Reports of Child Abuse Go Up the Day After Report Cards Go Out
Just heartbreaking.
Let’s all take a moment and let this sink in: increases of child abuse can be correlated with the release of report cards. Here’s how The New York Times began their coverage:
A new study found a nearly fourfold increase in confirmed reports of child abuse on the Saturdays immediately after the distribution of report cards at Florida public schools.
The study, published in JAMA Pediatrics on Monday, focused on children ages 5 to 11 and relied on reports called in to the Florida Department of Children and Families abuse hotline during the 2015-16 academic year.
Melissa A. Bright, the lead author of the study, said the idea for the research arose from the personal accounts of pediatricians and teachers who saw a pattern of abuse shortly after report cards were released. Dr. Bright, a researcher at the University of Florida who focuses on child maltreatment, said some teachers told her they worried about some of their students after grades were distributed.
So, what do we do with this as parents, teachers, administrators, and professors? I will be asking that myself for days to come.
