Teachers`role and preception in cases of child sexual abuse in Nigeria

Abstract

Aim: This study is an advancement on previous knowledge to investigate teachers' understanding oftheir role in the cases of Child Sexual Abuse (CSA). It examines the child's protective initiative adopted in the school, and to understand the challenges teachers encounter when handling sexual abuse cases in Nigeria. Theory: Feminist theoretical framework of sexual education concerning CSA-prevention Method: The study adopted qualitative method and interview-based design, an exploratory approach in nature. Data were collected through in-depth interviews with eight teachers based on non-probability purposive sampling. Lastly, thematic analysis was carried out to highlight similarities and differences in the data. Results: It was discovered that teachers perceived they have role to play in curbing CSA. Thus, these roles differ as identified in this study which include educating, identifying sexually abused students, investigation, reporting, counselling, and organizing in-service. In addition, it was found that preventive measure like preventive programme, sensitization, public awareness and student­teacher and parent-teacher relationships were incorporated by schools and targeted towards the victims and perpetrators. While non-disclosure, the uncooperative attitude of parents, access to medical check-up and lack of evidence were some of the challenges faced by teachers in the case ofCSA.