Sexual assault in grade school by students is a real, under-reported problem, AP finds
At least 17,000 sexual assault cases of students, by students were officially reported in K-12 schools in the U.S. from fall 2011 to spring 2015, and this already shocking number "does not fully capture the problem because such attacks are greatly under-reported, some states don't track them, and those that do vary widely in how they classify and catalog sexual violence," The Associated Press reported Monday, following a yearlong investigation. "A number of academic estimates range sharply higher."
There are about 50 million K-12 students in the U.S. Some more findings:
"Everyone feels like we don't have a problem, and the reason they feel that way is they have their heads in the sand," Oregon psychologist Wilson Kenney tells AP. "There's just a reluctance to see that there's sexual violence at such a young age," says Dorothy Espelage, who researched sexual offenses and harassment in middle school at the University of Illinois. The AP report tells the story of Chaz, who says he was raped multiple times in middle school. You can learn more about the uncomfortable problem of K-12 sex assault and hear from Chaz in the AP video below. Peter Weber
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Peter has worked as a news and culture writer and editor at The Week since the site's launch in 2008. He covers politics, world affairs, religion and cultural currents. His journalism career began as a copy editor at a financial newswire and has included editorial positions at The New York Times Magazine, Facts on File, and Oregon State University.
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