How many teachers have been attacked / threatened by students?

[feelingunsupported]

I've been thinking about this a lot over the last few days in light of the sentencing for the murder of Mrs Maguire. I've namechanged for obvious reasons but am a regular - Reasties xmas threads mainly

In my small school this year so far

• teacher's arm jammed in a door. Student made to write a note of apology

-male staff member had to deflect a punch from student. Staff member interviewed by manager for use of force. No comeback on student -student threatened to nut a teacher. Approached teacher looking like he was going to do it. Student suspended for 2 days then back into class -teachers told to fuck off / called cunts etc regularly

I have just has surgery on a para stomal hernia and last term a young 'lady' pushed the edge of a table into my stomach hard. Was put in seclusion for a day.
Have been called every name under the son. Numerous threats. Table tennis bat thrown at my head. I could go on.

My DW is a teacher in a primary school and has been assaulted numerous times. The two worst occasions were after restraining a 7 year old child who was throwing chairs around a classroom she was hit around the head with books... and whilst heavily pregnant punched, fortunately not hard, in the stomach.

Knowing my wife was in such danger and is every day she goes into work makes me feel sick.

This thread is very sad reading, no wonder so many teachers have had enough.

Where are the repercussions for these incidents? It's a disgrace. If things like this happened anywhere else it would end up in court surely?

I have a friend who does supply high-school teaching. In addition to regular verbal abuse, he got pinned up against a wall once. That one went to court, fortunately, but there's a reason he only sticks to supply and gets his income anywhere else he can. I could not, under any circumstances or offers of vast sums of money (like that would happen ), be a teacher. Hats off and to those of you that do it.

I work in Initial Teacher Training. Numbers of our students have been assaulted over the years. One was headbutted last year and knocked unconscious.

You literally could not pay me enough to go back into the classroom now.

Holy shit.

I cannot believe the absolute hell teachers deal with from children. It further confirms that it's a career that is grossly undervalued. And I could never, ever do it.

You're all amazing. Seriously.

It is sad coldtea and part of the reason I get so fucking angry when we get a bad press on here / in the papers etc.

Cross-post with Elphaba

Anyone who bitches on about how cushy teachers have it needs to read this thread and have a word with themselves.

Agreed chamel - I'll be linking to it next time someone makes ridiculous comments on MN about how easy we have it.

Shortly before I finally threw in the towel, I left school one evening and found 'CUNT' smeared in mud over the back windscreen of my car.

I gave notice later that term. It was leave the profession or go under completely. And I was a good teacher, too.

Several years ago I worked at a school where I was:

Kicked
Had a chair thrown at me
Threatened
Sworn at
Hit

These children were year 2. Mainstream school but with lots of children with behaviour difficulties.

Completely ineffectual headteacher.

Your all wonderful.Thank you for what you do in awful situations.
This might be a silly question but why are police not involved ?Sorry if its a daft question.

My sister is a primary teacher and as far as I'm aware has been lucky enough to not have to deal with any threats/attacks.

BIL however...secondary science teacher, had his fingers slammed in doors a couple of times, books thrown at his head and crotch, and one boy tried to set his shirt on fire with a bunsen burner while he helped another pupil! He was the only one who was punished, IIRC he was suspended for a week then spent the rest of the term in isolation for science and wasn't allowed to participate in any practical work.

It's shocking how often teachers are attacked and how little is done about it.

honestly vintage? I've been tempted to report stuff / make statements but most of us are so ground down by management saying it's our fault / we handled it badly etc that se don't think that the police would take us seriously.

It's dealt with by the school management, Vintagebeads, who seem to want to smooth it over and forget about it quickly as they can. We had one Y3 boy a good few years back who kicked an LSA (he missed a playtime for that) and because his leg hurt, the headteacher said he could sit on a chair rather than the carpet for the rest of the morning.

I left that school pretty sharpish.

Another one here who's just left after decades of teaching. It was management that did it for me, though. The students (FE college) were great.

why are police not involved

I think violence and abuse perpetrated by students against teachers is about where DV was a couple of decades ago. It's just not taken seriously. Teachers who are assaulted are blamed by management for being weak or ineffectual. Complaining would be the kiss of death for your teaching career. Calling the police ditto. Schools are desperate to maintain a facade of 'outstandingness' or 'success'. Anyone who threatens to disrupt that image can expect to be isolated and driven out.

I am reading this thread like this

I bumped into an old school teacher a few months ago and was still unable to call him anything but sir!

Where has it all gone so wrong do you think?

Schools reflect society. Society (politicians, media, many many parents) disrespects, denigrates and mocks teachers, and children follow suit.

The child who kicked me (deliberate heavy kick to the shins), was taken to the Head's office. He stayed there for 10 minutes before the Head brought him back to me. When I spoke to the Headteacher later, he denied having heard me say that the boy had attacked me, by kicking me and swearing at me.

I handed in my notice that term.

I agree with chameleon. In my case, the school was certainly trying desperately to maintain a façade. Sadly, the teachers, TAs and other students all suffered as a result.

Years ago I was teaching in a college and we had Year 10 pupils from a nearby school in for a taster day. I was teaching IT - some of the children had put this as their choice but others hadn't made any choices at all and were just put into random classes.

There were 12 of them in my class (the class sat 20.) Within five minutes most of the computers were broken or about to break. They'd snapped off all the legs on the keyboard, prised up the keys (all the keyboards had to be replaced) and were turning the machines on and off repeatedly (as in 50 times.) After five minutes had passed I shouted, "Break time!" and off 8 of them trooped. The 4 remaining were great and did the task I'd set them. I chatted to them afterwards and asked them how they could stand it in class, being with those other children. They were surprised and said, "That's nothing - there are normally 30 of us and we're the only ones who do any work."

I asked them what they wanted to do at 16 and all wanted to take A levels and go on to teaching, nursing or the police. (This is really common in poor areas - I think they often don't know a wide range of jobs and also they are often very, very caring kids.)

The saddest thing was that they said they knew they wouldn't get their GCSEs in school - they said they couldn't think straight in class - one said to me, "Well, could you?" and I admitted I couldn't think straight after just one minute.

So these poor kids knew they'd have to go to college for another year or two just to get the qualifications they needed to go into a profession where they'd be caring for the sort of kids that made that happen. It was heartbreaking.

at these.

If the perpetrator is an age of criminal responsibility, shouldn't teachers go to the police? Some of these are assault, threats to kill etc. that would be taken seriously anywhere else. If the school freezes you out for that, you could then claim constructive dismissal.

I realise it's hard to get up the energy to go through this kind of thing when you're overworked, but I hope some teachers do.

I'm sitting here open mouthed in shock at this thread. Less the fact that some pupils behave so atrociously, but more for the fact that there seems so little support for teachers and so few consequences for those who misbehave.

I can't imagine working in an environment like that. I can't imagine living in a world where children and adults behave like that. I assume that these bullies use their skills on the other children as well as the staff - why wouldn't they if it gets them what they want with no downside?

Do you think that this behaviour in school has simply been normalized, when in any other workplace (nurses, police, bus drivers etc.) the police would be called far earlier?

Thank you to all the teachers and TAs who, despite putting up with this crap, still try and teach our children.

Thanks for explaining why.Its awful what your made to put up with and the fact that your then blamed for it really makes me despair

Sworn at too many times to count
Kicked in preganat stomach - child sent back to my class that lesson as I hadn't done the paperwork right
A 16 year old boy threatened to rape me. No repercussion.