With the recent attacks at schools in Gauteng, questions have been raised as to whether parents, teachers and the community are losing the battle against this scourge of violence.
The Gauteng government consulted with stakeholders to address instability at schools and held a safety summit with the theme Safer Schools to Support Learning and Teaching.
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The summit held in Boksburg on April 17 looked to address topics such as improving classroom teaching and learner performance and how to bring back a climate of discipline, among other things.
“Gauteng schools have become terrains prone to crime and violent incidents. This is a threat to the successful achievement of educational goals. Many schools are grappling with increasing disciplinary issues, while at the same time, society is struggling to understand the complex factors that are creating fresh generations of such unruly behaviour,” said the MEC for community safety in Gauteng, Sizakele Nkosi-Malobane.
The Gauteng MEC for education, Panyaza Lesufi, also expressed shock at the recent violation of the schools’ codes of conduct and emphasised the need to create conducive learning environments in schools.
“The unwarranted and unruly behaviour by learners is shocking and is an extreme violation of codes of conduct which learners are expected to adhere to. These shocking school violence incidents can never be condoned and must be condemned.
“The creation of a safe and conducive learning environment has reached a critical point and is not negotiable. Our learners must be given an opportunity to develop and ultimately reach their full potential without any hindrance,” said Lesufi.
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