The ICMEC Education Portal provides news of global or regional significance in support of abuse prevention, comprehensive policies and protocols, and the furthering of constructive discussion around child protection in youth-serving organizations. Material presented here does not constitute an endorsement by ICMEC, nor can we guarantee veracity or accuracy.
- The cost of calling out a ‘rape joke’ (BBC, 17 May 2021) ~New!
- Corporal punishment is still common in American schools. Here’s why it should be banned. (USA Today, 13 May 2021)~New!
- Scottish Child Abuse Inquiry told of Perthshire boarding school beatings (BBC, 13 May 2021)~New!
- University of New Hampshire (UNH) Research Estimates 1.4 Million Children Have Yearly Violence-Related Medical Visits (UNH, 11 May 2021)~New!
- UNM Children’s Hospital sees uptick in reports of child abuse as schools reopen (Koat Action News, 7 May 2021)
- Child abuse hotline calls and texts rose during the pandemic. Here’s how to help (CNN Health, 5 May 2021)~New!
- ‘Houses of horror’: Child sex abuse in Indonesia’s schools (Al Jazeera, 28 April 2021)~New!
- Prevention program played key role in exposing alleged abuse at Hilton school (WXXI, 20 April 2021)~New!
- NSPCC child abuse helpline has record call numbers in pandemic (BBC, 15 April 2021)~New!
- Spain passes child abuse law backed by UK pianist (BBC, 15 April 2021)~New!
- DfE warns schools could be closed over ‘rape culture’ claims (The Guardian, 28 March 2021)~New!
- How UK schoolgirls finally found voice to tell of sexual abuse (The Guardian, 28 March 2021)~New!
- Children have lost more than a third of their school year to the pandemic (Save the Children, 2 March 2021) ~New!
- New research shows parents are major producers of child sexual abuse material (The Conversation, 19 Feb 2021)
- Half of men have had unwanted sexual experiences, UK study finds (The Guardian, 16 Feb 2021)
- Female sexual abusers increasingly reported but rarely prosecuted (BBC, Jan2021)
- Therapeutic ‘scared straight’ programs may be abusive and cause lasting damage to children (NYT, Jan 2021)
- Survivor of abuse by coach demands more robust school response than dismissal (SanJose, Jan 2021)
- US Soccer failed to follow organizational policies in sexual abuse of 11-year-old by coach (KTLA, Dec 2020)
- Pornhub child abuse content results in sanctions and calls for conversations with children (NYT, Dec 2020)
- EU data privacy legislation colliding with online child protection reporting (NYT, Dec 2020)
- South Africa: rise in reporting as case numbers on educator misconduct released (IOL, Dec 2020)
- COVID pandemic sees global rise in child suicide (WaPo, Nov 2020)
- US scouting receives 90,000 allegations of child sexual abuse (ABC News, Nov 2020)
- Problematic portrayal of teen sexting in media lacks nuanced understanding of risks (LSE, Nov 2020)
- UK: latest IICSA report details lessons learned from institutional safeguarding ‘failures’ (BBC, Oct 2020)
- Nigeria: strategies needed to make required child protection policies domesticated in schools (All Africa, Sept 2020)
- Educators bury case at ‘request’ of student athletes but survivors struggle with recovery (Federal Way, Sept 2020)
- Adapting abuse prevention education to remote learning environments (CIS Perspectives Blog, Sept 2020)
- Canada: 80pc increase in online abuse and gaming livestream luring indicate need for education of 8-12-year-olds (C3P, Sept 2020)
- Physical abuse documented during lockdown indicate adolescents at increased risk (Guardian, Aug 2020)
- US: as reporting sinks 62%, cases of severe physical abuse injuries and fatalities doubles (York Daily Record, Aug 2020)
- Japan: schools and students with COVID battered by abuse on social media (Japan Times, Aug 2020)
- Addressing student experiences of peer-on-peer abuse (CIS Perspectives blog, Aug 2020)
- Singapore: adult targets 12-year-old online resulting in shared sexual images and rape (Strait Times, Aug 2020)
- How a teacher hid his sexual offences against children for 30 years (Spectrum, July 2020)
- Liability in US for teachers and boards in sexual misconduct cases (Lawyers.com, July 2020)
- US: Daisy Coleman, survivor advocate of abuse prevention in schools, takes own life (BBC, July 2020)
- UK inquiry reveals name changes common in some countries following allegations of sexual abuse (SKY, July 2020)
- Notes on a Silencing Excerpt: survivor recounts events following sexual assault (NYT, July 2020)
- Pandemic results in PTSD in children (IBTimes, June 2020)
- Abuse at home pushed child out of lockdown (SKYnews, June 2020)
- Iran: significant changes to criminalization of child abuse following widespread condemnation of teen’s murder (NYT, June 2020)
- Investigator shares what online grooming looks and feels like during COVID Lockdown (BBC video, June 2020)
- China: Calls for stricter penalties for educator sexual misconduct answered (Global Times, June 2020)
- Online predators targeting children during Coronavirus lockdown (Guardian, May 2020)
- US: Controversial new Title IX rules bolster rights of those accused of sexual abuse (CNN, May 2020)
- India: Teen Instagram group promotes sexual abuse of younger children (BBC, May 2020)
- Survivor recounts long term impact of emotional abuse by coach (NYT, May 2020)
- Expert on how parents should speak to children about sexting (NYT, Apr 2020)
- Why educators are essential to child abuse prevention (CfC blog, Apr 2020)
- US: Preventing abuse by teachers during online learning (VOSD, Apr 2020)
- China: victims increasingly coming forward about sexual abuse by teachers (SupChina, Apr 2020)
- Staying connected to your school community during closure (The Key, Apr 2020)
- Key messages for parents to share with children to prevent abuse (NYT, Apr 2020)
- UK National Crime Agency report highlights risks to children during crisis (Guardian, Apr 2020)
- UK reports fatalities from domestic abuse more than double during lockdown (Guardian, Apr 2020)
- FBI issues guidance on keeping children safe online during pandemic (FBI press release, Apr 2020)
- I am not a virus: school support of children of color experiencing discrimination related to Covid-19 (KDSLglobal, Apr 2020)
- China: widespread anger erupts over teen’s treatment after reporting sexual abuse (NYT, Apr2020)
- Loss of teachers as mandatory reporters enables more harm to children (NYT, Apr 2020)
- Report finds principal failed to sufficiently investigate teacher’s sexual misconduct (MassLive, Apr 2020)
- Increase in online sexual abuse during pandemic reported by Europol (EdX, Apr 2020)
- Trauma-informed approach to teaching during Coronavirus (WaPo, Mar 2020)
- Spike in online grooming expected by reporting agencies (IWF, Mar 2020)
- Child protection concerns during Covid-19 (National Press, Mar 2020)
- Don’t let children become collateral damage during crisis (Law.com, Mar 2020)
- Adapting to new learning environments: protecting student well-being during crisis response (CIS, Mar 2020)
- Survivor of sexual abuse describes insufficient response to educator grooming behavior (Omaha World Herald, Mar 2020)
- Spain: UK pianist and CSA survivor, James Rhodes, champions new legislation supporting victims (BBC, Feb 2020)
- India: 5-year-old raped by driver on US Embassy grounds (BBC, Feb 2020)
- Chat apps: New report identifies high-risk social media ‘roulette’ style apps used by children available across app stores (WAPO, Jan 2020)
- Live streaming: What professionals need to know (CEOP, Jan 2020)
- Advice for professionals on how to support LGBTQ youth safety online (ThinkUKnow, Jan 2020)
- China: Parenting blogger apologizes for post advocating abuse (Sixthtone, Jan 2020)
- China: Evidence retention critical to avoid defamation charges against sexual abuse victims (NYT, Jan 2020)
- International Athletic Directors survey says child protection and professional development top concerns (Coach & AD, Dec 2020)
- Advice for parents to avoid online harm caused by ‘sharenting’ (Fast Company, Dec 2019)
- Gaming and online chats are ‘hunting grounds’ for offenders seeking children (NYT, Dec 2019)
- Tips for appropriate, GDPR compliant photography of student events (Independent Education Today, Dec 2019)
- Rampant abuse documented in Afghanistan schools (NYT, Nov 2019)
- (Video) Speaking frankly: US institutional response to sexual abuse under Title IX insufficient (CBSN, Nov 2019)
- Australian survey indicates gaps in teacher training as problematic sexual behaviors (PSB) on rise (Education Matters, Nov 2019)
- South Africa: podcast of journalist’s unfolding investigation into teacher who abused him (24News and My Only Story, Nov 2019)
- Impact of secondary traumatic stress on educators (NEA, Oct 2019)
- Female teacher’s grooming of student was unsubstantiated by principal (MassLive, Oct 2019)
- Warning from a parent about extremist recruitment online (NYT, Oct 2019)
- Alumna speaks to current students on impact of historic abuse (Washington Post, Oct 2019)
- West Africa – lecturers sexual grooming of students caught on camera (BBC, Oct 2019)
- Kenya’s ‘talking boxes’ help girls disclose and recover from abuse (BBC, Oct 2019)
- BBC launches digital wellbeing app to encourage children to monitor relationships for abuse (BBC, Sept 2019)
- Explosion of online sexual abuse material: 6 takeaways from NYT investigation (NYT, Sept 2019)
- Africa: Creating safe schools webinar and education portal tour (AISA Webinar Series, Sept 2019)
- Investigations into educator abuse in US vary wildly (Voice of San Diego, Sept 2019)
- The expectations of leadership: a clear lead (Erooga, Sept 2019)
- Parents are not doing enough to keep their children safe online (AAP study, Sept 2019)
- Oman: How child protection law works (Times of Oman, Aug 2019)
- How making sports safer through Title IX protections improved sports performance internationally (IOC, July 2019)
- Safe Sport Initiative (IOC)
- Upward trend noted in peer-on-peer abuse in UK (Guardian, June 2019)
- ‘Sexting’ among children on rise, complicating identification of child pornography (ABC, May 2019)
- School failed to protect students from classmate with double rape charge (TES, May 2019)
- Social media creates evidence trail of educator sexual misconduct (Dayton Daily News, May 2019)
- Oman training teachers for key role in child protection (Times of Oman, May 2019)
- Hong Kong schools address rise in sexual abuse and ‘corporal punishment’ (SCMP, April 2019)
- Child advocates strongly caution educators and parents about abuse prevention video Breck’s Last Game (PSHE Assoc., April 2019)
- Boy Scouts of America trial reveals more than 3,000 volunteers offended against more than 12,000 children (CNN, April 2019)
- Bangladesh: student who disclosed abuse by headmaster burned alive, thousands protest (BBC, April 2019)
- India bans TikTok (formerly Musically) for illicit content, others expected to follow suit (TechCrunch, April 2019)
- Global task force targets online sexual abuse in Philippines (Reuters, April 2019)
- UK proposes mandatory ‘duty of care’ for online providers in toughest proposed legislation on online abuse (UK Gov, April 2019)
- Process for Child Protection in Japan (Japan Times, March 2019)
- Account of sexual hazing in sport (WAPO, March 2019)
- Breast ironing awareness needed where West African girls might be at risk (BBC, March 2019)
- It’s dangerous to be a boy (NYT, March 2019)
- Children object to parents posting images without consent (BBC, March 2019)
- Latest civil filing over allegations of sexual abuse at JIS (widely believed to be unsubstantiated) (iNews, Feb 2019)
- Social media and texts have fueled numerous cases of teacher misconduct (Voice of San Diego, Feb 2019)
- Instagram top app for child grooming cases in UK says NSPCC (BBC, Feb 2019)
- Japanese school yields to legal threat, disclosing child’s abuse complaint to offending parent (BBC, Feb 2019)
- Prevent abuse of special needs children: advice for parents (eparent, Jan 2019)
- #ENDviolence in schools global study (UNICEF, Jan 2019)
- How do new accreditation standards affect schools’ child protection procedures and practices? (CIS Perspectives blog, Jan 2019)
- Charity reports one-third increase over last year in websites depicting abuse of children (IWF, Jan 2019)
- Arrest of child predator who groomed children on Fortnite game chat (BBC, Jan 2019)
- South Korean sports communities address physical and sexual abuse claims (NYT, Jan 2019)
- Switzerland: spike in FBI referrals for child pornography (CSAM) downloads (SwissInfo, Jan 2019)
- Report on African community attitudes towards physical punishment (AFRUCA, Jan 2019)
- Schools’ response to abusive sports rituals faces public reckoning in wake of #MeToo (BBC, Jan 2019)
- Intimate teacher-student relationship reevaluated as unprofessional (Chicago Tribune, Jan 2019)
- We’re teaching consent all wrong (EdWeek, Jan 2019)
- Philippines amends legislation to include electronic abuse in child protection act (Manila Bulletin, Dec 2018)
- India proposes national requirements for code of conduct policy in wake of horrific institutional abuse (The Hindu, Dec 2018)
- US study finds issuing report cards on Friday increases physical abuse (NYT, Dec 2018)
- Combating adolescent sexual violence by addressing situational factors (Psychology Today, Dec 2018)
- When schools use mandatory reporting as a weapon against parents (Hechinger Report, Dec 2018)
- Betrayed: exposé on all aspects of how Chicago Public Schools mishandled sexual abuse of students (Chicago Tribune, Nov 2018)
- 6 tips from an expert on ID verification when hiring (SecEd, Nov 2018)
- Child protection in UAE, schools doing more but reporting is obligation of all (Nation, Nov 2018)
- In Canada sexual hazing assaults prompt outcry over private school’s response (BBC, Nov 2018)
- Video: Principal discusses how concerns came to light (CBC, Nov 2018)
- UK school pays damages following case of peer abuse (Guardian, Nov 2018)
- A challenge issued: what I will no longer be doing when it comes to child protection (CIS Perspectives, Nov 2018)
- Child protection now a ‘non-negotiable’ for UK registered charities and international youth-serving organizations (Farrer & Co, Oct 2018)
- More than Me: lack of child protection fosters abuse at non-profit schools in Liberia (NPR, Oct 2018)
- Hotline calls from victims of peer abuse up 30% over previous year (Guardian, Oct 2018)
- Senegal struggles to combat sexual abuse by teachers (Human Rights Watch, Oct 2018)
- Kenya halts registration of new orphanages, considers ban on involvement of foreigners (Daily Nation, Oct 2018)
- NSPCC Learning site launched for child-serving professionals (NSPCC, Oct 2018)
- Google Europe offers organizations online image content search to identify/remove child sexual abuse images (CSAM) (Google, Sept 2018)
- Supporting teachers with vicarious trauma (HGSE, Sept 2018)
- Introduction to new protocol for managing allegations of child abuse by educators and other adults (Farrer & Co, Sept 2018)
- Results of new US national study on teens’ social media habits (Common Sense Media, Sept 2018)
- Support provided to UK schools for required relationships and sex education (SecEd, Sept 2018)
- Illegal FGM leaves 50 girls in hospital in Burkina Faso (BBC, Sept 2018)
- Slippery slope of inappropriate student attachment (Voice of San Diego, Sept 2018)
- Contraction of US Title IX expected to ‘substantially decrease’ school costs and obligation to investigate sexual harassment and abuse (NYT, Sept 2018)
- Singapore considers strong legislative protections for children under 18 experiencing sexual abuse (Singapore Law Watch, Sept 2018)
- Five teachers arrested in one week for child abuse material as UK calls for tech firms to do more (The Guardian, Sept 2018)
- Do anonymous tip lines or reporting apps work? (EdWeek, Aug 2018)
- UK teacher barred for inappropriate sexual comments to colleagues and students (BBC, Aug 2018)
- Star teacher’s sexual harassment now seen as abusive (Washington Post, Aug 2018)
- Australian law to address orphanage trafficking may have implications for school outreach programs (E-International Relations, Aug 2018)
- Men talk about why they don’t report sexual abuse and why #UsToo matters (NYT, Aug 2018)
- US elementary principals: child protection among top concerns, ‘extreme’ need for professional development (EdWeek, Aug) 2018
- Independent review of Scottish Football Association calls for culture change and finds ‘inadequate’ child protection (Guardian, Aug 2018)
- Japan rocked by failed response to parental neglect and physical abuse (Reuters, July 2018)
- Social media platform tested in Mali in response to UNSC resolution requiring facilitated communication between stakeholders around child protection (DevDiscourse, July 2018)
- A teacher reflects on the cost of learning what you don’t know (Worldview blog, July 2018)
- Australia starts national redress scheme for survivors of institutional abuse (BBC, July 2018)
- Brazilian CSA survivor jails her offender (in Portuguese) (BBC, July 2018)
- India: response to disabled child’s abuse highlights reasons CSA reporting stands at 1% (NYT, July 2018)
- Growing alarm over unregulated children’s video streaming services (Ted Talk, June 2018)
- How do Indian parents talk to their children about abuse? (BBC, June 2018)
- Online grooming through social networks and gaming platforms increases worldwide child trafficking (Straits Times, June 2018)
- 2300 arrested in US for online facilitated child sexual abuse following 25,000 tips over 3 month period (WTOP, June 2018)
- Growing gender equity and #MeToo supports disclosure in Hong Kong (South China Morning Post, June 2018)
- The Legacy of Childhood Trauma (New Yorker, June 2018)
- UK national inquiry into child sexual abuse (IICSA) publishes interim report, predicting more legal responsibility for institutions (IICSA, June 2018)
- Research on female offenders
- Characteristics of school employee sexual misconduct (Magnolia Consulting, June 2018)
- Motivation of female teacher abusers examined (MedicalXPress, June 2018)
- Survivor trauma from female offenders equals or exceeds that of male offenders (MedicalXPress, June 2018)
- When the stories feel too hard to teach: abuse survivor on teaching about abuse (EdWeek blog, June 2018)
- Supreme Court upholds dismissal of British school leader for of lack of appropriate child protection concern (Farrer & Co, June 2018)
- US report finds most ed-tech products used by schools fail to meet marketing and moderating minimum standards (EdWeek Market Brief, May 2018)
- *UK updates statutory guidance for schools on child protection (KCSIE) and peer abuse (SVSH) (Farrer & Co, May 2018)
- *See Risk Management for full updated guidance
- Despite child protection laws, children re-traumatized due to untrained professionals and attitudes of public
- Malaysia: child advocate outlines reasons strong legislation fails to protect (The Malaysia Insight, Sept 2018)
- Kenya: government guidance highlights need for MDTs and more parental knowledge to protect children online (Daily Nation, July 2018)
- Ireland: lack of trained professionals and MDTs adds to trauma (Irish Examiner, June 2018)
- Sierra Leone: victims of sexual abuse blamed and excluded from education (All Africa, May 2018)
- India, Tamil Nadu: POCSO fails children, professional training needed (The Hindu, May 2018)
- United States: lack of compliance with federal provisions results in ‘passing the trash’ (NPR, April 2018)
- UK study shows unrestricted, unsupervised access to phones, webcams is serious risk to children under 13 (IWF, May 2018)
- Break the cycle of abusive parenting (Gulf News, May 2018)
- Age restrictions changing in EU due to GDPR: WhatsApp minimum age 16 (Childnet, BBC May 2018)
- Teaching teens about boundary violations helps them cope with relationship abuse (NYT, April 2018)
- UK threatens social media firms with legislation for not keeping children safe online (BBC, April 2018)
- UC Berkeley Study indicates 57% of Google ‘designed for family’ children’s apps violate Coppa privacy laws (The Guardian, April 2018))
- JAMA report indicates teen ‘sexting’ on increase, advises on preventative conversations for parents (NYT, April 2018)
- Changes to consent laws for minors in France proposed: some feel they don’t go far enough (NYT, April 2018)
- Convicted Australian sex offender on run 20 years found-in an international school in Rio (The Australian, April 2018)
- YouTube ‘broke child protection laws’ says complaint (BBC, April 2018)
- Reflection on CIS Child Protection Training (Mandarin and English below) (yule.sohu.com, April 2018)
- One take on what the EU General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR) laws mean for children (London School of Economics blog, April 2018)
- Shocking scale of sexual abuse in UK boarding schools revealed by documentary (ITV, March 2018)
- Free Child Protection Fundamentals course offered to charities working with schools for limited time (EduCare, March 2018)
- Following sexting scandal, China’s Communist Youth League works with video platform giant Bilibili to launch ‘protection center’ in May (Sixth Tone, March 2018)
- Canadian Survivors’ Survey: results of ongoing nationwide survey of survivors of recorded childhood sexual abuse (Canadian Centre for Child Protection, Sept 2017)
- ECPAT/INTERPOL study: boys and young victims at greater risk in severe online sexual exploitation materials (ECPAT, March 2018)
- Social media users in China uncover and report child predator rings (Global Times, Feb 2018)
- Lawsuit: school ignored red flags before student abduction by teacher (AP, Jan 2018)
- Making schools an oasis of safety: superintendent fosters climate of prevention through community outreach (EdWeek, Feb 2018)
- Hong Kong advocate says ‘violence is not parenting’ as abuse cases rise (South China Morning Post, Feb 2018)
- UAE gets tough on child abuse: zero tolerance policy and reporting protocols detailed (Gulf News, Nov 2017)
- Obligation of staff to report peer-on-peer threats leads to barrage of legal issues following school shooting (EdWeek, Feb 2018)
- Countries work together to find and convict sadistic online predator who blackmailed children into abuse (Independent, Feb 2018)
- School reaches $80 million settlement including a ‘recovery fund’ following decades of abuse (KHON, Feb 2018)
- US Congress to vote on stronger organizational responses to preventing sexual abuse (CBS News, Jan 2018)
- Full wording of Protecting Young Victims from Sexual Abuse Act of 2017 (Congress.gov)
- What do schools teach about sexual harassment? (EdWeek, Jan 2018)
- Focus on what Michigan State knew: demand for investigation of abuse reporting (NYT, Jan 2018)
- Survivor tells organizations that sheltered abuser, it’s your turn to listen to me (Time, Jan 2018)
- University faces victims: today is about your story, MSU/Nassar (The Detroit News, Jan 2018)
- Larry Nassar: a trail of sexual abuse in schools, homes, and sports facilities (The Detroit News, Jan 2018)
- Student complaints about teen classroom helper not heeded (The Gazette, Jan 2018)
- Facebook reports youths now charged in Denmark for distributing sexually explicit material (BBC, Jan 2018)
- India launches portal for reporting online abuse (The Hindu, Jan 2018)
- Spotlighting Problem of Sexual Assault in Schools #MeTooK12 (EdWeek, Jan 2018)
- Snapchat and schools – monitoring what students post online (Most viewed EdWeek video of 2017, PBS News Hour)
- Why Indonesian activists are defending JIS teachers jailed for sexual abuse (SEAsia Globe, Jan 2018)
- Indonesian maid charged for streaming video of children bathing: cultural differences blamed (BBC, Dec 2017)
- China Education Ministry ‘lays down the law’: schools must respond to peer-on-peer abuse (Sixth Tone, Dec 2017)
- Australia Royal Commission issues 17 volume final report of five year study into institutional responses to child sexual abuse (The Guardian, Dec 2017)
- Official website of final report (includes reports, research, recommendations, and case studies)
- Report preface and executive summary
- International Megan’s Law: US passports of child sex offenders will note their convictions (NYT, Nov 2017)
- How a school committed to child protection training in Arabic to meet the needs of its community (CIS Perspectives, Nov 2017)
- My life after sexual assault: Diana Nyad writes powerfully on abuse and disclosure (NYT, Nov 2017)
- ‘Outing’ by teachers puts LGBTQ students at risk in Japan (LGBTQ Institute, Aug 2017)
- NAIS/TABS Task Force addresses educator sexual misconduct (Keeping Tabs blog, Aug 2017)
- Series on peer abuse in US schools, including case studies (AP, May 2017)
- Peer-on-peer sexual assaults in sports minimized as ‘hazing’ (AP/CBS News, May 2017)
- Former Penn State president found guilty in Sandusky abuse case (New York Times, March 2017)
- Study across 10 countries finds best approach for Sex and Relationship Education (SRE) (Time, Sept 2016)
- International school teacher’s offending profiled (Japan Times, May 2016)