Abstract
This chapter discusses the, as yet largely unrealized, potential of self-study research to demystify the taboo of childhood sexual abuse (CSA), as well as other forms of exploitation and abuse. We share how we each have endeavored to include instruction about CSA in our work with preservice teachers and to study the implications of our instruction for ourselves and students. Our work is situated within the tenets of social justice and advocacy that have long traditions in self-study. Across our careers as teacher educators, we have consciously worked to hold ourselves to ideals of social justice. We see our focus on CSA as an attempt to confront an injustice that has historically been silenced but has devastating consequences for individuals, families, and communities across all socioeconomic backgrounds, religions, races, and cultures. Likewise, we strive to prepare teachers who will advocate for students who have experienced CSA or other trauma. While this chapter focuses primarily on our efforts to teach about and study our practice surrounding CSA, it has the potential to inform teaching and scholarship in teacher education dedicated to many other difficult/taboo topics (i.e., mental health, homelessness, suicide).
Forever changed, not forever damaged.
(Souers and Hall 2016, p. 137)
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Acknowledgments
We wish to express our gratitude to Donna and Jerry Allender for their invaluable work as our critical friends in this endeavor. More so, we cherish them for their boundless friendship and mentoring across nearly a decade, all of which was set in motion by the serendipity of a S-STEP newcomers welcoming activity on the first day of the 2010 Castle Conference. The Fates were good to us that day
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Allison, V.A., Ramirez, L.A. (2019). Employing Self-Study Research to Confront Childhood Sexual Abuse and Its Consequences for Self, Others, and Communities. In: Kitchen, J., Berry, A., Guðjónsdóttir, H., Bullock, S., Taylor, M., Crowe, A. (eds) 2nd International Handbook of Self-Study of Teaching and Teacher Education. Springer International Handbooks of Education. Springer, Singapore. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-981-13-1710-1_22-1
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