internally from the abuse and needs time and the right resources to be able to heal properly.

References

1. Brassard, M.R., & Diaz, V. (2009). School-Based Counseling of Abused Children. Psychology in the Schools, 46(3), 206-217
2. Grothaus, T. (2013). School Counselors Serving Students with Disruptive Behavior Disorders. Professional School Counseling, (16)4, 245-255.
3. Turner, R.A., & Rogers, H.O. (2012). Child Abuse: Indicators, Psychological Impact, and Prevention. New York: Nova Science Publishers Inc.