Domestic violence doesn’t just affect spouses, but our teens as well. According to HealthDay News, more than 50% of all teenagers in the U.S. know a victim of dating violence or sexual assault. These same young adults say that they would find it hard to intervene and wouldn’t know how to respond if they saw such a crime. A recent survey funded by the Avon Foundation For Women released the following news:
· One in six young women say they have been a victim of social assault, compared to one in fifty young men.
· Only 46% of young males thought they would know what dating violence looked like.
· One in three young women didn’t know the signs of sexual assault.
· One in three young adults admitted that fear of getting physically hurt could prevent them from trying to stop an assault.
These results show that we are not doing a good enough job at speaking with our teenagers about dating violence/domestic assault. It’s important that as parents we take the initiative to have the discussion with our kids so they know how to determine if a friend is in trouble and how to stay out of these types of relationships themselves. Our young adults should understand that domestic abuse is not just physical violence, but controlling behavior. If a boyfriend or girlfriend is stalking them, reading through their texts, determining which friends they can see and when, or using abusive language to control them, it’s time to get out of the relationship!
Many times children play out what they see at home. Therefore, teenagers that come from homes in which there is domestic abuse, could be more likely to impose that behavior in their own serious relationship. If you recognize that you are in an abusive marriage or relationship, a domestic violence class could give you the support and education you need to learn to get yourself to safer ground. Or, if your spouse has been indicted for domestic abuse and has a court order to take a batterer’s intervention program, online domestic violence classes are an easy-to-use, convenient and educational way to learn the material.
Online DV classes are available from any computer connected to the Internet and from anywhere in the United States. All you have to do is register online and the class becomes immediately available for you to read through. There is nothing to print out, no workbooks to fill out and no papers to organize; the class is 100% online. The participant simply logs in, spends as much time as he or she would like on the material, and then logs out. The computer program holds your last spot so it pulls right up when you enter the class again. Online classes are highly beneficial for people who have an upcoming due date to meet. Specifically, an 8 -hour in-person DV class generally takes 8 weeks to accomplish. Online you can get a 8-hour DV class done over the weekend. When the class is completed, a Certificate of Completion is sent out to the address you specify. This is the official documentation that the court requires to prove the mandate was fulfilled.
Online DV classes are also a great way for family members and young adults to learn the skills necessary to break this cycle. If you suspect your child is in an unhealthy relationship, offering a DV class as an educational tool is a great way to teach them why and how to get out before it’s too late.
