Student teachers concerned about the future

Aspiring teachers at North-West University (NWU) are concerned about aggressive behaviour at schools. This comes after reports that the education system has been disrupted by school pupils who have resorted to violence, with teachers who bear the brunt of aggressive behaviour from these pupils.

The mental health of some teachers has suffered due to these challenges in the classroom. In the past, children’s gratitude towards teachers, their skills and invaluable role in the student well-being was always present in the school environment.

Lerato Kgiba (20), a third-year bachelor of education student for senior and Further Education and Training (FET) at the North-West University (NWU), said some of the behaviour of school children towards young student teachers is hostile.

Kgiba said that teaching his peers at a young age is challenging, and that being a senior-phase student teacher means he sometimes has to teach learners who are significantly older than him. He said that reprimanding these learners is a big problem because they tend to have a negative attitude towards him.

Though young teachers are well-educated, they sometimes have to deal with the struggles of being misunderstood in the classroom due to snide comments from learners that make them feel unwelcome. Student teachers believe they deserve to be treated with respect.

Lungani Mthimkhulu (23), a final-year bachelor of education student at the NWU, exlained the reasons that contribute towards aggressive behaviour in schools.

“As young student teachers, we get to schools where the foundation of discipline has been broken and aggressive behaviour is thus activated by learners,” Mthimkhulu said. He went on to say that new teachers have the responsibility of creating, developing, and instilling a respectful and mutually beneficial relationship with the learners to reduce the high rate of aggressiveness.

Mthimkhulu said that going into the classroom without familiarising yourself with the learners and understanding their individual personalities will lead to challenges for young teachers, including a lack of understanding and an unhealthy relationship with learners.

Mthimkhulu stated that, despite the difficulty of the situation, education remains at the heart of many young teachers. They feel this is a good opportunity to raise awareness of an increasingly important issue that continues to affect young, capable teachers.

Claudius Mabidilala (29), a legal and ethics officer at the South African council for educators, explained some of the legal implications associated with violence in schools.

“In terms of Section 9 of the School’s Act, a learner may be temporarily suspended for a period of not more than one week after committing a minor offense at school such as dishonesty, rudeness or bullying,” Mabidilala said. He said that a learner may also be permanently suspended from school after committing a serious offense such as physical assault, fighting, or an open defiance to a teacher after a fair hearing had been conducted.

Mabidilala said that obtrusive behaviour is often fueled by existing laws that protect children and not educators, meaning learners do as they wish because the law forbids corporal punishment in schools. A teacher, on the other hand, can permanently lose their job if they hit a learner.

Lihleni Joseph, an education analyst at the Department of Education, said that the peace between teachers and learners is not maintained, thus leading to classrooms that are not conducive for both.

“The peace between learners and educators has reached an appalling state of affairs. Not only are we experiencing verbal abuse, but we also see terrifying incidents of learners being physically violent, especially on social media platforms,” said Joseph. He added that law and order is no longer a possibility in most schools. Without fair and reasonable disciplinary actions against wrongdoers, disorder and aggressive behaviour will continue being a norm in schools.

However, a significant number of young aspiring teachers remain optimistic that a safe, resilient, and sustainable recovery from the dangers of aggressive behaviour from their pupils are possible. Through determination and ingenuity, they are helping develop solutions to ensure the South African education system overcomes this crisis and emerges stronger than before.

A report by Daya Chetty, “Violence against teachers at schools in South Africa”, demonstrates the power of disruptive behaviour in various school environments. The report states that 20% of teachers believe that schools are violent places.

However, the report also outlines solutions derived from discussions with teachers from various schools. Some of these include instilling positive discipline and improving classroom management. Schools should also introduce codes of conduct for learners, and parents should take an active role in promoting discipline.