The East Bank Secondary School and the Alexandra police are investigating the stabbing of a Grade 11 schoolboy by a classmate in a classroom.
This amid concerns of school safety which has been raised by various stakeholders including pupils and school governing bodies.
The incident reported in, School stabbing in Alex, Week ending 29 August, resulted in the pupil, said by the school not to have been seriously injured, being treated and released by Alex Clinic. His sister had raised concerns about his and other children’s safety at the school and said the injury could have been worse had a more lethal weapon such as a knife or gun been used instead of a pair of scissors. She alleged that children smuggled all sorts weapons into the school.
The school’s principal, Isaac Tloloe, confirmed the incident, saying it was being dealt with in accordance with the school’s and the Department of Education’s protocols.
“We informed both pupil’s parents of the incident, of the disciplinary proceedings being conducted by the School Governing Body (SGB) and the police investigation. We also advised them that the school and police would facilitate a mediation process if the families requested it,” Tloloe said.
He said safety was a problem at most schools and reflected a society which opted to use violent means to resolve problems. “It’s a challenge that should be addressed by all stakeholders, with parents and the community helping to instil discipline in children [at] home; and criminals who invade and steal from schools being arrested and prosecuted after evidence is presented to the police.”
Tloloe said the Congress of South African Students also raised this concern in a memorandum with the police and community policing forum early this year. He added that schoolchildren also needed help to adopt positive attitudes about using learning material and items to their benefit, instead of turning them into weapons. This was in reference to the school-issued scissors used in the stabbing.
“Life orientation classes should engage them on safety issues and also, parents should attend School Governing Body meetings to understand the school’s concerns and contribute to solving safety-related challenges.”
He urged those with ideas but who are unable to attend the meetings, visit him at his office. Tloloe also encouraged pupils to pay attention to advice provided on security during the police’s Adopt-a-Cop programme visits.
