The teachers’ association released jarring numbers yesterday that trend toward more frequent violent incidents in the province’s schools.
The stats come from access to information requests made of the RNC, RCMP, as well as French and English school boards, and show a spike in average incidents a day from 20 to almost 30, or almost 3,000 a year, of those reported.
They involved students against other students, as well as against staff, with one teacher recently ending up in emergency with severe injuries to her face at the hands of an eight-year-old student.
From bullying to beatings to biting, NLTA president Trent Langdon says the threats and violence have run the gamut, from minor dustups to a near homicide.
“We almost had a murder. Just as well to call it like it was,” said Langdon, referring to last year’s attack on a student right outside the main entrance to PWC in St. John’s. “God forbid. That’s the last thing I want to happen in this province.
“But if trends continue as they are across the country and in the U.S. and so on, we need to make sure we’re as best prepared to support our kids, and try to ensure that our children are getting what they need such that they’re making good decisions.”
Langdon doesn’t blame so-called bad kids, but rather the lack of support and resources to meet the varied needs of all students.
Meanwhile, NDP Leader Jim Dinn — a teacher and past NLTA president himself — expressed shock at government’s inaction on the issues highlighted by Langdon.
“Minister Howell had an opportunity, an incredible opportunity in this budget to start addressing the various issues that have been raised and the budget failed to do this, she failed,” said Dinn.
“And in part what they’re doing is they’re failing basically the school communities, they’re failing the children of this province and they’re failing the teachers and other education professionals who work to make sure kids have the best possible education.”
Armed with the ATIPP results, the NLTA is also embarking on a public awareness campaign called “Not Okay,” referring to the education system.
Howell, meanwhile, told media yesterday she was “confused” as to why the NLTA rolled out the campaign now, since government has been working with the union on the issue.
She noted officials have joined a violence prevention coalition initiated by the NLTA, adding everyone at the table has committed to working on a plan to address the concerns.
That said, she acknowledged there has been an “escalation” in violent incidents in schools.
“We know that and realize that supports have to be implemented to meet those needs, but it’s important right now to figure out what that is,” she said.
“Simply throwing numbers out there won’t really fix it. We want to figure out how we can deal with many of the issues that our students are facing outside of the classroom that are unfortunately ending up at the front doors of our schools.”
