My child was hit by a pen, thrown by a teacher

[Tiredallthetimelaura]

So my daughter who is in year 8 was in a lesson when her teacher 'cold called' her a question. My daughter responded she didn't know the answer and the teacher then threw a highlighter pen at her, hitting her on the arm. The teacher then did it again to another student, also hitting them on the arm. We have reached level 2 of a complaint, but it's always investigated by management within the academy. The school keep down playing what happened and not investigating what we ask. This teacher is still teaching, although my daughter isn't going in on the day of that lesson, which is greatly affecting her attendance. The school said they would move my daughter so she could do a different lesson (double Maths or double English), but we said no! This feels like a punishment to our daughter. She wants to do that lesson, just not with that teacher... and we agree.
Any advice on what/how the school legally should be handling this? Happy to answer any further questions Xx

I remember that one but hadn't realised it was the same OP - in which case I expect the school have got the measure of things already

Tonsilitittis
I wasn't being snarky, and you don't have to remember all 200 students, you just have to remember the one who needs the adjustment. And as I say, if that is difficult for you then you can work out a way with the student concerned. And I don't think you'd get away with excluding a student from the lecture just because they can't be part of this particular exercise, because that would be discrimination.

Cute :)

My chemistry teacher used to chuck the board rubber at the little shits misbehaving .
They soon shut up!

I think your daughter will survive and to be frank the problem with the lack of discipline in schools is thanks to parents like you!

Same here! You learned to pay attention, and it improved reflexes. DH remembers his teacher hurling a Bible at a classmate during a scripture lesson.

Sorry, hit on the arm by a pen, struggling to feel any outrage here.

So my daughter who is in year 8 was in a lesson when her teacher 'cold called' her a question. My daughter responded she didn't know the answer and the teacher then threw a highlighter pen at her, hitting her on the arm. The teacher then did it again to another student, also hitting them on the arm

Your daughter has selective mutism but was able to say that she didn’t know the answer. What was the question? Was it a case that the teacher had only just told the class information and was checking who was listening? Because she then repeated the questioning and pen lobbing to another child. You say the school said it was a game - and it could well have been. Even in primaries, objects (usually soft toys) are tossed between people as a game and/or to signal a turn to speak.

You haven’t really given very much information at all about what the school said in their explanation - is that because it would undermine the whole picture you’re painting? That’s my guess. You wanted all hell to break loose on the teacher who playfully tossed a pen, and when the school didn’t comply, you raised a complaint, and then when that didn’t go your way, you took your daughter out of school completely unnecessarily for a whole day a week. Now you’re drumming up outrage on MN.

You - and your poor daughter - would be a lot better served by asking for a meeting with the teacher (and a member of the SLT) where you or your DD could explain her upset and hurt, and the teacher could apologise to you both and fully explain the circumstances. That would reassure your DD and allow her to attend the lesson.

You’ve made this a hundred times worse for your DD. As a sensitive, shy child I’d have been absolutely mortified if my mother had done this - because it’s making everything worse, and now you have all her peers and the whole school talking about your DD. You’re also modelling helplessness and a lack of resilience.

A bad thing happened. The teacher tossed a pen at your DD and another child and that was wrong of her, but your response is way, way out of proportion. Speak to the teacher and move on - for your daughter’s sake.

This made me laugh, I had a bunch of keys thrown at my and I survived.

"And I urge you to type in your search bar - can a teacher throw a pen at a student uk. I think you'd be surprised! Throwing water on someone actually constitutes as an assault!"

That may be so, in very specific circumstances, but no one is going to call the police over a water fight. The law operates within the realms of context and proportionality. It's not some black and white "if you throw a cup of water over someone that is a criminal offence". This is the trouble today. People think that they have immoveable rights. Then they feel entitled, angry and inflexible in their views. Then they dig in because they need to be right. That's not helpful to anyone, including themselves.

Emotionally shook up? You need to work on her resilience in addition to a complaint.

The thing is, it sounds like what this teacher did probably was wrong, but not "get the authorities involved, hound her out of her job, rewrite the whole timetable, completely unforgivable" wrong. More like "management have a quiet word and tell her not to do it again" wrong.

@Tiredallthetimelaura Do you not remember how school was in the early 2000s? It was a lot worse than that.

I am an ex-teacher and I find this teacher's behaviour completely unprofessional. It's fine to have a bit of banter with your class but this teacher went way too far. That being said I don't think she should lose her job over it. School needs to give a better response to this and the teacher should find a way to re-establish a relationship with your daughter in a way that doesn't make excuses.
I qualified in 1995 and what teachers may have got away with then was DEFINITELY not what they can get away with now. Not in state schools anyway.

I do know some private schools where this sort of thing is still covered up, because to admit anything would be to risk admitting that their school is less than perfect, which would be marketing suicide.

Ok, teachers shouldn’t throw things these days but if your kid is so traumatised from being asked a question and having a pen chucked at her that she can no longer attend lessons every week, I’d say you’ve got bigger problems.

As to, “she didn’t know the answer because they hadn’t been taught that yet”, do teachers not ask about a topic first to discuss what pupils know or think they know about a subject? Are all kids only ever allowed to recite specific facts that they have been taught now?
It’s ok for her not to know anything about it but not an unreasonable question to ask in my opinion.

Same, chucked a board pen at a child who needed to borrow one, accidentally hit him. I mean, I was horrified, it obviously wasn’t deliberate, I apologised, made sure I walked over next time a student wanted to borrow something. Was this different, tho, deliberately threw a pen to what end?

as an addition I think maybe you should work with your child if she was so emotionally traumatised by this. There are going to be lots worse things happen in life, as we all know & if she’s struggling with a highlighter grazing her blazer I think it should be an area to work on

I also think what’s tough here is, teachers cannot win (except their 12wks off a year 😜)

Kids are getting more violent, we hear more and more cases of kids taking knives into schools. In school stabbings from pupils. The levels of violence in schools between pupils is an all time high.

a lot of the time the automatic response is “well teachers need to be tougher on the kids”.

then we get parents like OP writing complaints and allowing her child to have time off school due to a highlighter grazing her child arm. That teacher probably then will be too scared to say/do anything… which carries on the cycle of pupil on pupil violence in schools between pupils. Because teachers are worried about their jobs.

& I appreciate OP will say “but my child wasn’t doing anything wrong” but in an epidemic of violence in schools… teachers need to be tougher but parents like OP make teachers be scared to do this. They cannot win.

That's exactly what I was thinking! I wish she had thought quickly enough to have done that.

Yes this. What a nest of vipers. If this is how grown adults behave. God help us with the kids they’re bringing up. Let’s just let teachers be above the law because there’s a shortage shall we? Teachers should lead by example and throwing things at students is unacceptable behaviour . Those saying she should be resilient? Should she just accept things being thrown at her? Why should she? What kind of lessons n does that teach? Put up and shut up 🤫. Grown ups are always right. No they are not! I’m disgusted by the vitriol on this forum at times. It’s worse than being back in the playground.

I don’t agree that a bad thing happened.
OP is making a mountain out of a molehill and not teaching her daughter any resilience.
I also don’t get what's wrong with ‘cold calling’ a pupil? It’s a good way to ensure all pupils are listening and engaging. So glad I left the profession if this is the shit nonsense teachers have to put up with!

I need to point out that parents must not gather their own statements if raising a complaint with school. You really should not do this.

Oh and I’m in my 50’s and have never had anything thrown at me during my working life! How does accepting having stuff thrown at you build resilience? Is that what we should tell all those that suffer from domestic violence? FGS !!

You were very wrong to have parents question the children I hope you realise that.

It shouldn't have happened but it did. Either get over it or move the child.

said who? Don't be so daft.

Teaching resilience is not and never has been teaching your kids to be doormats, quite the opposite.

Teaching resilience is not being a drama queen embarrassing your kid or encouraging them to be emotionally shaken up and embarrassed by a complete non-event.

Teaching resilience is not encouraging your child to miss 1 day a week FOR 5 WEEKS because you are miffed about the teacher throwing a pen like a frisbee to their sleeve.

Making such a huge fuss is beyond ridiculous.

I think the parents should complain to the school that their own kids have been humiliated and shaken by the inappropriate questioning from the OP and demand a resolution 😂

Our teachers threw blackboard erasers at our heads. Dods of wood with felt sides to wipe chalk off the boards. How we laughed. ..actually not quite unless it hit someone. A pen against a blazer..yeah complain and get the school to tell the teacher not to do it again but if that’s the worst the pupils ever have to deal with in life, they will be very lucky. I know, not a popular viewpoint but seriously, ppl need to toughen up.