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All school counselors have the duty to report suspected child abuse cases. Although many cases slip through the cracks due to many things such as counselors scared to be wrong, students lying about what is going on in their home, counselors have dual relationships with family members and not wanting them to get in trouble and many other reasons.
Although all 50 states have laws in place to protect students that are facing child abuse. There is a great lack in education when it comes to educating school counselors on the signs of child abuse.
This topic is important for counselors and educators because of the serious repercussions for educators who do not report child abuse cases. As a future counselor it is my duty to be aware of the signs of child abuse and to protect the students in my school no matter the fear of being wrong. It is also my duty to educate all of my co-workers on their duty to report and the signs of child abuse beyond physical abuse.

American School Counselor Association.  (2018).  The school counselor and confidentiality.  Retrieved from https://www.schoolcounselor.org/asca/media/asca/PositionStatements/PS_Confidentiality.pdf

Bryant, J., & Baldwin, P. (2009). School counsellors' perceptions of mandatory reporter training and mandatory reporting experiences. Child Abuse Review, 19(3), 172-186. doi: 10.1002/car.1099

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I completed my Bachelors of Science in Child Development and Family Studies from Stephen F. Austin State University. I am now working on completing my Masters Degree in Guidance Counseling. After completing my degree I hope to be employed as a school counselor at an elementary school.

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I visited with Sunnye Forrest the Guidance Counselor and Lorena Primary School in Lorena, Texas. We discussed the top five legal and ethical issues she faces in her career as an elementary counselor.

1. Confidentiality- As a school counselor there is a relationship that is formed between a counselor and students. There is also a fine line of legal confidentiality that a school counselor is legal obligated to adhere to. Mrs. Forrest stated that the legal issues of confidentiality is something she faces everyday when having conversations with parents, teachers and other outside parties.

2. Relationships- Lorena, TX is a very small rural town. There are often dual relationships in this school which also can cause legal and ethical issues when working with students and parents who are often times her friends outside of the workplace. Mrs. Forrest stated how important it is for her to maintain a professional relationship inside the school setting.

3. Title 1 School- As a title 1 school there are many legal responsibilities of a school counselor. There is limited time in a counselors day to complete all of these legal responsibilities.

4. Documentation- Documentation is one of the most important roles of school counselor. It is important for a counselor to document their work for the safety of themselves and the student. Documentation can be used counselors to prove the work and counseling they have been doing with students.

5. Child Abuse- School counselors are legally responsible to report child abuse cases. There are many factors counselors need to consider when making these reports. There could be severe consequences for not reporting child abuse cases.

Reference
S. Forrest, personal communication. August 25, 2018.

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While the benefits of classroom teachers forging strong bonds with students are many, less attention is given to principals and superintendents making those types of connections. But certainly, today's schools are complex environments, and every player has a role in student outcomes. School leaders, though, are too often either segregated from the daily lives of students or looked upon as those who dish out consequences and, thus, best avoided.

Reference
Education Dive. (2018). Building bonds with students can be boon to engagement, learning. [online] Available at: https://www.educationdive.com/news/building-bonds-with-students-can-be-boon-to-engagement-learning/530020/ [Accessed 26 Aug. 2018].

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Dive Brief:

Veteran elementary and middle school teacher Chrissy Romano-Arrabito writes for EdSurge that while summer is the time when teachers read up on education trends, browse research, and carefully plot out lesson plans for the coming year, it's also important to consider ways to connect emotionally with students.

Educators would do well to approach students as whole human beings rather than just minds to mold, as kids learn more from teachers they have a good rapport with, and front-loading the school year with community-building activities will pay off down the road.

Some proven ways for educators to form bonds with students include keeping a sense of humor, showing your human flaws, and sharing details about aspects of your personal life - such as pets, hobbies and vacations - while also asking students about their out-of-school lives to seek common ground.

Dive Insight:

While the benefits of classroom teachers forging strong bonds with students are many, less attention is given to principals and superintendents making those types of connections. But certainly, today's schools are complex environments, and every player has a role in student outcomes. School leaders, though, are too often either segregated from the daily lives of students or looked upon as those who dish out consequences and, thus, best avoided.

But there are ways that principals and even superintendents can better serve students by making themselves more visible and more "human," rather than a distant authority figure. First off, there's the simple step of treating students the same way you would want someone with authority over you and your environment to treat you. Beyond that, school leaders can take time to learn students' names, leverage lunchtime to engage with and watch students during unstructured social time, regularly greet students face-to-face in the mornings, be present at every school function, hold regular classroom chats to talk to students about topics of concern, and catch students being good rather than just when they need to be disciplined.

Top image credit: KIPP/Gillian Quinn-Pineda

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Building bonds with students can be boon to engagement, learning

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Veteran elementary and middle school teacher Chrissy Romano-Arrabito writes for EdSurge that while summer is the time when teachers read up on education trends, browse research, and carefully plot out lesson plans for the coming year, it's also important to consider ways to connect emotionally with students.

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While the Pentagon began addressing sexual assault in the ranks a decade ago, an Associated Press investigation revealed that similar reports involving military kids got lost in a dead zone of justice. Child offenders were rarely held accountable—even when they confessed—and victims often received no counseling or other help.

Reference
Press, T. (2018). Military Children to Have More Sexual-Assault Protections Under New Law. [online] Education Week. Available at: https://www.edweek.org/ew/articles/2018/08/13/under-new-law-military-kids-get_ap.html [Accessed 25 Aug. 2018].

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The Defense Department must improve the way it responds to child-on-child sexual assault at military bases in the U.S. and abroad as part of a sweeping new law President Donald Trump signed Monday.

While the Pentagon began addressing sexual assault in the ranks a decade ago, an Associated Press investigation revealed that similar reports involving military kids got lost in a dead zone of justice. Child offenders were rarely held accountable-even when they confessed-and victims often received no counseling or other help.

Under the new law, more than 70,000 students in Pentagon-run schools now receive the same legal protections as their U.S. public school counterparts. The schools also must overhaul their system for tracking and addressing assault allegations.

And, for the first time, a case must be reviewed by a central authority, regardless of where on base an assault is reported. That review by the Family Advocacy Program, the military's social services provider, must recommended "treatment, counseling, or other appropriate interventions."

AP found that some child-on-child sexual assault reports were buried, while those that were investigated faced numerous barriers to justice within the Pentagon and Justice Department.

See Also: AP Investigation Reveals Hidden Horror of Sex Assaults by K-12 Students

Counselors would turn away victims, for example, because military regulations said help was available only if the alleged offender was an adult or caretaker. Offender rehabilitation or punishment was rare. Instead, go-to solutions included kicking alleged offenders into the civilian world or transferring their families to another installation.

AP identified nearly 700 cases of child-on-child sexual assault on military bases worldwide from the start of 2007 through summer 2017. That was a certain undercount-the Pentagon did not track cases, and identifying them required interviews and records obtained under the Freedom of Information Act.

Military officials had quietly resisted congressional action, arguing they could fix the problem themselves.

Lawmakers disagreed and wrote reforms into the John S. McCain National Defense Authorization Act for fiscal year 2019. The $716 billion law, which Trump signed at Fort Drum, New York, also includes a military pay raise and investments in advanced weaponry.

Congress has also initiated investigations by the Pentagon's inspector general and the Government Accountability Office.

In one victory for the Pentagon, a requirement the Senate passed that bases share control over cases with local civilian authorities was watered down to only asking the service branches to explore such a change and report back.

The law will most immediately impact the Pentagon's network of schools in seven U.S. states and 11 other countries.

New positions are being created to coordinate responses to sexual assault reports. Disciplinary files will follow students when they switch schools. And the commander of a base will also be expected to keep track of incidents at schools.

By the end of March 2019, the Department of Defense Education Activity, as the school system is known, must establish policies that grant its students the same legal protections afforded those in public schools under a federal law known as Title IX.

Public school districts have operated for years under specific guidelines from the U.S. Education Department on how to handle student sexual violence and comply with Title IX. The Pentagon's system gave principals little training and direction. In one case at a base school in Germany, parents of several 1st grade girls said they were not informed about alleged assaults until months after the principal received reports.

The Pentagon school system plans to roll out reforms to its complaint-review process in September, according to the Office of the Secretary of Defense. Pentagon spokeswoman Maj. Carla Gleason wouldn't comment on other requirements in the law, saying the military was reviewing how to meet them.

One former Pentagon school parent, who has pushed reforms for several years, said the new law was just the first step in resolving issues of sexual assault among military kids.

"It will just be a piece of paper," said Susan Roeder, "and it has to be implemented to schools across the world on a very personal level."

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Military Children to Have More Sexual-Assault Protections Under New Law

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The Defense Department must improve the way it responds to child-on-child sexual assault at military bases in the U.S. and abroad as part of a sweeping new law President Donald Trump signed Monday. While the Pentagon began addressing sexual assault in the ranks a decade ago, an Associated Press investigation revealed that similar reports involving military kids got lost in a dead zone of justice.

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This article discusses all 50 states and what their duties to report contain. It also list the standards and was to report.

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This academic article discusses a school counselors duty to report as well as the amount of training school counselors receive on child abuse and child abuse reporting.

Bryant, J., & Baldwin, P. (2009). School counsellors' perceptions of mandatory reporter training and mandatory reporting experiences. Child Abuse Review, 19(3), 172-186. doi: 10.1002/car.1099

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Angelo State University - Library Online Resources

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Unauthorized use is prohibited; Usage may be subject to security testing and monitoring; Misuse is subject to criminal prosecution; No expectation of privacy except as otherwise provided by applicable privacy laws.

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Reporting Child Abuse
School counselors, teachers and support staff are all legally required to report any suspected child abuse cases. There can be many issues involved in reporting these cases. Reading the article about the amount of cases that go unreported in the United States drew my attention to the legal responsibility a school counselor has.