Teacher handbook calls for change in classes

High learner-teacher ratios blamed for violence in schools

The South African Council for Educators (Sace) is calling for the teacher-learner ratio to be decreased in classes so that teachers can know their pupils better. This was revealed in the new Teachers’ Safety and Security in South African Schools Handbook that will serve as a toolkit guide for teachers on matters affecting them daily in the classroom. Sace said the handbook, which was birthed from consultation with different education stakeholders, had been a longstanding cry by the teachers and was aimed at providing them with access to their rights and responsibilities and dealt with issues relating to violence in schools. According to Sace, the violent behaviour in schools is unbearable. According to the handbook, teachers are no longer respected by both pupils and parents; they work in fear of their personal safety, which often causes them to be frustrated, absent and sick.

Teachers interviewed during the research said they “were dealing with learners who are broken emotionally, spiritually and physically”.

“Teachers are overloaded, teacher–learner ratios are too high,young teachers and females are the most disrespected and bullied. Female teachers, especially the young female teachers, are not safe from the older male learners at school.

The removal of corporal punishment without replacing it with an effective alternative form of punishment created a whole lot of other problems and issues,” says the handbook.

Sace spokesperson Josinah Boikanyo said the handbook had been a longstanding cry by teachers.

SA Democratic Teachers Union general secretary Mugwena Maluleke said they hoped the handbook would assist educators to navigate the challenges encountered at schools.