By OBAKENG MAJE
Some of the parents at Maranatha Primary School in Chiefscourt, near Taung said, they are concerned about the safety of their children. This comes after two learners aged 13 and 14 respectively, were seen in a video that went viral on social media platforms allegedly given hard labour as punishment.
Two Grade 6 learners were allegedly forced to remove shrubs and grass using spades at the school. In the video, a voice of a woman can be heard in the background, admitting that the learners are still young and they do not even know how to use spades.
One of the concerned parents, who refused to be named because of reprisal said: “Truly, I am not sure if this is the right way to punish the kids. The teachers should have opted for a different method to punish them, instead of hard labour. This will also have a negative impact on the children because they will be mocked by other learners.
“We call on the North West Department of Education to investigate the matter. I would like to see them disciplined because this behaviour is uncalled for. These teachers know that corporal punishment has been abolished, so they have implemented a new technique to abuse our children.”
Meanwhile, the North West Department of Education spokesperson, Elias Malindi said: “According to the school report, the two learners were not being punished. However, all learners were told to be in class and the duo decided to defy the teacher by stepping outside.
“Upon seeing them wandering outside, a food handler asked them what they were doing outside and they lied against the principal saying the principal asked them to do the yard.”
Malindi further said, the department’s labour unit has probed the person, who recorded and circulated the video. He added that, that particular person circulated the video without doing any due diligence of sending background information against the video.
“The department takes this as gross negligence and finds it misleading. As such, the labour unit is running a thorough investigation into the person, who shared it for public viewing and stern measures will be taken.
“Concerning the learners, parents were called to a meeting to reprimand the learners for defying the teacher and lying against the principal,” he said.
The Guardian 