Education MEC addresses learner suicides

The high rate of learner suicides in Gauteng prompted Gauteng Education MEC Matome Chiloane to take action to safeguard learner well-being.

According to the education department, statistics showed there were 40 alleged suicides in Gauteng schools since the start of this academic year.

Chiloane said they were devastated by these deaths.

“We pledge solidarity and support to the families and friends befallen by these tragic, premature deaths. Suicide is a bleak reality and one of the leading causes of death among young people. Learners in schools are confronted with a variety of problems which leave them feeling vulnerable, hopeless, and overwhelmed.

“Anxiety, depression, bullying, online abuse, violence, and cyberbullying are contributing factors to suicides among learners. With the development and expansion of digital technologies, learners are increasingly falling victim to online abuse and violence,” said Chiloane.

Speaking about World Suicide Prevention Day, commemorated annually on September 10, he said such a day was vital to outline measures the department would take to address learner suicides in the province.

“Reducing stigma, breaking taboos, and supporting struggling learners are crucial first steps for talking about suicide.

“Ongoing support, building resilience, promoting meaningful social connections, creating safe spaces in schools, encouraging disclosure, and facilitating referral for further professional support are mechanisms that can be implemented to assist learners in taking proactive steps for their mental wellness.”

Suicide prevention and self-harm education, increased awareness of protective factors, streamlined support systems, and access to services and resources could decrease the likelihood of learner suicides in schools.

Chiloane said the department had reached out to the Gauteng Department of Health to do a mortality analysis on cases of suicide to understand their causes and drivers.
“We are happy the health department has gratefully accepted the task and is conducting the assessments.”

GDE’s learner suicide prevention interventions
The department and partners have already embarked on several interventions related to the high number of learner deaths.
These include:
• Deploying 500 learner support agents (LSAs) to provide the department with an early warning mechanism and give peer counselling to support 1 200 schools.
• Sending an additional 120 social workers to assist with risk assessments of learners.
• Deploying 500 Ke Moja (I’m fine without drugs) coaches to assist with substance abuse awareness.
• Popularising the Childline toll-free number (116) to provide counselling services free of charge to learners and educators.

Partnership to prevent learner suicides in Gauteng schools
Chiloane said the department would join with the Matthew Goniwe School of Leadership and Governance, the South African Depression and Anxiety Group (SADAG), Childline, the Teddy Bear Foundation, and the National Association of Child and Youth Care Workers to help learners and teachers deal with the psychological challenges that might lead to suicide or suicidal thoughts.

SADAG has already received several requests for help from some schools which have experienced incidents of suicides or attempted suicides.

In the coming week, SADAG will visit Musi Comprehensive in Pimville, Buhlebuzile Secondary in Thokoza and Mpontsheng Secondary in Katlehong.

The department said it was also aware of plans for the group to visit several schools in Eldorado Park and Reiger Park.

“SADAG’s vast experience with our schools on suicide and suicide-related matters made it sensible that we come together to see how we can bring much-needed help to our learners and teachers.

“Everyone knows the organisation’s long history of helping those overwhelmed to overcome their challenges.
“We will be going all-out to promote their suicide crisis helpline (0800 567 567) so that a large number of our school population is aware of their services and how they can access them,” said Chiloane.

The MEC said they and SADAG will visit schools to raise awareness about the causes of suicide and how to prevent it in the coming weeks.
“Our messages will not only target learners. We will also speak to parents, guardians, and caregivers so they know the warning signs. We must ensure that anyone feeling down and depressed at our schools knows this number.

“Our talks with learners and their parents will also focus on debunking common suicide myths, raising awareness about the kind of language to use when referring to suicides, and general advice on dealing with people displaying suicidal signs,” said Chiloane.

Operation Kgutla Molao – Restore Order
Concerns about violence in and around Gauteng schools, driven by gangsters in some areas, will also be dealt with. Substance use, abuse by learners and bullying still concern the department.

The department said violence and instability undermined the safety and well-being of the school community and made effective learning and teaching difficult. Some schools, best characterised as warzones, have left learners, teachers and staff feeling unsafe.

Also Read: Play your part on World Suicide Prevention Day (September 10)

“We take comfort from the fact that most schools in Gauteng are stable and incident-free. However, the frequent recurrence of incidents of violence and crime in and around schools demands urgent action. It is, therefore, appropriate that on this day, the department outlines its action plan for school safety and learner well-being.
“This will ensure heightened action in schools identified as being at high risk because of the levels of violence and crime. It also seeks to ensure that stable schools do not slip into schools at risk.”

The primary mandate of the department is to ensure learning and teaching. However, it cannot ignore ensuring safety in schools.

The department adopted a campaign, Operation Kgutla Molao – Restore Order, to improve existing strategies and urgently tackle safety concerns in schools affected by violence and crime. The plan has three elements:
• Improve safety features in schools;
• Stakeholder mobilisation; and
• Training and capacity building.

The following actions will be implemented until the end of the financial year next March:
• Security guards will be deployed to 75 schools across Gauteng. These schools are in areas with high crime and have also experienced violence or burglaries. These guards will join patrollers to safeguard the school’s personnel, property and infrastructure. They will also search for weapons and illegal substances to prevent them from entering the school premises.
• Some 245 schools in Gauteng received hand-held detectors to help screen for weapons. Resources permitting, these 245 schools will receive security guards. The 75 prioritised schools are part of the 245 identified as at high risk.
• Discipline will be enforced in all these schools to ensure punctuality and regular attendance by educators, all staff and learners. The School Governing Bodies (SGBs) in these schools must enforce and improve awareness of the schools’ Code of Conduct during assemblies.
• E-panic buttons will be distributed to more than 3 000 staff in the 245 schools. This forms part of the elevated priorities announced by Gauteng Premier Panyaza Lesufi during his 2023 State of the Province Address. Regular police and safety warden patrols will be implemented in these schools. In this regard, the Adopt-a-Cop programme will be reinforced to be more effective at crime prevention and detection and awareness.
This will be implemented in conjunction with the Department of Community Safety and E-Gov.
• Some 90 schools across the province will have CCTV cameras installed. In addition, schools will be linked to the cameras to be deployed by the provincial government.
• Multi-stakeholder school safety committees, under the banner of the SGBs, will be resuscitated or re-established in all schools, with priority given to the 245. Some of the committees’ tasks will be to do risk assessments, develop a school safety action plan and devise emergency plans and disaster management. The committees will receive appropriate training to empower them to fulfil these duties.
• Comment boxes were deployed to schools to enable anonymous reporting of bullying and harassment. Social workers will be responsible for analysing and responding to these reports.
• A QLTC (quality learning and teaching campaign) School Safety Summit is planned next month to bring together experts, principals, educators, learners, parents, government officials, police and SGBs to find solutions and cooperate in resolving violence and crime in schools. Regional summits will follow to take forward actions agreed upon at the provincial summit.

The community is urged to ensure school safety by calling the GDE call centre on 0800 000 789 to report any suspected acts of burglary, arson, violence, learner truancy or safety-related incidents. Alternatively, send a WhatsApp message on 060 891 0361 or use the department’s social media accounts on Facebook, Instagram or Twitter.

Also Read: Help stop teen suicide!