Teachers act “in loco parentis” - which means they take the place of the parent at school. That’s the official word from the Department of Education following two incidents at Durban schools where pupils were allegedly left unattended without medical care until their parents arrived.
In the first incident, a Grade 9 pupil at New Forest High in Woodlands was apparently left in the school hall, allegedly unattended, after being suspected of drinking a spiked beverage during school time.
Her mother claims that when she got there she found her daughter lying face down in vomit.
The pupil was released from hospital after being in a coma for almost a week and her mother says she is still battling to breathe because vomit entered her lungs.
A Grade 9 pupil from Betchet Secondary in Sydenham was found lying unconscious on a classroom floor after allegedly being beaten up by a group of boys.
His mother claims she found him frothing at the mouth and unconscious in a classroom alone and teachers told her it was the parents’ responsibility to phone emergency services.
Granville Whittle, national spokesman for the Department of Basic Education, said in terms of the law a school has a duty to ensure the safety of pupils while they are at the school.
“The procedure schools must follow is set out in the Safety Regulations, specifically in regulation 8A(8). This states a public school must take measures to ensure that if a pupil is injured or falls ill during the course of a school activity and requires medical treatment, the supervising educator either takes measures to contact the parent to obtain the consent for medical treatment or determines whether to consent to such medical treatment if unable to contact the parent.”
He said it’s the school’s duty to ensure pupils get medical treatment if they’re injured and in serious cases to call an ambulance.
“Part of a school’s duty is to ensure a responsible adult stays with a pupil until an ambulance arrives or the parents get there,” he said.
Sihle Mlotshwa, provincial spokesman for the Education Department, confirmed the incident at New Forest, saying a disciplinary hearing had been scheduled against three pupils involved.
He said an investigation into the second incident was still being conducted.
Regarding the procedure to follow when a pupil is injured, he said: “A school should contact the parent immediately and a course of action should be agreed on. The best interest of the child should take precedence, whether that means applying first aid or calling emergency services.”
He said every school should have a first aid kit, furnished by the governing body.
Private schools adopt similar procedures, according to Simon Lee of the Independent Schools Association of SA, which has more than 1 500 member schools .
“While there are strict rules on the dispensing of medication, a teacher must act in an emergency. Our member schools set their own policy, but the onus does not lie solely with parents to contact emergency services.”
Sayed Rajack of the KZN Parents’ Association said a school needs to act responsibly when a child’s life could be in danger. “A teacher can’t be indifferent. Leaving a child unattended is irresponsible and, as a parent organisation, we will not accept it. But parents need to be more involved in the governance of schools because teachers have a lot to deal with.” - Sunday Tribune