Teacher Bites Child

One of the stranger incidents of abuse that I have seen.

In the development of the various articles and topics that I write here at Suite101.com, I routinely do research on topics involving childcare locally, nationally and internationally. I am often intrigued and surprised at things that I find, but rarely do I find an article as odd as the one that was recently featured on the website of Channel 5 Eyewitness News in Des Moines, Iowa.

This article also particularly struck me because of my recently featured article, Abuse in the Daycare.

This brief story featured nineteen-year-old Nicole Goeller who reportedly lost her patience with a four-year-old child in her care and chose to bite him on the face. The bite apparently didn't break the skin, but left a red mark on the boy's face.

I have had children bite me, but I have NEVER had the urge to bite one of them. The article was rather brief, and the reason behind Ms. Goeller's choice was not explained-- the father of the boy said that he did not know what was behind the incident. Ms. Goeller was summarily dismissed by the center that she worked for and the incident was reported to the appropriate authorities.

This is one of the odder incidents that I have heard of concerning child abuse in the daycare setting. It is no less criminal because of this, but I am left to wonder if the child's family will look for another center, and if so, will the teachers there believe this four-year-old boy when he tells them of this incident.

Edited later when further information became available.

I recenlty found an article that is more comprehensive in its discussion of the incident. This article also states that the boy is still attending the YMCA-run center where he was bitten. Matthew Critten, the child's father stated that he still feels positively toward the center as a whole, which I think is due to the prompt action that the center's leadership took of the incident, and that they did not dismiss or try to cover it up.

If you would like to view this additional article, it can be found here.

Copyright © 2006, Carrie Henderson and Suite 101. All rights reserved. Any unauthorized use will constitute an infringement of copyright.