Teacher opens case of intimidation against learner

Educator says pupil comes to school drunk, threatened to kill her

A Gauteng high schoolteacher says she is on the verge of quitting her job because of the humiliation she is suffering from a pupil who comes to school drunk, swears at her and has also threatened to kill her.

On Tuesday, the Lotus Gardens Secondary School teacher opened a case against the grade 11 pupil who she said had been intimidating her since last year. Despite being suspended numerous times, his behaviour does not change.

The pupil was arrested but was back at school on Wednesday where he was later suspended.

SowetanLIVE understands the 20-year-old is expected to appear before a disciplinary hearing on October 9.

Gauteng police spokesperson Lt-Col Mavela Masondo confirmed a case had been opened and that they are investigating.

“Police can confirm that a case of intimidation was opened by the educator against one of the learners at the school.

According to the teacher's incident report from that day, which SowetanLIVE had seen, the pupil was intoxicated at the time and went looking for her at the staffroom.

“He was highly intoxicated and began to swear at me, stating that he was not afraid of me and accusing me of acting as though I owned Lotus Gardens Secondary School. He said that his grade 9 brother and friends had told him that I frequently reprimanded them which seemed to fuel his aggression.”

The teacher also said this was not the first time the pupil had acted in such a manner. 

He was highly intoxicated and began to swear at me, stating that he was not afraid of me and accusing me of acting as though I owned Lotus Gardens Secondary SchoolReport 

“His behaviour has made him known as a bully who regularly disrespects teachers and learners. After attempting to intimidate me, [the pupil] proceeded to [other teachers] and continued his disrespectful behaviour in front of the learners. He then swore at the other teachers,” reads the report.

A few weeks ago, the same teacher wrote to the district office complaining about how the same pupil had allegedly threatened to kill her.

She said the incident took place in front of pupils and the principal.

Afterwards, proper disciplinary processes were not followed, she said.

“I did not get any counselling or support from the principal. I was expected to go back to class immediately and teach as if nothing happened.

“I had to take myself for counselling because of the humiliation and anxiety caused by this. I had to ask some boys to escort me every time I was going to class out of fear of [the pupil] acting on his threats.”

She said the pupil and his friends would come to school drunk, adding that their parents were called numerous times, but they only got suspended for a few days, returned to school and then repeated the same behaviour. 

She also said the pupils would then “provoke” her by going to her classroom and disrupting lessons.

“I reported this, and nothing happened,” she said, adding that some would gamble in class. 

SowetanLIVE  has seen two letters of suspension involving the boy. In February 2023 he was only barred from attending school for four days. Another one suspended him from school for five days.

However, the school principal, Nthakeng Ruth Phetoe, said: “In every other school, there are learners who are out of order, so this boy as a learner has engaged in some misbehaviour and misconduct, and as the school discipline we tried to follow due diligence. We have evidence of him coming to school drunk and disrupting lessons.”

The principal confirmed that the pupil had received several suspension letters for various misconduct.

When asked if the school had ever considered expelling him, Phetoe said: “We always think of expelling the child and we go to the hearing and there are relevant stakeholders there and some of them would say 'let us try to hold off on it'. I am in communication with the district, and we will follow the correct procedure.” 

The chairperson of the school governing body (SGB), Marjorie Mahlangu, said they had not expelled the pupil because the teacher had not filed an incident report. 

“We want evidence and not verbal complaints. I was not aware of the incident [Tuesday's incident],” she said. 

Mahlangu said as the SGB they can only interfere if the school gives them a report.

“Before you expel a child, we have to make sure that we rehabilitate the child. The only challenge here is that we cannot interfere even though this boy has been doing this for the longest time because we are not informed. The HOD [head of department] will have to come to us and tell us that they are tired of the pupil and then we will make a recommendation for him to be expelled,” she said.

However, the teacher said the SGB was informed. 

Gauteng education spokesperson, Steve Mabona, said the department has a zero-tolerance policy for substance abuse or misconduct. 

Mabona confirmed the pupil had been suspended for different misconducts before. 

“Our schools are a microcosm of society and what, generally, occurs in our society finds expression in our schools. Indeed, we experience societal ills occurring within our school environment, which is evident in learner ill-discipline, learner-to-learner violence, learner-to-educator violence, bullying, gangsterism, drugs and substance abuse, teenage pregnancy, and underage sex,” he said. 

“Anyone found to be transgressing this policy is dealt with in line with the SA Schools Act, which governs all schools. Schools are urged to implement safety regulations and enforce their codes of conduct to deal with bullying and other disciplinary matters. We always urge all our learners to refrain from misconduct in schools; and implore parents to assist the department in instilling learner discipline in and outside the school environment.”

chabalalaj@sowetan.co.za