Mom in court to stop school bully
It was reported today that an East London mother has had to resort to going to court to stop another pupil from bullying her son. She has asked that the ‘bully’ be suspended immediately pending an inquiry.
Both pupils are 14 years old and are in the same 9th grade class at Stirling High School. Apparently the boy has been bullied for over a year now by the bigger boy. He says that he doesn’t know why he is being targeted.
“He is bigger and stronger than I am and I am extremely afraid of him. For unknown reasons he has taken a particular dislike to me and bullies me at every opportunity.”
Some time ago the mother approached the school regarding the bullying. She spoke to the headmaster and put forward her concerns. Apparently the headmaster said that he would look into the matter. Two months later the woman received a phone call from the school to tell her that her son had been punched and injured by the same boy.
It later transpired that the boy’s jaw had been broken and needed to be wired. The mother then laid a charge with the East London police against the ‘bully’ for assault.
She feels that not enough was done by the school to prevent this attack from happening. She also rightly feels that her son is in continued danger should the ‘bully’ remain at the school. She is seeking to compel the school to put in place measures that would guarantee safety in schools.
Respondents in the matter are the father of the alleged ‘bully’, members of the executive council of education for the Eastern Cape, the headmaster, and the chairperson of the school board.
I keep wondering why there is this increase in bullying in schools and why it seems to be getting more violent. This is not just a South African trend either. There have been many reported cases in the UK as well.
Personally I feel that it is because of a lack of discipline these days brought about buy the abolishment of corporal punishment. Kids have no boundaries any more, so they are not learning about what is right and wrong.
Schools do have to take a more active role in monitoring bullying these days, as they are placed in charge of the kids health and welfare during the school day. They have a responsibility to provide a safe learning environment for all pupils.
Not knowing all the facts in this case, I can only speculate on what happened through the media reports. It seems as though the school should have done something right in the beginning when it was first brought to their attention.
The “bully’s” father should also have dealt with it when it came up. Unfortunately many parents these days think that their little darlings could never do what they are accused of - regardless of how much evidence is presented. Many parents are also absent from their kids lives due to work etc. Some parents just don’t care what their kids get up to. Maybe the parents were not told of what their son had been doing. It is hard to say in which, if any, of these categories this parent falls into.
Maybe more will come out during this case, or the assault case.
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