Mandatory Reporting

As a future educator who hopes to work in schools with students, I will be obliged to be a mandatory reporter. This means that it will be an obligation of mine to report any forms of self-harm, sexual abuse, or physical abuse that I am aware of among any of the students I am surrounded by. It will be my job to be cognitive of the behavioral patterns of the students around me and to pick up on any suspect behavior that may hint towards lager issues in the students life. Suicide and self-harm is an issue in many of secondary schools across the country and affects teenagers at all different emotional levels. Sometimes, it may be very difficult to pick up on the signs of depression or thoughts of suicide, but if I hear or sense anything suspicious that may seem harmful to oneself or someone else, it will be my job to reach out to the person I report to and make sure that student gets the proper assistance they may need. Also as a future educator, it is important that I realize my place in the school and in the student's lives. I am there to educate and tend to their needs as a student, and by no means will be qualified to assist as a psychiatrist to them or a mental health expert in general. Although I may feel I am helping them out if I allow them to come talk to me about their problems at home or among friends, the best service I can do them in that regard is point them towards specialists who can actually help them out. I will be supportive of all my students, but sometimes that means pointing them in the right direction and having someone who is qualified to assist that student. Attached is a PDF file filled with information about mandatory reporting, recognizing the signs of abuse, and other aspects that promote teachers keeping their children safe.

Mandatory Reporting and Keeping Youth Safe

https://www.acf.hhs.gov/sites/default/files/fysb/mandatory_reporting_508.pdf