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

And if you don't want your dc to go to a school where this kind of thing is the norm you're 'sharp-elbowed middle class'.

Please don't make the mistake of thinking that 'this kind of thing' is only a problem for schools in challenging circumstances (ie in areas of social an economic deprivation).

Your own DCs teachers will have experienced similar. Yes, even in lovely, leafy academy-land.

The boy who wrote 'CUNT' on my car was attending one of the top performing grammar schools in the country. A school all of MN would kill to get their kids into.

Now how many of you are thinking, 'Well, that Chameleontes must have been a dreadful teacher for that to happen to her'.

Victim-blaming.

Can this thread be moved into Education?

Chameleon you have hit the nail on the head. As soon as someone says 'but I never have any problems. Little Johnny and I get on really well' you immediately feel it's your fault. Management and other teachers use this to make you feel it's your fault. Senior teachers are under a lot of pressure so use any strategy to reduce their workload including avoiding dealing with student misbehavior. Teachers suffer. To exclude a pupil permanently you have to prove you've tried every possible method of modifying their behaviour which is such a long slow process that abusing teachers goes unpunished and teachers just look like mugs and a sitting target. The media don't help. Children's programmes always depict teachers as idiots to be abused.

Chameleontes - no, I'm thinking what kind of little sod doesn't know that sort of behaviour is unacceptable and what have his parents been teaching him? Blaming the victim wouldn't be on my list at all.

I've been berating myself for not moving schools in search of promotion to progress my career. Reading this thread I think I'm glad I've stayed where I am. I've honestly never had to deal with any of this. The worst I've had is a bit of backchat. Think I must be really lucky with my school. It has such a nice atmosphere. I'm still just shocked at what so many of you put up with on a daily basis. I know that bad behaviour happens.. but can't believe how many students are being supported by SLT, not punished!

And, to be fair, most children's programmes also depict parents as fools to be abused and thwarted.

I'll add my voice to those of us who have been threatened/abused. The only thing that surprises me about this thread is that some people are surprised that teachers face abuse and threats!

When I worked at secondary still I was physically assaulted by a 13y boy. I asked him to get on with his work. This prompted him, with no warning, to stand up, pick up his chair and hit me in the stomach with it. I was 7 months pregnant.
He also walked out the class, smashed two windows in the doors and left school.

His punishment : 1 day off school. Mainly for smashing the windows. No apology. No parents in. He was back in my next lesson without a word.

SMT and the HT hushed it up. They were very insistent I didn't take it further. They were no support at all. It was no surprise to me that they failed ofsted by long after. I just took early maternity leave.

NotATrampoline that is horrific. I really hope the other students told him what a disgusting little monster he was. I won't hope management did something, because I know they won't have. After all, he was still in the school.

I have never been hit, but I have been sworn at and had a student kick the wall next to me in anger (at me). I consider myself lucky.

Thanks, MrsCakes - it looks so straightforward, doesn't it? Student behaves badly, student gets punished.

But it isn't like that. Teachers are not in the same relationship to students as other public service employees are to their clients. We are (I say 'are' - I got out years ago) 'in loco parentis'. If a student is excluded because s/he assaulted you that's it for their one chance at schooling. There is enormous pressure to forgive, forget, overlook, minimise and give endless 'second chances'.

Was assaulted by two students. One given nothing, the other one day's suspension on a Friday before a Bank Holiday; he came back a hero to his friends. And not that would have been enough, but they didn't even write an apology.

Other teachers were threatened, including a pregnant teacher threatened with being punched in the stomach.

I'm not a teacher now. They couldn't pay me enough.

I am always impressed with how far teachers are prepared to go in order to ensure that the pupils leave school with something useful to take into their adult lives. It is just so terribly sad that the price for that seems so very high for some teachers.

I've reported this thread and asked for it to be moved to Education. It seems so few people knew this was a problem, I'd hate for it to be deleted.

Two of my colleagues were injured after breaking up an absolutely horrific fight between two girls. One of them, who sustained only "minor" injuries (shoved about, elbowed and caught by a few off target punches) had to teach the next period, about 10 minutes after the fight.

No-one came to check she was ok. No-one took a statement, no-one apologised. We other staff didn't even know it happened until the end of the day (due to the layout of the building, we didn't see or hear anything). She was an NQT. Luckily she was also hard as nails, but that is not the point. The school completely failed in their duty of care towards her.

The other staff member was free the next period and so was able to sit with a cup of tea to get over the shock. But was still ignored by management. Both girls were back in class the next day. Nothing more was said.

Not at a school, but when I worked at a play centre I once had to wrestle a wooden hockey stick off a boy to prevent him swinging it at another boy's head.

By "no-one" I mean the SLT who took the girls away. They did not return to the department, or inform the head of department about the incident so they could look after their staff.

I taught in an FE college in a very deprived area. I've seen and been subjected to a lot (including breaking up a fight where knuckle dusters were involved) but two stand out.

The first was a student who threw a chair (proper swivel type desk chair) at me the day after I returned to work following a miscarriage. But the one that made me leave teaching was the day I faced down a large and very angry 16 year old. It wasn't anything out of the ordinary, just another day on the job, until 2 hours later he stabbed another student. I didn't want to keep putting myself in the position of dealing with angry students with concealed weapons any more so left soon afterwards.

I work as a TA in a PRU and thankfully have suffered nothing worse than a mild threat and a barge out of the way when I was between a student and the door.
However I have heard shocking stories from my students about their violence in mainstream school. I think the difference is that I know I have the full support of my manager if an incident occurs and all of the staff team backing me up.

Please don't move this thread to 'education'. I want people who complain that their child lost a jumper and demand to see the teacher to know the kind of shit that teachers have to put up with and how sometimes one child's jumper is not top of the priority list.

Pipbin-why would you want this left in Chat where it will disappear in 30 days and no-one will ever read it?

Does anyone read anything older than 90 day in Education? Especially people who aren't teachers?

Anyway, it's been moved now.

I personally have never been assaulted but I know many colleague who have. The head teacher took my old class once and a group of boys threw stuff at her a climbed out of the window. I know someone else who was told 'fuck off you cunt' by a nursery child.

I wish I could say I was shocked but sadly not. Really awful that this happens.

Is there a solution? I can't imagine a way forward. I suppose more expulsions - but then where would they go? To a different school to attack someone else?

No, maybe not. I think it should be made a sticky :(

I've been barged, pushed passed and squared up to but nothing major. This discussion was on LBC the other day and someone implied that teacher's weren't planning stimulating or challenging lessons for students.

I suppose more expulsions - but then where would they go? To a different school to attack someone else?

This is the problem. Schools are discouraged from excluding pupils. The most serious cases go to the Pupil Referral Units, but that is only ever a temporary measure , generally for two terms.
Schools that are academies can refuse pupils, so I understand, but regular schools just have to take children like this that have been excluded from anywhere else, with no extra training or support.

This isn't a teaching issue. There were 63199 assaults against nhs staff last year. I pretty much don't know anyone at work who hasn't been verbally and or physically assaulted at some point at work.

Do you think female teachers are subjected to this more than male?

I think a strong SMT with lots of teaching experience deal with this best but if teachers keep leaving after five years this will be less likely.