Yomiuri: Sexual harassment a growing concern at school
An increasing number of cases of teachers sexually harassing students has raised concern at schools nationwide. The number of teachers who were reprimanded for sexually harassing students exceeded 100 in the 2005 school year for the sixth consecutive year. But some observers say those numbers are just the tip of the iceberg...Sexual harassment at schools has some peculiar characteristics, according to Kanagawa University Prof. Naoko Irie, who also heads the School Sexual Harassment Prevention (SSHP) Kanto Network...Examples of things teachers do that would be considered sexual harassment include:
- Forcing a child to sit on the teacher's lap against the child's will.
- Taking a child's clothes off to punish him or her for forgetting something at home.
- Watching children change their clothes or while they are wearing swimsuits.
- Making fun of a child's body shape.
- Touching children's hands or leaning over them while teaching them how to use computers.
"Few teachers think it's a problem to put their hand on a student's shoulder or pat them on the back. But if students don't like it, it's considered sexual harassment," Irie said...more...
