Title IX And The Issue Of Sexual Misconduct In Schools

Title IX is a federal civil right that not only prohibits sex discrimination in education, but also addresses sexual harassment, gender-based discrimination, and sexual violence. There is not much evidence to support bullying as a greater problem than sexual harassment for a student’s well-being in life, as well as school adjustment, or academic success. However, there is no doubt that sexual harassment is disappearing from the view of school districts causing extreme cases of assault to go unnoticed by administrators who should be the ones protecting our youth.

The to choose the topic of sexual misconduct in the school system is because of miscommunication between the outsiders and the victims in sexual assault and misconduct cases and the lack of attention it receives.

Nelson (2007) has found that over 2,500 Illinois individuals who were adjudicated delinquent for sex offenses as youth are on the sex offender registry, 72 percent for life. In addition, two common types of treatment for youth who committed sex offenses are cognitive-behavioral therapy (CBT) and Multisystemic therapy (MST). Compared to other adult-focused treatments, CBT treatments tend to generate larger, more significant effects in youth who commit sex offenses.

On the other hand, children are at a much greater risk of being the victims of a violent crime than being the perpetrator of one. It is evident that children that live in low social status households are three times as likely to be identified as a victim of sexual assault. It is seen this way because not only adults, but even other students at school look at most middle school, high school and even college students as weak and vulnerable. From this mindset, it would be easy for one to think that students are easily manipulated resulting in being easily taken advantage of. In a situation like this, there is no doubt that being taken advantage of in a school setting should be a bigger issue than it is made out to be.

Ward and Hudson divided the theories of sexual offending into three categories which are single factor, multi factor, and micro level. The single and multi-factor psychological theory provides explanations for rape. “Research indicates that single factors such as intimacy problems, inappropriate sexual interests, emotional control, and offence-supportive thinking are all psychological components associated with the perpetration of sexual assault.” In addition, the rational choice theory can be applied to the study of sex offenders because it suggests that a greater understanding of sex offender behaviors will come from a greater knowledge of victim behavior. Their decision making process underscored the importance of both personal and situational factors, including victim resistance.

Sexual harassment of students is prohibited by Title IX of the Education Amendments of 1972 under the circumstances described in the Guidance. Sexual Harassment Guidance. The Guidance provides educational institutions with information regarding the standards that are used by the Office for Civil Rights (OCR), and that institutions should use in order to investigate and resolve allegations of sexual harassment of students engaged in by school employees, other students, or third parties. Specifically, OCR strongly advised schools to distinguish between behaviors that are inappropriate and harmful from those that constitute a violation of Title IX.

In conclusion, it is clear that Title IX is a resource that enables there to be trust between administration and students. This is a policy that should be enforced throughout middle school, high school and college in order to make students feel safe if they do not.

Works Cited

• Beauregard, E., & Leclerc, B. (2007). Sexual Abuse: A Journal of Research and Treatment. Retrieved from http://www.ncjrs.gov/App/publications/abstract.aspx?ID=241541
• Illinois Juvenile Justice Commission. (2016). Burdened for life: The myth of juvenile record confidentiality and expungement in Illinois. Retrieved from Children and Family Justice Center, Northwestern University Pritzker School of Law.
• Nelson, M. (2007). Journal for Juvenile Justice Services, 21, 7-16
• Miller, Jody. Getting Played: African American Girls, Urban Inequality, and Gendered Violence. 1 Mar. 2008.
• School Climate Measurement. (2019, May 14). Retrieved from https://safesupportivelearning.ed.gov/topic-research/school-climate-measure
• Sexual Harassment Guidance. (2018, September 26). Retrieved from https://www2.ed.gov/about/offices/list/ocr/docs/sexhar00.html
• Walker, D. F., McGovern, S. K., Poey, E. L., & Otis, K. E. (2005). Journal of Child Sexual Abuse, 13(3-4), 281-293
• Ward, T. & Hudson, S. M. (1998). Sexual Abuse: A Journal of Research and Treatment, 10, 47-63
• Ward, T., & Beech, A. R. (2006). Aggression and Violent Behavior, 11, 44-63.