The Child Abuse Prevention and Treatment Act (PL 93-247) was signed into law on January 31, 1974. This legislation established the National Center on Child Abuse and Neglect (NCCAN) within the Children's Bureau of the Office of Child Development of the Department of Health, Education and Welfare. The law also mandated that the states develop policies and procedures for the effective reporting, investigation, and follow-up of child abuse and neglect cases. To date, at least 43 of the 50 states have mandated that teachers be included among the list of professionals required to report suspected cases of child abuse and neglect (Council for Exceptional Children, 1979).Although PL 93-247 requires that states develop child abuse and neglect policies and procedures, the development process itself is the responsibility of each individual state. In effect, this means that definitions, agencies involved, private professional participation, and legal procedures vary from state to state. The resulting confusion is only slightly resolved by a search of professional literature on child abuse, since that literature is replete with its own set of varying definitions and incidence figures.Teachers faced with the required reporting law are justified in asking how and to whom they are to report suspected cases, and at what point a suspicion becomes a reportable concern. Furthermore, teachers, unlike many other professionals who are required to report, are in the unique position of being in continuous contact with the abused child and his or her family before, during, and after the report has been filed. Therefore, the after-effects of the reporting process ( the investigation and treatment phases) are also of particular interest to the teacher.Since each school district has its own unique school population and accompanying circumstances, the information presented here is not intended to be used as a model for developing policies and procedures for handling suspected and known cases of child abuse and neglect in the schools. Rather, it is intended as a resource for use in the development of such a model.
The Child Abuse Prevention and Treatment Act (PL 93-247) was signed into law on January 31, 1974. This legislation established the National Center on Child Abuse and Neglect (NCCAN) within the Children's Bureau of the Office of Child Development of the Department of Health, Education and Welfare. The law also mandated that the states develop policies and procedures for the effective reporting, investigation, and follow-up of child abuse and neglect cases. To date, at least 43 of the 50 states have mandated that teachers be included among the list of professionals required to report suspected cases of child abuse and neglect (Council for Exceptional Children, 1979).Although PL 93-247 requires that states develop child abuse and neglect policies and procedures, the development process itself is the responsibility of each individual state. In effect, this means that definitions, agencies involved, private professional participation, and legal procedures vary from state to state. The resulting confusion is only slightly resolved by a search of professional literature on child abuse, since that literature is replete with its own set of varying definitions and incidence figures.Teachers faced with the required reporting law are justified in asking how and to whom they are to report suspected cases, and at what point a suspicion becomes a reportable concern. Furthermore, teachers, unlike many other professionals who are required to report, are in the unique position of being in continuous contact with the abused child and his or her family before, during, and after the report has been filed. Therefore, the after-effects of the reporting process ( the investigation and treatment phases) are also of particular interest to the teacher.Since each school district has its own unique school population and accompanying circumstances, the information presented here is not intended to be used as a model for developing policies and procedures for handling suspected and known cases of child abuse and neglect in the schools. Rather, it is intended as a resource for use in the development of such a model.
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