1.6 Abuse

Life orientation

Grade 5

Health and diseases

Module 7

Children who are ill-treated or abused

Co-operate with your teacher to identify three examples of ill-treatment or abuse. What does our Constitution say about such cases? Then offer suggestions on how to handle it.

Activity 1:

To identify the rights of children who are abused

[lo 1.4]

Identify the rights that are being threatened when a child is abused or has a difficult time as a result of substance abuse by their parents.

Write them down here:

(a) Rights of teachers:

1. To teach
2. To be treated with respect and dignity
3. To receive remuneration which is sufficient to live on
4. To express an opinion

5. To build up and improve the level of education

6. To be safe

7. To handle challenges

8. To have time for their families

(b) Responsibilities of teachers :

1. To teach professionally

2. To treat others with respect and dignity and to be sympathetic towards the rights of others

3. To be diligent and punctual, and to make a positive contribution to education

4. To make educational resources available to learners

5. To make well-planned and meaningful contributions

6. To create a school environment that is conducive to effective teaching and learning

7. To keep the school environment safe

8. To recognise and enhance others’ potential

9. To allow time for the duties and interests of others.

Which responsibilities of a teacher are relevant to the safety of a learner?

Write them down:

You must answer the following questionnaire on your own. Please remember that it is not a test in which answers will be marked right or wrong. These are questions that you must consider very carefully. Give an honest yes or no answer to each. You needn’t discuss this questionnaire with your classmates. If you feel very strongly that you do not want to hand it back to your class teacher, you needn’t do it. Maybe you would rather give it to your school principal or some other adult whom you trust.

Activity 2:

To complete a confidential questionnaire

[lo 1.4]

Simply answer Yes or No to the following statements:

(a) My father beats me so badly that there are open wounds on my body.

(b) An adult who has to look after me often touches me in a way that makes me feel unsafe.

(c) There is often not enough money in the house to buy food, because my mother or father uses it to buy drink.

(d) A teacher at my school touches me in private places on my body in exchange for good marks in a test or on my report.

(e) My brother or sister often act very strangely and inject themselves with drugs.

(f) A school friend of mine has already offered me drugs in the form of tablets or dagga cigarettes.

(g) I drink some of the alcoholic drink in my father’s drinks cabinet when I feel very unhappy.

(h) My father hits my mother sometimes when she won’t do what he tells her.

(i) A group of young people in my neighbourhood say they are going to hurt me if I refuse to do something illegal.

1. There is someone who hurts me regularly, but makes me promise that I will tell no one.

If your answer to one or more of these questions is an honest Yes, you should probably talk about it to someone you trust.

Assessment

LO 1

HEALTH PROMOTION

The learner will be able to make informed decisions regarding personal, community and environmental health.

We know this when the learner:

1.1 explores and reports on ways to protect the quality of food and water in various contexts;

1.2 investigates a local environmental health problem using different data sources, and plans a strategy to address the problem;

1.3 recognises the symptoms and causes of locally occurring diseases and discusses prevention strategies;

1.4 explains the individual health and social effects of substance abuse.

Memorandum

Life Orientation for Grade 5 consists of a number of modules focussing on:

1. Health and diseases
2. Social development: rights and responsibilities
3. Personal development

4. Physical development and movement

The first modules, 1-7, prepare the learners to be responsible consumers and to make sound, informed choices regarding their own diets. They are also made increasingly aware of health risks in their own environment and of their responsibilities regarding the maintenance of balanced ecosystems. While there was merely a brief reference to certain children’s rights in Grade 4, the Grade 5 learners are now given the opportunity to focus on their rights and duties as citizens of the country. The sensitive issue of child abuse is also broached. Educators must realise that they have a great responsibility as consultants, confidants and counsellors in this regard. It is here that serious problems can be identified and prevented. It is essential that educators should know the correct procedure should they have to deal with a case of child abuse. During discussions on contagious diseases educators are also in a position to play an important role in preventing life-threatening diseases such as TB, cholera and aids by approaching these topics with the necessary seriousness.