The Department of Education responds to assault case
The Department of Education stronly condems the assault of an Alberton High School learner by her fellow learners.
ALBERTON- After the incident on Wednesday, October 28, where two girls physically assaulted a fellow pupil, the Department of Education issued the following response:
The department is aware of the incident which took place outside the school premises and we are very concerned about the behaviour of the learners. The assaulted learner has opened a case and police served the accused with a restraining order on Friday (October 30) at the school. The learners will be appearing in court in due course.
We are providing support to the assaulted leaner, as she is writing her final NSC exams
So far, there have been no complaints reported from teachers who felt threatened by learners. We encourage any teacher who feels threatened at our schools to immediately report such behaviour. Schools have a code of conduct to which both learners and staff are expected to adhere. Where there are issues of drug abuse from learners at the school, the department urges anyone with information to come forward or give us an anonymous tip-off.
The department strongly condemns any form of violence in schools. MEC Panyaza Lesufi has identified learner discipline as one of the key priorities of the department.
Watch: Inside the mind of a bullied child
The MEC wants cases such as school based violence, gangsterism, drug abuse, cyber bullying and other related serious misdemeanors to be expunged from schools.
Our learners must never be seen to partake in any misdemeanor, whether inside or outside the school environment. Hence, the MEC also wants to assure the public that the department is proactive in identifying preventative strategies to eliminate social ills from schools.
Issued by the Gauteng Department of Education’s spokesperson, Phumla Sekhonyane
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