IT seemed like a routine meeting at Halifax town hall. But when Calderdale Council’s employees’ forum met last week to discuss an “appalling” catalogue of attacks on teachers by pupils, the deteriorating situation across the country was on the unwritten agenda.
A report from education chiefs painted a frightening picture of poor behaviour in Calderdale’s schools. In a six-week period in February and March, five teachers were seriously physically and verbally abused at unnamed schools.
In the worst case a teacher was hit in the face with an air gun pellet.
Sue McMahon, secretary of the Calderdale division of the National Union of Teachers, said the violence was symptomatic of the rapidly deteriorating situation in Britain’s schools.
“The shooting incident was not typical. But these other incidents have become everyday occurrences in schools,” she said. “There has been an escalation of violence and aggressive incidents nationwide. This is just the tip of the iceberg.”
Ms McMahon said her members often felt schools tried to “hush up” violent incidents and did not report them to the council.
“I know of teachers who have been kicked at, sworn at and had their hands crushed in doors. Teachers should not have to expect to consistently deal with such bad behaviour.”
The Calderdale report detailed the firearms incident. A female teacher had seen a pupil firing a rifle towards a member of staff.
It stated: “Pupil chased by teacher into classroom. Teacher identified pupils (knew they would be in IT class). Missile hit teacher below the eye (cheekbone).”
The airgun owner was expelled and another teenager was isolated in the school for a few days.
The dossier also revealed how a a teacher was racially abused by the older brother of a pupil who had been told off for bad behaviour. A teacher was also injured after breaking up a fight between two pupils in a classroom. Minutes later in the same classroom, another teacher had to stop a pupil attacking a classmate.
One teacher was sworn at and had a folder kicked at her by a “verbally aggressive and abusive pupil”.
Ms McMahon said she knew of one school in Leeds which dealt with more than 300 incidents since the beginning of the year.
Tory councillor Graham Reason, who is on the employees’ forum, said the findings were appalling. “Unless we start teaching these kids what is right and what is wrong, the situation will not improve.
“Children have far too many rights today. They know that nobody can touch them.”
Carol White, Calderdale’s director of schools and children’s services, said the authority was “concerned about any incident of violence” in schools. She added that she was satisfied with the action taken by the school which permanently excluded the gun-toting pupil.
