Barriers that Prevent Teachers from Reporting Suspected Cases of Child ‎Maltreatment in Elementary‎ Schools at Mosul City /Iraq

cases of ‎child ‎maltreatment in elementary‎ schools at Mosul city. Methodology: A descriptive study design was chosen to fulfill the objectives of this research which was conducted‎ in sixty elementary‎ schools‎inside‎of‎Mosul‎city/Iraq‎during‎the‎period‎from‎1‎October‎2019‎till‎30‎ May‎2020.‎The‎study‎sample‎consists‎of‎(60)‎elementary schools ‎teachers was selected by ‎ non-probability (Purposive)‎sample‎from‎(60)‎schools‎inside‎Mosul‎city.‎The‎questionnaire‎data‎was‎filled‎by‎the‎teachers‎in‎a‎ face-to-face direct interview. Statistical processing was conducted by the use of version 25‎ SPSS‎ statistical‎ package. Results: The‎results‎showed‎participants’‎barriers‎to‎reporting‎suspected‎cases‎of‎child‎ maltreatment in schools. (55.0%)‎of‎the‎study‎sample‎stated,‎'Unwillingness‎to‎intervene‎by‎the‎teachers'.‎The‎most‎common‎barriers‎are lack‎of‎knowledge‎and‎training‎on‎child‎maltreatment‎by‎(76.7)‎of‎the‎study‎sample.‎‎ Conclusion: Need‎ for‎ enhancing‎ teacher’s‎ knowledge‎ because‎ the‎ most‎ common‎ barrier‎ to‎ report‎ child‎ maltreatment is lack of knowledge and training. Recommendations: The researchers recommend design and implement different educational programs for teachers' ‎concerning child maltreatment to promote ‎child health and development.


INTRODUCTION
Child maltreatment is a major problem with immediate and long term consequences prolonging from childhood to adulthood depending on the type of maltreatment these consequences may effect on health, social, economic, and the child quality of life (1,2) .
Child maltreatment is a global issue affecting all children of different ages, gender, race, ethnicity in a variety of socio and economic states and is at the forefront of widespread social issues (3) . Every year more than three million cases of child maltreatment are reports in the United States., every 10 seconds report of child maltreatment is made, and every day more than5childrendieasaresultofchildmaltreatment (4) . The size of the child maltreatment problem was not recognized because there were no accurate statistics on the incidence or prevalence of child maltreatment, poor identification and reporting lead to a decrease in the services for the children and their families (5) .
Child maltreatment happens in various forms such as physical, neglect, emotional and sexual maltreatment (6) . Kenny., 2004foundunderreportingcasesofchildabuseandneglect are linked with less educated and lack of knowledge concerning the recognition of child maltreatment and how to report between teachers (7) .In addition,Goldman,(2007)foundthat teachers were unsure of their ability to identify any kind of child maltreatment (8) . Furthermore,(Goebbelsetal.,2008)mentionedthatteachersinternationallyhaveashortage of self-confidence and skills to accurately detect suspected cases of child maltreatment (9) .

AIM OF THE STUDY
Identify the barriers that prevent teachers from reporting suspected cases of child maltreatment in elementary schools at Mosul city.

METHODOLOGY -Design of the study
A descriptive study design was chosen to fulfill the objectives of this research which was conducted in sixteen elementary schools inside of Mosul city/Iraq during the period from 1stOctober2019till30thMay2020.
-Sample of the study Non-probability (Purposive) sample chosen for the current study & the sample consisted of (60)teachersworkingintheselectedelementary schools from the right and left side of Mosul city,(30)teachers from each side of the city & one teachers from each school selected.

-Study Instrument
The study instrument was prepared by the investigators after reviewing related literature and books that focus on the topic of the study. A structured-questionnaire was constructed based on a conceptual framework that divides into2majorparts:Thefirstpartconcernsthe socio-demographic data of the teachers such as age, gender, marital status, educational level, years of employment. The second part includes questions about barriers that prevent teachers from report suspected cases of child maltreatment in elementary schools and consist of (7) causes items with answer by (Yes or No).
-Validity of the study Theinvestigatorconsultedlocal(12)scientific experts in different specialties related to the field of the present study to decide whether or not the enlisted questions are appropriate to be retained, dropped or reformatted.
-Reliability of the study Apilotstudy wascarriedoutonagroupof(10) teachers who was excluded from the study samples.

-Method of data collection
Prior to the collection of data, a formal administrative approval to conduct this study was obtained from Nineveh General Education directorate and also agreement obtained from each teachers through direct interviews and informed that their participation is voluntary and the data will be treated confidentially and used for the study purposes only.   Table 2 shows the participants' barriers to reporting suspected cases of child maltreatmentinschools.(55.0%)ofthestudysamplestated,'Unwillingnesstointervene by the teachers'. The most common barriers are lack of knowledge and training on child maltreatmentby(76.7)ofthestudysample.
Table (1) also show that (45%) of the total samples were having years of employment ranged between (11-15 years) this finding consistent with (Dhahir and Mohammed, 2020) that they finding (35.0%) of teachers having work experience in teachingrangedbetween(11-15) (10) . Table (2) shows the participants' barriers to reporting suspected cases of child maltreatmentinschools.(55.0%)ofthestudysamplestated,'Unwillingnesstointervene by the teachers'. The most common barriers are lack of knowledge and training on child maltreatmentby(76.7)ofthestudysample.
This result agrees with (1, 9,15,16and 17) all these researches explain the reasons teachers fail to report child maltreatment they found that teachers who are not reporting their suspicions tend to have limited knowledge and self-confidence regarding reporting procedures. They also tend to lack knowledge about the signs and symptoms of various types maltreatment.
Regarding theteacher's fearof clanspursuits(50%)ofthe study sample was reported that the teacher's fear of clanspursuits.Thisresultdisagreeswiththestudythatfindings(8.10 %) of teachers report "I'm afraid of consequences on me" (19) . regarding the question of "normal parenting behavior in raising children" (23.3%) of the study sample reported yes. This result agree with study of (Elarousy et al, 2018)theirfindingsthat(18.60%)ofteachers report "It's normal for parents to abuse their children" (19) . regarding the question "Religious orsocialbeliefs"(21.7%)ofthestudyreportedyes.Thisfindinggivesusanotherevidencefor the need of training and public awareness for child maltreatment and its preventions.

CONCLUSION
Need for enhancing teacher's knowledge because the most common barrier to report child maltreatment is lack of knowledge and training.

RECOMMENDATIONS
Further training on child maltreatment might increase knowledge in detecting and reporting suspected cases of child maltreatment and such training should be made mandatory.