Johannesburg - The scope of violence in South African classrooms has reached unprecedented levels with scores of teachers complaining that they are being forced to teach pupils who are often high on drugs such as dagga, tik or ecstasy.
The spike of acts of violence in schools has prompted the Gauteng Department of Education (GDE) to intensify security measures. The department said it would deploy armed security at night and patrollers supported by surveillance cameras during the day at identified schools.
The department said schools with this type of security will be increased annually in the province. “Schools with poor fencing and decaying infrastructure will be prioritised to improve school safety,” said GDE acting spokesperson Oupa Bodibe.
Federation of Association of Governing Bodies (Fedsas) chief executive Paul Colditz said it was high time to have security upgrades in schools, but urged caution.
“In the prevailing circumstances in South Africa, yes, indeed. But, on the other hand, one does not want schools to resemble prisons. One would want one’s schools to be open, inviting and child-friendly places; not correctional institutions,” he said.
Colditz also lamented the fact that it was difficult for schools to beef up their security by using technology, such as scanning machines, because of inadequate funding.
“The problem is a financial one. The state does not provide and fund such security measures and systems. If it has to be done, it must be done by the school itself and by far the majority of schools can simply not afford it.”
Teachers said they feel helpless because they can’t defend themselves even when faced with violence because corporal punishment is banned and considered an assault in terms of the South African Schools Act and the National Education Policy Act.
The plight of teachers and their dangerous working conditions came to the fore this week following the fatal stabbing of a 24-year-old North West teacher, Gadimang Mokolobate by a 17-year-old pupil after it was alleged the teacher had denied him a second plate of food a few days prior to the incident.
A teacher who has been teaching for more than 30 years at an Ekurhuleni high school, said they live in constant fear of their lives because some of the pupils are on drugs.
“I don’t know what impact the dagga policy will have, because some of these pupils are already smoking it during breaks,” she said.
The female teacher said there is a feeling of helplessness in that even when attacked, teachers are not allowed to fight back.
The teacher said older pupils pose a great danger because they act as class leaders and have influence over the younger pupils. When they are told they can’t come back to the school, they threaten a complete “shutdown” of the school.
A new trend is that pupils would start a fight and when an unsuspecting teacher tries to break it up, he or she gets punched and kicked by everyone in the circle, so teachers are even wary of breaking up fights.
The teacher, who asked not to be named for safety reasons, said he has been teaching for about 28 years, but has been unable to return to school because it was unsafe and has been struggling to find an alternative post at a different institution.
He said the incident took place when he queried something from his class, and one of the pupils felt that he was being singled out.
However, the teacher said this was not the case and then asked the pupil to leave the class because his behaviour started to become disruptive.
A little while later, the pupil started hitting the teacher and the police had to be called in.
The teacher said everything happened so fast that he was not able to defend himself.
The South African Democratic Teachers Union provincial secretary Jonavon Rustin has condemned the violence against teachers.
“We are deeply shocked that our society has gone to the extent that young people are attacking teachers in their schools. We feel there is a moral decline in our society and we are calling all religious organisations to ensure that we start to preach non-violence, peace and tolerance in our constituency so that we can actually have that emulated in our schools.
He said that parents also have to play an important role in ensuring that discipline is inculcated in the home, “so that learners are taught about respect, non-violence and how to resolve conflict within our society and in our schools”.
Chris Hart, the Western Cape chief executive of the National Professional Teachers’ Organisation of South Africa, said violence at schools has been increasing because pupils saw others get away with being ill-disciplined and behaving violently.
He said the fact that a number of schools are no longer considered to be islands of sanctuary is concerning and is a societal issue.
“There is a blatant disrespect for teachers. We are receiving reports on a weekly basis.”
He said the actual course of ill-discipline of pupils who transgress lies with the school governing bodies.
Amid the scourge, teachers are becoming disillusioned and a number of them are retiring from the profession early, he explained.
Meanwhile, Dr Simon Howell of the African Policing Civilian Oversight Forum, said violence committed by pupils is symptomatic of violence committed by adults on a daily basis - they are merely copying what they see.
VIOLENT INCIDENTS AT SCHOOLS:
September 2018: A North West high school pupil stabs and kills his teacher, allegedly for refusing him a plate of food.
September 2018: Bolobedu High School, Limpopo, a pupil assaults a teacher over a cellphone.
March 2018: Bothitong High School, in Northern Cape, a pupil is filmed assaulting a teacher and principal.
January 2018: A Kuruman, Northern Cape, Grade 8 pupil is accused of killing his teacher.
October 2017: Randfontein Grade 12 pupil hits a teacher with a brick.
September 2016: Four pupils manhandle a teacher in Moletsane, Soweto.