Revealed: Classroom violence faced by West Fife's teachers
Siew Peng Lee • Published 15 Apr 2011 08:13
19 Comments
TEACHERS in Fife have been headbutted, hit with chairs, kicked and punched in an appalling catalogue of violence over the last three years, the Press can reveal.
And sickeningly, a teacher has even been threatened with sexual violence.
Figures obtained by the Press under Freedom of Information reveal that there have been 427 assaults on teaching staff since the 2007/08 academic year.
Of that total, 123 were carried out in 2007/08, 169 in 2008/09 and 135 in 2009/10.
In addition to the assaults, teachers were also subjected to repeat attacks of slapping, scratching, pushing, hair-pulling and even biting.
The most common incidents were physical assaults without weapons (271), although teaching staff suffered 11 assaults with weapons and a further 23 with improvised weapons.
Staff also received 52 threats of physical violence and nine threats of an attack with a weapon or improvised weapon.
No medical attention was required and no days were lost as a result of the attacks but teachers sustained painful injuries, including abrasions, bruising, cuts and even psychological shock.
Of the 427 attacks, 364 were carried out by male pupils - of which 239 were physical assaults without weapons.
All the attacks resulted in the pupil being excluded and St Joseph's Primary in Kelty had the greatest number of any West Fife school, with 45 exclusions in the last three years.
Other primary schools to exclude pupils following assaults were Touch (10), Bellyeoman (eight), Dalgety Bay (five), Pitcorthie (four), Camdean, Duloch, Kelty, Pitreavie, (three each), Crossgates and Lynburn (two each); and Commercial, Inzievar, King's Road, St Leonard's and Torryburn (one each).
Woodmill High saw 20 pupil exclusions in the last three years, Dunfermline and Inverkeithing high schools had 11 exclusions each and Queen Anne and St Columba's had four each.
And the attacks do not even include a further 3414 incidents in Fife, dating back to 2005/06, of teachers being verbally abused.
Of that total, 644 occurred in 2005/06, 878 in 2006/07 and 778 in 2007/08, although there was a downward trend in incidents to 600 and 514 in 2008/09 and 2009/10 respectively.
S3 pupils were the most abusive, racking up 1026 incidents, or a third of the total over five years, although there were also six exclusions of pupils as young as Primary ONE.
A total of 26 pupils were excluded five times due to verbal abuse, with six excluded six times, two excluded seven times and three excluded a staggering EIGHT times.
The verbal abuse was mainly carried out by male pupils, who notched up 2623 of the 3414 incidents, or 76 per cent.
Of West Fife's high schools, Queen Anne had the most pupil exclusions due to verbal abuse, with 247, while St Columba's saw just 19 incidents over the five years.
Dunfermline recorded 220 exclusions, while Woodmill and Inverkeithing had 164 and 90 respectively.
Lynburn had the highest number of pupil exclusions for verbal abuse of any West Fife primary school, with 20 in the last five years.
Also in double digits were Kelty (16), Kings Road and Park Road (14 each) and Inverkeithing (13).
Other primaries to exclude pupils for verbal abuse were Camdean and Touch (nine each), and Pitcorthie (six).
Crossgates, Holy Name, Inzievar, McLean, Pitreavie, St John's, St Leonard's, Torryburn and Tulliallan saw one exclusion each.
Councillor Douglas Chapman, chair of the education and children's services committee, said, "Pupils should not go to school thinking that they're under threat or subject to inappropriate behaviour and the same applies to staff.
"What is an assault to someone might just be passed off by someone else as not quite so serious - some teachers will report it, others will think it's part of the job.
"But we never ever condone any violence within school and I think teachers have an absolute right to report these matters when they feel threatened."
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snowyjoey
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Apr 15, 09:47
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contradiction
Unregistered User
Apr 15, 10:46
Report commenttwo wrongs don't make a right - seemples!!
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Angus Duncan
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Apr 15, 15:34
Report commentHow long before 'Not Happy Jan' comes in with some ridiculous sweeping statement about working class children and their parents?
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OldFlashy
Unregistered User
Apr 15, 16:54
Report commentAngus – I was expecting her to be first! This is her bread and butter.
Telling the story through statistics doesn’t shed any light on the reasons why this is happening, it merely plays into the hands of reactionaries (like Jan) who leap to the conclusion that we should be whipping these kids and locking up their parents.
I would have liked to see more analysis on this issue instead of giving a perverse league table of schools by the number of exclusions they have had to effect.
Poor journalism.
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hazelkaye
316 posts
Apr 15, 17:56
Report commentEvery pupil perpetrating such an act should be charged and/or made to perform meaningful community work - rather than be given an extended "exclusion holiday" - which is probably why they 'rebel' and cause mayhem in the first place!
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hazelkaye
316 posts
Apr 15, 17:59
Report commentPS The worst 'assault' of all on teachers is the slanderous, vocal innuendo, day in, day out!
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Bob the Builder
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Apr 15, 23:07
Report commentAnd this story is a revelation why? Any teacher would tell you this goes on day in, day out. Perhaps the more important question should be why some schools are pro-active at dealing with the problem and the culprits by excluding them, whereas some headteachers turn a blind eye to it and hope the problem goes away, which it does not.
Of course, there are also those who run shy of addressing the problem because filling out the paperwork is perceived as an onerous task and may alert the higher echelons of the authority to come and poke their noses in. This is why you find there are some schools in Fife that exclude for verbal abuse, yet there are others who will not exclude for physical assualt, criminal damage or intimidation of staff.
Walk into a hospital or any other public buildings and there are signs asking you to respect the staff's right to work without fear of assault etc. I've never seen these in schools, despite the same behaviour being exhibited by some children, and indeed, their parents too.
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******
Apr 18, 23:59
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early years
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Apr 19, 08:40
Report commentMaybe in the remedial schools which you attended trisky. This is why you can't decide which way you're voting, this month you're advocating violence, last month you were pacifism personified.
You're just a pointless being.
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******
Apr 19, 12:23
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VictorianMum
1 post
Apr 19, 16:38
Report commentIf this is what some children are doing to teachers, what are they doing to other kids?
Does fife council keep stats physical/verbal assault and intimidation by children on children? are stats kept when allegations are not acted upon?
Does fife council keep stats on how many children have been removed for safety from a school by their parents because repeated bullying is unresolved.
Can anyone quote 'to the letter of the law' who is responsible for the safety and welfare of children at school, and what that responsibility entails?
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Eckyboy
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Apr 21, 12:34
Report commentI blame the parents, discipline all starts in the home.
Its about time parents were supporting the schools in such matters
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Jo Hardy
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Apr 21, 12:50
Report commentWould'nt be a teacher for all the tea in China!!!!
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triskel
257 posts
Apr 21, 13:07
Report commentThe education system in Fife is rancid. Teachers are badly trained, badly motivated and badly paid. Their lack of gumption means they resort to bullying and threats to maintain discipline so it is no wonder they get some of it back in their faces.
I think you will have to dig a little bit deeper than blaming the parents Eckyboy if you want to find a solution to the violence in society! "Blaming the parents" is the same as "stiffer jail sentences". It is no solution, it is part of the problem.
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Mary Whitehouse
Unregistered User
Apr 21, 13:53
Report commentTriskel your theory doesn't hold water I'm afraid. Parents are not trained to be parents, are unpaid as parents and some will lack motivation, it does not, however, make them resort to bullying and violence to maintain discipline with their child. I am speaking as generally as you are about teachers.
You're right though the problem runs far deeper and for me it starts in the deep set attitude of modern society towards fundemental respect and values, or rather the lack of it.
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Angus Duncan
Unregistered User
Apr 21, 17:00
Report commentWe need to make sure we don't tar all young people with the same brush. The vast majority do not get excluded, the vast, vast majority. I often say that it's 5% ruining for the other 95%, let's see how much water it holds:
There are around 1450 pupils at Inverkeithing High, 90 were excluded for verbal abuse in the last few years. That makes it 6% of pupils were excluded but, as crime statistics tell us, it tends to be the same people repeat offending - so let's assume that there were fairly high numbers of pupils excluded up to 4 times, since the Press doesn't actually mention them.
So, let's assume that most of those excluded were excluded 1.5 times (median of the unknown data - 1 to allow for the fact that many were only excluded once).
So, 6%/1.5 = 4%
Let me summarise, it is likely that only 4% of pupils from Inverkeithing were actually excluded for verbal abuse - 58, which still seems rather high to me
Let me correct my earlier statement, it's 4% ruining it for the other 96%
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jojo
Unregistered User
Apr 21, 17:34
Report commentIt would be interesting to compare current statistics with, say, 20 years ago and see if there is a huge variation. The article is stating figures but not any actually comparisons, without which it is difficult to assess whether these figures are "shocking" or whether there has possibly been any improvement.
Angus Duncan's assessment is interesting, however, it does centre on exclusions only. What % of all inappropriate and unacceptable behaviour does this account for?
Either way, alas, he is right, it is usually the cretinous minority that spoil many walks of life for the majority of folk.
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triskel
257 posts
Apr 21, 23:13
Report commentAgnes Duncan, I wouldn't say it was 4% ruining it for the other 96% I would say it is the 96% ruining it for 4%. The 96% need to go the extra mile and mend whatever it is that is causing the 4% a problem not batter them, ignore them, demonise them, exclude them, throw them on the scrapheap and jail them up. You have to look at things like fair pay, full employment, dismantling the class system not more jails and guns for cops. Ask disabled kids what they think of Fife Region Education Department. It is a diabolical joke. A seedy economic enterprise riddled with bullies and pseudo-intellectuals masquerading as the nourishers of the nations most precious resource, it's youth. Ha!
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******
Apr 27, 23:13
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triskel
257 posts
Apr 28, 13:32
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Auntie Establishment
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May 7, 21:33
Report commentOh trisky, you've trotted out the old 'pseudo-intellectuals masquerading....' bit again. So shoddy my dear.
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Nanny1
1 post
Dec 4, 18:20
Report commentStaff members are spat at, kicked ,headbutted , and swore at over the coarse of a day .This is not a school designated as a Special Needs. This is just the local school round the corner from anyone in Fife . Nothing is done ,oh its all noted ,but for who . Head teachers hands are tied now because they have essentially been told there is nowhere to deal with kids like this anymore .Just keep them in school and a series of PSAs will run themselves ragged while they dodge the slurs, kicks and foul language thrown at them.We are failing these children on a huge level and failing our staff and other children who want to learn .
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