“Grooming” refers to the methodical behavior of a predatory teacher with the intent of abuse. Grooming is designed to:
-
Grooming a student for abuse takes time. Predatory teachers create opportunities to spend additional time with their targets and manipulate ways to spend time with their targets in isolation.
-
Children have a natural sense of boundaries and a resistance to those boundaries being violated. Predatory teachers systematically “push the envelope” with their targets, both emotionally and physically. All the while, they test the student’s ability to keep a secret.
-
Predatory teachers do everything they can to brainwash their targets with an intense sense of loyalty. Direct and indirect threats may be utilized. While grooming their target, they also groom their environment to ensure that if a student DOES report, the allegations will not be believed.
It is extremely common for an abusive teacher to be described as “everyone’s favorite teacher” or “the best teacher in the building.” They use their charm to draw their targets in, and that same charm creates an alibi for them, as no one wants to believe that “such a nice teacher could do such a thing.”
For more information on the grooming process:
Book an Elephant Alliance Session for your organization. The psychology of predatory teachers, environmental grooming, and strategies for detecting and halting the grooming process are discussed in detail.
Watch The Tale, a documentary by Jennifer Fox. She masterfully tells her real-life experience being groomed and abused by a coach and horseback riding instructor at the age of 13.
Read the paper Exploring Sex Offender Grooming by Jim Tanner, Ph.D. and Stephen Brake, Ph.D. They deliver an in-depth analysis of grooming in all types of sex crimes against both children and adults.
Read the article "Know the warning signs of educator sexual misconduct" by Dr. Charol Shakeshaft. This is an excellent, easy-to-read resource for teachers, administrators, and parents alike.