Jun 27 2008
What kind of background checks do they do in Florida?
Is it just my imagination or does the state of Florida have more cases of inappropriate teacher-student relationships than anywhere else? It seems that there is at least one story every week coming out of Florida about teachers (usually female) having sexual relations with underage students. What is in the water there. Check out these stories:
- 60 Year Old Teacher Accused of Sex with Student
- Mom Of Minor In Teacher-Student Sex Case Speaks Out
- End of line for teacher
- Police Say 16-Year-Old Had Sex With Teacher On Multiple Occasions
Those are all headlines from just the last few months. But if you go to the website bad teachers they have 77 stories about Florida teachers alone. But my present state has 40 stories.
This isn’t just about Florida. This is a problem all over the country. As a former public school teacher/coach, I’m disgusted but not surprised. Children spend more time at school with their teachers than they do with their own family. So why don’t school systems do a better job of doing background checks? Why do we hear so many stories like these almost daily? Was it always like this and we just didn’t hear about it or is something else going on? What would 30, 40, 50 and yes 60 year old women see in 13-16 year old boys? Better safeguards need to be put in place.
What do you think?
8 responses so far
You know, my wife is a teacher, 3rd grade teacher. The background check and fingerprinting they put her through was very detailed and thorough. Maybe, if she had done something wrong in the past, could have slipped through the cracks, but I don’t see how.
School systems must be responsible for their teachers and the checks on their staff.
What would a 50 year old teacher see in a 16 year old boy? Not really sure about that one. I think it is called lack of self-control!
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I’m not sure I follow how kids spending a lot of time at school causes this problem. It sounds like you’re blaming the victims?
These women need to be prosecuted vigorously, it’s a crime against a child.
Hugh,
I’m not blaming the victims. I’m pointing out that our children spend more time at school than they do at home. That isn’t a condemnation it is an observation. Kids leave usually 7AM and don’t return home until 3 or 4 PM. They may see their parents for a few hours before they go to bed. I’m not blaming kids for that. That is just the way it is.
Kevin Bussey’s last blog post..What kind of background checks do they do in Florida?
oh, ok.
I thought you were saying that the schedule of the school day was causing these teachers to abuse kids.
Kevin I think it is just symptomatic of a society which emphasizes fantasy in relationships of all kinds. How many people think about reliving their youth? It is bizarre to think of a 60 year old attracted to a teen, but if you are controlled by sensuality — why not? “Lovers of pleasure” pretty much describes it even when the “pleasure” is only a fantasy.
Scotty,
I think you hit the nail on the head. It isn’t that these instances are viewed as ok by some teachers. It is the fact that these instances are viewed as fantasy. Society tells us that the more dangerous and fantasy-like your actions, the better and more meaningful they will be. The more you can brag about it, the better it is.
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I think Steve has it concerning the background checks. They only help if you have a record. I think that it might be more productive for schools to mandate social/psych evaluations as part of the hiring process. It’s not that you can do something really in depth, but you might be able, through a well written questionairre, to discover if someone might have a need driving them that would not be suited to authority and access to children.
As for the fantasy, these guys are also right. In a world where technology has created a disconnect in the difference between “real” and “virtual,” unstable minds are easily fed this “fantasy” idea and gives it a level of normality. This is not to mention the struggle that parents are facing keeping their kids from porn. If a thirteen year old finds a load of internet porn featuring the “teacher fantasy,” can you imagine how vulnerable it would make them to a predator who has so much access to them at school?
It is a confluence of events that seems to have played out across the nation.
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My daughter teaches in a FL school. Her background and finger printing check are all what every other state does. But we do seem to attract people who are looking for a new start or running away from problems. They think their moral problems are locational, not internal and spiritual.
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