Preschooler sexually molests teacher's aide

[Drocket]

A four-year-old hugged his teachers aide and was put into in-school suspension, according to the father. But La Vega school administrators have a different story.

Damarcus Blackwell's four-year-old son was lining-up to get on the bus after school last month, when he was accused of rubbing his face in the chest of a female employee.

The prinicipal of La Vega Primary School sent a letter to the Blackwells that said the pre-kindergartener demonstrated "inappropriate physical behavior interpreted as sexual contact and/or sexual harassment."
Link (http://www.kxxv.com/Global/story.asp?S=5785699)


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[Nitrus]

The world is going crazy, this kid hugged a school employee, hes not old enough to know that what he was doing may have been interpreted as "sexual" harassment.

These people are insane!! If every four-yr old who has hugged somone whose not a member of their family, then the courst would never stop.

Madness.

[Buck Laser]

There is a news story in the Austin area in which one kindergartner has sexually harassed a couple of other kids. The children in question are all girls, and it turns out that the girl charged with harassment had been a victim of harassment herself. The mother had warned school officials about the possibility that her daughter might have behavior problems, and they apparently did not listen.

My own granddaughter, a first grader, has been physically attacked by a boy in her class who has generalized behavior problems. The boy, who must be accompanied by a full-time assistant, was ultimately transferred to another class.

My point in mentioning these items is to highlight the fact that we're not necessarily dealing with something to be made fun of here. The news report Drocket cited very likely omitted some relevant aspects of the incident. What I take from this is that while some incidents are certainly trivial and don't deserve publicity, many aren't taken seriously enough.

[lily]

Blackwell got a responseÂ*Â*from the La Vega administration.Â*Â*The sexual references on the discipline referral were removed.Â*Â*But the thing that makes Blackwell most upset is they told him "your request for an apology by the aide and removal of all paperwork regarding this incident is denied."Â*Â*Now the young student's file will refer to the incident as "inappropriate physical contact."Â*Â*And Blackwell says he will continue to fight the district.

While I will agree with you Buck, certain things are signs of sexual abuse, but it seems clear to me this isn't one of them.

I'm not sure how important a 4 year old's permanent record is, but I would assume that this father is taking this matter this far, his son would have been checked out.

Whcih then leads to the question of should a 4 year old that is completely innocent be put through the kinds of questioning that I would assume would come from a court case?

Damarcus Blackwell's four-year-old son was lining-up to get on the bus after school last month, when he was accused of rubbing his face in the chest of a female employee.

I've also found in my life experiences that some one that was abused as a child, sometimes over reacts to innocent things, not to be mean or cause problems, but to protect a child from having to go through what they went through.

Just my opinion.

[Labrocca]

The thing I did in grade school would have gotten me arrested today. I think boys are sexually curious at an early age. We are bunglers though and aren't attempting to harm anyone. It's just curiousity and pre-pubecent hormones in general. Lily...when you were 4-10 did boys ever sexually harrass you?

[Drocket]

I understand how children who have been sexually abused can 'act out' in inappropriate ways. Little kids can also do inappropriate things simply because they don't know the social rules that govern that sort of stuff - they'll grab your crotch, poke you in the butt, and so on. The question, then is which one is this action.

If this was simply a one-off thing, the correct response should have simply been to tell the kid 'no', and otherwise generally ignore it. If its part of a chain of sexually inappropriate actions, though, then they should have had a counselor come in to talk to the kid (preferably without the parents knowing about it) and make sure there wasn't anything serious going on.

So either this school majorly overreacted, or it seriously underreacted. Either way, their actions simply weren't an appropriate response to the situation.

[micfranklin]

This is probably the stupidest thing I've ever head. Come on now, a preschooler has no idea what "inappropriate behavior" is and doesn't really know better, anyway.

Time for society to get a grip.

[AlonzoMourning23]

Anyone watch king of queens? One episode has Carrie babysitting her boss's 3 or 4 year old kid. Everytime she'd sit down with him he'd run over to her and grope her breasts. Eventually he took a liking to another secretary whose breasts were larger than carrie's.

[Professor]

Lily...when you were 4-10 did boys ever sexually harrass you?


I'll answer for myself...yes.