Mass action over school violence

DEPUTY Minister of Basic Education Enver Surty will today address hundreds of SA Democratic Teachers Union (Sadtu) members after concerns about violence in schools and placement of learners.

The mass meeting which is expected to be attended by teachers from across the province will be held at Heideveld Primary School from 2pm.

The call for the mass meeting follows the ongoing violence nationally and the failure by the department to deal with overcrowding in government schools, especially in the Western Cape.

According to the teacher’s union, the government has dismally failed to address the two major issues which has created animosity between parents, teachers and pupils.

Several incidents on school premises among pupils and between teachers and pupils have been reported.

In one disturbing incident a 16-year-old pupil at the Mpheko Primary School in Peddie in the Eastern Cape was stabbed to death by a fellow pupil this year.

The learner was killed with a knife during an argument while playing on the school grounds.

In another incident last year, two Lenasia Secondary School pupils were suspended after a video of one of them assaulting a teacher went viral on social media.

Several incidents among pupils and between teachers and pupils have been reported

Yesterday, Sadtu regional secretary Jonovan Rustin said that the union was concerned about the ongoing violence and the overcrowding in township schools.

“Violence in our schools is a serious concern and we need to end it.

“We can’t do it on our own; the department should intervene. We have seen school kids attacking teachers but nothing is being done by the department to end it, instead the problem is ongoing.

“Teachers are complaining every year about overcrowding in township schools and that still is not being attended to; the situation is really worrisome.

“In former model C schools, they don’t have this problem. They refuse to take numbers that will fill up the entire classroom.

“We hope this meeting will really address the problem because this puts a strain on teachers and parents as well because learning process is affected,” Rustin added.