HESSEQUA NEWS - A new law banning corporal punishment at home has caused quite a stir, but the provincial education department prides itself in the lack of it in schools.
Only 1,1% of all learners in the Western Cape experienced corporal punishment in schools during 2018.
This is the lowest percentage in the country, the numbers in the other provinces ranging from 1,4% in Gauteng, 3,3% in Mpumalanga, 4,8% in Limpopo, 5,1% in Northern Cape, 8,2% in North West, 12,1% in the Free State, 7,2% in KwaZulu-Natal and 11,5% in the Eastern Cape.
Corporal punishment is illegal in terms of the South African Schools Act and the department views incidents thereof in a very serious light and takes allegations brought to its attention extremely seriously.
“The department conducts full investigations into all cases reported and charges anyone found guilty of practising corporal punishment. We understands the difficulties that some learners pose, and therefore also provides extensive training and support to schools on discipline and positive behaviour programmes via our district offices.”
This training and support is provided by, among others, former principals and teachers with many years of experience in dealing with the issue, but also by professional staff such as school psychologists and social workers. “We welcome the contribution that principals and teachers are making towards building a culture of positive behaviour in our schools, often in very difficult circumstances.”
Programmes are also in place for district-specific behaviour interventions and are are providing an array of skills training in alternative and restorative strategies to deal with learner discipline and schools are encouraged to contact their district office should they be interested in receiving this training.
“We are aware of the many disciplinary challenges our teachers face daily in our schools. While the department supports the right to defend oneself in a violent situation, we do not support the use of corporal punishment to deal with ill-disciplined learners.”
A school’s code of conduct should state clearly what kinds of behaviour are unacceptable. Should a learner transgress, the school has the right to discipline the learner through other punitive procedures.
The department takes a zero tolerance stance against learners who behave violently and put the safety of fellow learners and teachers at risk.
It supports schools instituting disciplinary procedures relating to violence and substance abuse.
While there is no ‘one size fits all’ approach to unruly behaviour in schools, there are certain methods that can be adopted to deal with different circumstances.
Any form of abuse, intimidation, victimisation or violence must be reported to the department’s Safe Schools hotline 0800 45 46 47. Parents are also encouraged to report incidents to the principal of the school, and/or the district office. Educators can also seek support through our district offices or through the Employee Wellness Call Centre: 0800 111 011.
These two documents also provide more information on how to discipline learners without using corporal punishment:
Alternatives to corporal punishment
Learner discipline and school management
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